What Part of the World Do Dolphins Live In?

Dolphins can be found in both tropical climates and the colder waters of the northern and southern poles. It’s important to note that there are many different kinds of dolphins—around 40 to 45 species have been identified—and different kinds live in different parts of the world, with at least one species living in each type of environment. Some species of dolphin prefer specific water temperatures, while others live in particular places because of the food that is available to eat there.

Bottlenose Dolphins Prefer Warm Water

The bottlenose dolphins are the most well known type of dolphin. These dolphins prefer warm water to cold, so it makes sense that they can be found in all the world’s oceans except for the Arctic and Antarctic Oceans.

In the Pacific Ocean, bottlenose dolphins typically live from northern Japan to Australia and from Southern California to Chile. However, though they usually stop in southern California, when it has been unusually warm they have been seen as far north as Monterey, California. They have also been spotted as far west as the Hawaiian Islands.

While studying the Atlantic Ocean, scientists learned that bottlenose dolphins are the most prevalent species of dolphin from Cape Cod down to the Gulf of Mexico, living along the east coast of the United States.

Types of Bottlenose Dolphins

There seem to be two types of bottlenose dolphins in the northwest Atlantic: the coastal ecotype (ecotype means form) and the offshore ecotype. The coastal ecotype live in warm, shallow water, and the offshore ecotype gravitate towards deeper, colder water.

Looking at the rest of the Atlantic Ocean, bottlenose dolphins can be found from Nova Scotia to Patagonia and from Norway to the bottom of South Africa. Aside from the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, bottlenose dolphins also call the Mediterranean Sea and the Indian Ocean from Australia to South Africa home.

Dolphins that live in colder water tend to migrate to warmer water when the weather turns cold, while those living in warmer water to begin with do not have major migratory patterns. It is hard to say for sure how deep in the oceans dolphins go, but it appears that bottlenose dolphins don’t dive deeper than 150 feet.

Bottlenose Dolphins in Rivers

In addition to the oceans, bottlenose dolphins also live in bays, harbors, lagoons, estuaries, and gulfs. Dolphins that live in rivers may stay there for the entirety of their lives, never going into an ocean.

Prevalence of Bottlenose Dolphins

It is also difficult to say how many bottlenose dolphins exist, but some estimates have been made.

In the Mediterranean, there are thought to be less than 10,000.
In the western North Atlantic Ocean off of the United States, 11,000 to 12,000 are thought to live.
The most seem to be found off the Gulf of Mexico of the United States, where the numbers reach an estimated 67,000.
In the western North Pacific Ocean and along the Japanese coasts, about 35,000 are found.

Other Species

Though the bottlenose dolphin is the most populous, other species exist as well. In the Atlantic Ocean is found the Atlantic spotted dolphin, which lives everywhere in the temperate and tropical parts of the ocean but not in the Arctic or Antarctic.

Though many dolphins steer clear of very cold climates, the dusky dolphin and the cruciger dolphin can be found in Antarctica. In the Amazon River, you can find the pink dolphin. Other species that live in rivers are the Platanistidae, more simply known as the Ganges and Indus River dolphins, and the Iniidae, also known as the boto or Amazon River dolphin (though it also lives in the Orinoco River).