Two rare hybrids of a common dolphin and a striped dolphin have been spotted in UK waters off the coast of Falmouth for what is believed to be the first time.
The pair of cetaceans, spotted in Falmouth, are a cross between a common dolphin and a striped dolphin. The hybrid dolphins were sighted swimming near Falmouth Bay, with a pod of common dolphins by tourists and crew members on board a tour boat in Falmouth operated by AK Wildlife Cruises.
The lucky passengers and crew of a boat tour cruising off the coast of England found themselves treated to the rare sight of two hybrid dolphins frolicking among a pod of common dolphins alongside their boat.
The sighting occurred off the coast of Falmouth, Cornwall, in southwest England. The hybrid dolphins are a species that has never before been reported swimming in the area.
Passengers and crew on the tour boat, run by AK Wildlife Cruises, noticed two dolphins in the pod had unusual features and reported the sighting to the United Kingdom charity, the Sea Watch Foundation, who confirmed that the dolphin was a hybrid.
Striped dolphins (Stenella coeruleoalba) are similar to the short-beaked common dolphin (Delphinus delphis) in size and shape, according to the Sea Watch Foundation. Striped dolphins are easily identifiable owing to their distinct colour pattern of bold, thin black stripes running from their eye to their flipper and another set of stripes down the side of their body. The hybrid dolphins shared features of both species. Common dolphins in contrast, have an “hourglass” color pattern. It is a dark gray cape spanning the back of their head to below the dorsal fin, creating an hourglass image. They shared both the hourglass pattern on their underside which is a distinctive feature of a common dolphin and the colouring of the common dolphin. Yet they also shared the distinct black and white stripes like a striped dolphin. They were reported to be breaching more vertically and more frequently than their common dolphin counterparts.
Striped dolphins live in the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean, off the coasts of France, and the Iberian Peninsula. They are occasionally spotted off the coasts of Britain, Ireland, and Scotland. Common dolphins, on the other hand, are abundant in the waters off the English coast.
Another hybrid dolphin has been spotted and documented off the coast of Falmouth, since then, making it the second sighting in less than a month.
Leeanne Sullivan, a volunteer crew member at AK Wildlife Cruises, was on board when the group spotted the first dolphin. The crew are also of the opinion that there is a chance that the first hybrid dolphin they spotted might be pregnant.
Leanne added that on further looking at the photo, they think they may be able to see a distended stomach on the hybrid dolphin which could suggest it is pregnant, which would be huge news.
The Sea Watch Foundation are of the belief that the sighting is a reminder of the dynamic nature of cetacean populations, and hopes that it shows the importance of studying these animals.
According to the Sea Watch Foundation, spotting a cross between a common dolphin species and a striped dolphin is a “relatively uncommon” encounter in the UK. Although cetacean species do interbreed regularly, it is unusual to see cross-breeding between the striped and common dolphin, according to the foundation.
Striped dolphins are not often to be seen in the waters near the United Kingdom. The charity organization stated however, that there have been a few reported sightings in the past although this is the first time such a sighting has been reported in the Cornish waters.Harbor porpoises and bottlenose dolphins are most likely to be spotted around the UK waters. However, according to the UK charity, Whale and Dolphin Conservation, around 28 different species of whales and dolphins have been identified, Common dophins sometimes can be spotted deeper offshores. Striped dolphins are however, rarely seen, which was a rare sight when the boaters spotted the hybrid dolphins.
