Species guide
Striped dolphin
Stenella coeruleoalba
At a glance
Conservation, taxonomy and Madeira records reviewed . Review sources.
- Global IUCN conservation status
- Least Concern — assessment published .
Global extinction risk is separate from sighting frequency in Madeira.
- Identification
- Dark upper side, greyish blaze flanks and white or pink undersides
- Thin dark stripe from eye to underside of tail stock. Some variable stripes behind the eye.
- Size
- Maximum length: 2.7 m
- Recorded occurrence in Madeira
- Reported on local trips, including September 2026.
- Madeira records and season
- Habitat models suggest year-round potential, with higher suitability in spring/early summer.
Identification and size summarize profile notes updated . Local records are past observations, not a prediction of sightings.
Read the identification notes ↓- Taxonomic authority
- (Meyen, 1833)
- Family
- Delphinidae
- Cetacean group
- Odontoceti
Sightings in Madeira
Our September 2026 trip report lists this species. This is an operator observation, not a population estimate.
Habitat models suggest year-round potential, with higher suitability in spring/early summer. Madeira habitat research. Modelled habitat suitability describes environmental conditions, not the probability of seeing an animal on a trip.
ID characteristics
Dark upper side, greyish blaze flanks and white or pink undersides
Thin dark stripe from eye to underside of tail stock. Some variable stripes behind the eye.
Dorsal fin is tall, dark and centered in the body length
Medium, dark beak and rounded melon
Surface behaviour
Fast moving, energetic swimmer and acrobatic
Sometimes plays at the bow of boats
Distribution
Around the world from 50º North to 50º South.
Warm temperate, subtropical and tropical waters worldwide.
Social
In groups between 10 and a few hundred individuals
Diet
Fish, squid and crustaceans
Biometrics
Max length: 2.7 m
Adult weight: 90 to 150 kg
Common names in other languages
- Portuguese: Golfinho riscado
- German: Streifendelfin, Blau-weißer Delfin
- French: Dauphin bleu et blanc, Dauphin rayé
- Spanish: Delfín listado, Delfín blanco y azul
- Italian: Stenella striata
- Dutch: Gestreepte dolfijn
- Polish: Delfin pręgoboki
- Swedish: Strimmig delfin
- Danish: Stribet delfin
- Norwegian: Stripedelfin
Names vary by language and region. This list is not exhaustive. Multilingual name records.
Review sources
Conservation, taxonomy, local occurrence and seasonality checked on . The assessment publication year is separate from this editorial review date. Identification, size, other biology notes and multilingual aliases are outside this review unless a specific source is cited alongside them.
- IUCN Red List: Stenella coeruleoalba — global species assessment, published 2019.
- Society for Marine Mammalogy: species and subspecies list (April 2026) — Scientific names, authorities, families and English names. Mysticeti and Odontoceti are treated as unranked groups.
- IUCN SSC Cetacean Specialist Group: Red List status of cetaceans — Global species categories cross-checked against the specialist group's overview, updated October 2025. Regional and subpopulation assessments are separate.
- IUCN Cetacean Specialist Group: March 2019 assessments — Global bottlenose and striped dolphin assessments.
- Freitas et al. (2012): New records of cetacean species for Madeira Archipelago with an updated checklist — Table 1 and species accounts distinguish sightings, catches and strandings. Record totals and last-record dates describe evidence available through December 2012.
- Fernandez et al. (2021): Modeling fine-scale cetacean distributions in Madeira — Models based on observations from 2003–2018. Seasonal habitat suitability is not a forecast of sightings or proof that animals are absent in other months.
The linked trip reports document operator observations. They do not independently confirm every identification or measure population size, abundance or the probability of a sighting.