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Pacific White Sided Dolphins

Pacific White Sided Dolphins are aquatic mammals.

Pacific White Sided Dolphin Classification:

Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Cetacea
Family: Delphinidae
Genus: Lagenorhynchus
Species: Obliquidens

Other Names: Lag, Pacific Striped Dolphin, White-striped Dolphin, and Hook-finned Porpoise

Size: Pacific White Sided Dolphins are approximately 7.5-8 feet long and weigh 330- 440 lbs. The female White Sided Dolphins are significantly smaller than their male counterparts.

Habitat: Pacific White Sided Dolphins are found in the cool to temperate waters of the North Pacific Ocean and neighboring seas.

Diet: Pacific White Sided Dolphins prey on hake, anchovies, squid, herring, salmon and cod.

Pacific White Sided Dolphin Photo
Pacific White Sided Dolphin

Conservation Status: Not Endangered

Pacific white Sided Dolphin Picture

Description: The Pacific White Sided Dolphin is easy to identify with its short, distinct beak and black back with striking light-gray sides and a white belly. They are a robust dolphin and have a curved dorsal fin. They have a blunt beak.

Communication: Pacific White Sided Dolphins use whistle vocalizations to communicate among themselves. Like all dolphins, Pacific White Sided Dolphin use echolocation to locate objects, such as prey and obstacles.

Did You Know?


Pacific White Sided Dolphins were considered as fish by the Greek philosophers until 1758, when it was reclassified as a mammal.

Gestation: Pacific White Sided Dolphins carry their young for 10 to 12 months.

Birth: Pacific White Sided Dolphins are are 2.5-4 feet long and weigh about 35 lbs.

Calves: Pacific White Sided Dolphin calves will nurse for up to 8 to 10 months. The females give birth every 4.5-5 years.

Sexual Maturity: Female Pacific White Sided Dolphins reach sexual maturity at at 7 years of age. Male Pacific White Sided Dolphins sexually mature between the ages of 9 to 12.

Life Span: Pacific White Sided Dolphins can live in excess of 40 years. Both sharks and killer whales are natural predators of the Pacific White Sided Dolphin.

Social Structure: Pacific White Sided Dolphins socialize with other cetaceans. Pods with 90 are not uncommon, and on occasion they form super pods of more than 300 dolphins. Pacific white Sided Dolphins are highly social and playful in nature. Pacific White Sided Dolphins have been observed with northern right whale dolphins, Risso’s dolphins, and humpback and gray whales. Even seals and sea lions have been observed as Pacific White Sided dolphin playmates.

Athleticism: Pacific White Sided Dolphins are frequently seen leaping and somersaulting out of the water. They are common bow riders, riding the wakes of boats.

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