A common dolphin breaking the surface of the water to come up for air. Common dolphins are very playful and love jumping out of the water. Expose themselves to the air regulates their body temperature when they get too warm. Photo: Wildlife Coast Cruises.
Common dolphins hold the title of the fastest dolphin species with their maximum swimming speed reaching up to 60km/h. Photo: Enorha Guimard.
Common dolphins have a cream to light grey coloured hourglass shape on the sides of their bodies and are a dark grey colour on the rest of their bodies. This is always an easy way to tell if it is a common dolphin when you see one of the two species in our bays. Photo: Wildlife Coast Cruises
Welcome to the Marine Mili series, a regular column about all things marine! During this series I aim to inspire people to want to protect our oceans and all the marine life that call our oceans home. Hopefully after reading each column, you would have learnt something new, including what we can do to help protect and preserve our oceans. You can follow me and my journey on my Instagram page: _marine_mili.
Common dolphins are one of two dolphin species that call Victoria home, the other is bottlenose dolphins.
Common dolphins can grow to 2.5 metres in length which is smaller than their bottlenose cousins that can get to 3.8 metres.
Common dolphins have a cream to light grey coloured hourglass shape on the sides of their bodies. This helps us differentiate them from bottlenose dolphins.
Their beak area is long and sleek compared to bottlenose dolphins and their dorsal fin is also slightly more triangular in shape.
Common dolphins also hold the title of the fastest dolphin species with their maximum swimming speed reaching up to 60 kilometres an hour.
Common dolphins are very playful and love jumping out of the water. While many assume that they are just having fun, there are some special reasons they might do this.
One reason is to expose themselves to the air which regulates their body temperature when they get too warm. Another reason is to get an above or birds' eye view of their prey. This is a key hunting skill they often use, as they can jump a few metres high in the air.
Phillip Island is visited by many common dolphins; however one has an interesting story.
First spotted off Phillip Island in June 2016 by the Dolphin Research Institute, and named Traveller, it was the first common dolphin to be recorded moving in and out of Port Phillip Bay.
Since the first time she was seen, she has been sighted off the Mornington Peninsula, and in Port Phillip Bay on many occasions. She has even been spotted with her very own young calf.
Next time you are out by the seashore, keep an eye out for these incredible dolphins. You never know, you might just spot Traveller on one of her frequent visits to Phillip Island.
If you are lucky enough to spot any dolphins, please report your sightings to the Dolphin Research Institute via ‘PodWatch’ on their website to help support ongoing research and conservation efforts.
