Striped dolphins are seen infrequently on Tenerife whale and dolphin watching tours along Costa Adeje.

Striped Dolphins in Tenerife

Stenella coeruleoalba

occasional visitors to the Costa Adeje in Tenerife are the Striped dolphins

Striped Dolphin Sightings

Striped dolphins are one of the infrequently observed species on our whale and dolphin watching tours in Costa Adeje, Tenerife. They are typically in large pods of 30 or more dolphins with a mix of adults, juveniles and babies. These are oceanic pods and often swimming at a rapid pace making observations very exciting. The Striped dolphin is a very active species, often making synchronised jumps and other unique aerial activity as they seem to enjoy a very fast paced lifestyle.

Our custom built whale watching boat and sightings network gives us the best chance to find pods of Striped dolphins as they are usually transiting rapidly or hunting several kilometres offshore. These hunts are usually in groups of only Striped dolphins although we have observed them closely hunting with Common dolphins. Finding actively hunting marine bird species like the Cory Shearwater and Yellow Footed Gull are one of the ways we find the pods of Striped dolphins in Tenerife.

Striped Dolphin Info

The Striped dolphin (Stenella coeruleoalba) has a global distribution in warm temperate and tropical seas. They are a small dolphin species reaching 2.4 meters, up to 160kg and live up to 60 years. They travel very quickly reaching approximately 15 kilometres per hour. They eat mostly small schooling fish and in Tenerife often small species of squid, diving up to 700 meters for during their hunts.

The Striped dolphin are often seen in pods from 10 to over 100 individuals with mixed groups of adults, juveniles and babies. They tend to be very active with long high jumps and are even seen tail dancing across the ocean surface. They travel following their food source and have an infrequent sightings record here in Costa Adeje, Tenerife. Observing Striped dolphins is always an exciting moment with lots of high energy and thrilling moments for our guests.