NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Pantropical Spotted Dolphin
Stenella attenuata (Gray, 1846)
Source-backed taxonomic record
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
A pan tropical spotted dolphin is seen as it swims, its markings visible through the water, seen in Costa Rica's Golfo Dulce in 2025
Julio-César Chávez · CC BY 4.0 · Image sourceProvider-generated thumbnail requested at 800 pixels; no local editing Local WebP display rendition; resized without cropping.
Open encyclopedia reference
The pantropical spotted dolphin (Stenella attenuata) is a species of dolphin found in all the world's temperate and tropical oceans. The species was beginning to come under threat due to the killing of millions of individuals in tuna purse seines. In the 1980s, the rise of "dolphin-friendly" tuna capture methods saved millions of the species in the eastern Pacific Ocean and it is now one of the most abundant dolphin species in the world.
Wikipedia contributors, Pantropical spotted dolphin; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T11:46:54.422688+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Stenella attenuata (Gray, 1846)
- Name authority
- (Gray, 1846)
- Common name
- Pantropical Spotted Dolphin
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Mammalia
- Order
- Cetacea
- Family
- Delphinidae
- Genus
- Stenella
- Extinction status
- Recorded extant
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classMammalia Linnaeus, 1758
- subclassTheria Parker & Haswell, 1897
- infraclassEutheria Gill, 1872
- orderCetacea Brisson, 1762
- suborderOdontoceti Flower, 1867
- familyDelphinidae Gray, 1821
- genusStenella Gray, 1866
- speciesStenella attenuata (Gray, 1846)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Stenella. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Atlantic Spotted DolphinStenella frontalis (G. Cuvier, 1829) | DelphinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Striped DolphinStenella coeruleoalba (Meyen, 1833) | DelphinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Delphinus dubius G. Cuvier, 1812 G. Cuvier, 1812 | synonym |
| Steno attenuatus Gray, 1846 Gray, 1846 | synonym |
| Stenella dubia (G. Cuvier, 1812) (G. Cuvier, 1812) | synonym |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
Eastern Atlantic Ocean
Indo-West Pacific
Western Atlantic Ocean
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=180430 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:6ZJBD. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.