It is found along Atlantic coasts, European shores and the Mediterranean Sea. The Pacific bottlenose inhabits the waters off southern California and occurs as far south as Central America.
Females are slightly smaller or the same size as males.
The sleek torpedo-shaped body is padded by a layer of blubber. Elongated snouts account for the name bottlenose. Click image for big picture. In the open water, dolphins swim in close-knit, precise ranks called pods. A hierarchy exists in the swimming order with the more dominant animals and the strongest swimmers at the top of the water.