Stenella longirostris
Silhouette: Chris huh · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~60%
The spinner dolphin (Stenella longirostris) is a small dolphin found in off-shore tropical waters around the world. It is famous for its acrobatic displays in which it rotates around its longitudinal axis as it leaps through the air. It is a member of the family Delphinidae of toothed whales.
The distribution of the spinner dolphin extends across the tropical and subtropical waters of all oceans. Spinner dolphins exhibit a diurnal schedule characterised by predictable daily geographic migrations, spending mornings resting and socialising in shallow coastal waters before travelling offshore to forage at night.
Concerns have been raised regarding the effects of anthropogenic activities on the species. Tourist vessels used for dolphin watching may disrupt normal behaviour, particularly when vessel numbers are high or when vessels approach dolphins more closely than permitted by local guidelines.
The spinner dolphin is sometimes referred to as the long-snouted dolphin, particularly in older texts, to distinguish it from the similar Clymene dolphin, which is often called the short-snouted spinner dolphin. The species was described by John Gray in 1828. The four named subspecies... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Raja Ampat | 🇮🇩 Indonesia |
More parks will be added in future updates.
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sea Life Park Hawaii | 🇺🇸 United States |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Long-snouted Spinner Dolphin sighting in Raja Ampat on a given day, based on 5 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 8th most-seen of the 13 mammals we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 30%, and over a week to about 60%, if each day is a fresh chance.
December
In that month about 30% of wildlife watchers report a Long-snouted Spinner Dolphin in Raja Ampat on a given day, against under 5% in January–July and September, the lowest months.
Between 8 and 11 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Long-snouted Spinner Dolphin sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Only Raja Ampat, in our data
Raja Ampat is the only park on Wallace's Line with enough records to rate Long-snouted Spinner Dolphin sightings: about 10% of wildlife watchers there report one on a given day.
Same family: Delphinidae
The closest relatives of the Long-snouted Spinner Dolphin that you can see in Raja Ampat (family Delphinidae, Oceanic Dolphins) are Indo-Pacific Bottlenose Dolphin (about 10%) and False Killer Whale (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Long-snouted Spinner Dolphin is recorded against all the mammals logged in Raja Ampat (5 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
