A LITTLE WILDLIFE PERSPECTIVE
How big is a bottlenose dolphin?
Compare your height to a bottlenose dolphin.
Common bottlenose dolphins measure roughly 1.8–4 m (6–13 ft) long. The comparison uses a 3 m adult in a horizontal swimming pose.
A LITTLE PERSPECTIVE
Bottlenose dolphin
next to the average.
Average U.S. adults, side by side.
Side view · example 3 m long adult
- Average man (U.S.)5 ft 8.9 in
- Bottlenose dolphin3 ft 8.1 in
- Average woman (U.S.)5 ft 3.5 in
How do you measure up?
Enter your height to stand beside a bottlenose dolphin.
Side by side
- Bottlenose dolphin3 ft 8.1 in
- Your placeAdd your height
The animal is an example adult in the pose shown. Its full outline is scaled to 112.1 cm vertically. Side view · example 3 m long adult. Shoulder height and body length are explained below.
Where do you stand?
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GET TO KNOW THE ANIMAL
Small facts. Big discoveries.
Common bottlenose dolphin · Tursiops truncatus
A curved dorsal fin and a short beak give the bottlenose dolphin its familiar outline. It uses sound to communicate and to locate prey underwater.
Bottlenose dolphins can hunt alone or cooperate to herd fish into a tight group. Their social groups may split apart and re-form as they travel through coastal or offshore waters.
- They grip fish with their teeth and usually swallow them whole.
- Calves can swim close beside their mothers while nursing.
How big do adults get?
- Male
- Shared species range: about 1.8–4 m long
- Female
- Shared species range: about 1.8–4 m long
These are species-wide lengths, not sex-specific averages. The drawing is scaled from the beak to the tail; the ruler includes the dorsal fin and flippers.
Height, length, or weight?
Standing height runs from the ground to the top of the animal. Shoulder height stops at the top of the shoulders. Length runs along the body; it is not how tall an animal stands. Weight tells us how heavy it is.
Explore the science: NOAA Fisheries ↗