Bottlenose Dolphin

The dolphins in Hilton Head have a unique way of hunting called strand feeding. This is when they get together and push a big wave of water onto a mudbank and eat the fish they’ve trapped, then wiggle back into the water.

Dolphins can see with sound even in murky water ,by using sonar, or echolocation.

You can identify an individual dolphin by the shape of its dorsal fin and its fluke shape. The dorsal fin and fluke shape are unique for every dolphin, much like a human fingerprint. Each dolphin also has their very own, unique signature whistle.

Atlantic Bottlenose dolphins are the species of dolphins found in Hilton Head.

Dolphins can live to be around 40-50 years old, but some female dolphins have been seen to outlive their male counterparts and reach over 60 years. 

The largest kind of dolphin in the world may surprise you, its an Orca! These guys can be anywhere from 16-26 feet long and weigh between 3 and 6 tons. The dorsal fins of males can be close to 6 feet while female dorsal fins tend to be about half that height. 

Female dolphins are pregnant for 12 months, but the tradeoff is that the calves are fully grown after about 2 years. The calves are born tail first and another female dolphin helps bring them up to the surface for their first breath.

​Calves are born much darker and appear almost black when they are first born but they lighten to grey as they grow. They are between 3-4 ft long and weigh around 30-60 pounds when they are first born.