Hawaii’s common bottlenose dolphin reports concentrate along the calmer leeward coasts of the main Hawaiian Islands, especially around the Big Island of Hawaiʻi and Oʻahu, and in the deep channels that separate the islands. Unlike the near-shore forms found along parts of the US mainland, Hawaii’s dolphins spend much of their time working deeper, current-swept water just off the coast rather than shallow bays.
It hunts using echolocation clicks to find fish and squid, then closes in alone or with other dolphins working together, and uses a separate set of whistles to keep the group coordinated. That flexible, cooperative hunting style suits the deep channel waters between islands as well as it suits any mainland bay.
Records here run year-round with a clear peak in January and February. A cluster of sightings shows where boaters and researchers have looked and reported, not where the population is thickest, and gaps in the record don’t mean the dolphins aren’t there.
Full species profile
