Stenella

Stenella is a genus of marine mammals in Delphinidae, the family informally known as the oceanic dolphins.<ref name=C1>Template:Cite book</ref><ref name=C2>Template:Cite book</ref><ref name=C3>Template:Cite book</ref>

Species

Currently, five species are recognised in this genus:<ref name=C2/>

Image	Common Name	Scientific name	Distribution
File:PanTropSpDolpor (cropped).jpg	Pantropical spotted dolphin	S. attenuata	Tropical oceans worldwide
File:Atlantic spotted dolphin (Stenella frontalis) NOAA.jpg	Atlantic spotted dolphin	S. frontalis	Tropical and warm temperate Atlantic Ocean
File:A dolphin surfing the waves.jpg	Spinner dolphin	S. longirostris	Tropical oceans worldwide
File:Stenella clymene.jpg	Clymene dolphin	S. clymene	Tropical and warm temperate North Atlantic Ocean
File:Stenella coeruleoalba Ligurian Sea 02.jpg	Striped dolphin	S. coeruleoalba	Tropical and temperate oceans worldwide, including the Mediterranean

S. rayi was a species of this genus found in North Carolina, in the early Pliocene.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>

The common name for species in this genus is the "spotted dolphins" or the "bridled dolphins".<ref name="C1" /><ref name="C2" /> They are found in temperate and tropical seas all around the world.<ref name="C1" /><ref name="C2" /> Individuals of several species begin their lives spotless and become steadily more covered in darker spots as they get older.<ref name="C1" /><ref name="C2" />

The genus name comes from the Greek {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} meaning narrow.<ref name=C1/><ref name=C2/> It was coined by John Gray in 1866 when he intended it as a subgenus of Steno.<ref name=C1/> Modern taxonomists recognise two genera.<ref name=C1/><ref name=C2/>

The clymene dolphin (S. clymene) is the only confirmed case of hybrid speciation in marine mammals, descending from the spinner dolphin (S. longirostris) and the striped dolphin (S. coeruleoalba).<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>

Stenella dolphins tend to be more active during nighttime and spend their daytime resting. Although these dolphins are supposed to spend 60% of their daytime resting, they happen to be exposed to human activities for 80% of their day. These patterns of sleep deprivation can have negative impact on their resting habit and leads to decline in their population size.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>

References

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