Endemic to Chile’s coast from around Valparaíso south to Tierra del Fuego, it hugs shallow waters, slipping into bays, estuaries, fjords, and even the lower reaches of rivers. Think kelp beds, tide-swept channels, and green, silty coves rather than the open blue. It’s compact and barrel-chested with a blunt, beakless head, rounded flippers, and a low, rounded dorsal fin—an overall “stocky” silhouette that sets it apart from sleeker oceanic dolphins. Its color is mostly soft gray with paler undersides, lacking the bold black-and-white patterns of some close relatives, which is why locals often call it tonina (little dolphin).

Life in the nearshore lane shapes almost everything this dolphin does. Groups are usually small—often just a handful of animals—that work tidal fronts and current lines where prey bunches up. The diet is a coastal mix: small fishes, cephalopods, and crustaceans taken by quick lunges and agile turns in tight spaces. In Chile’s inner seas, these dolphins favor hotspots with shallow water near river mouths, a pattern repeated across multiple fjords and channels. Their close-to-home lifestyle brings them into regular contact with people: salmon and mussel farms, inshore nets, and boat traffic. Those same structures can concentrate prey but also introduce risks like entanglement in gillnets or anti-predator cage nets around farms.

The Chilean dolphin is the understated specialist: less contrasty, more inshore, and remarkably faithful to its patchwork of protected coves. It isn’t a high-flier or a frequent bow-rider; many groups keep a low profile, surfacing with a gentle roll and a small, forward puff. Calving seems to peak in spring, but much of its breeding cycle is still pieced together from long, careful fieldwork—this coastal stealth dolphin is hard to study in cloudy, tidal water. Even so, researchers have mapped clusters of “hotspot” habitat and shown how local populations can be tiny—dozens rather than hundreds—making each bay’s group important.

Distribution

Country

Population est.

Status

Year

Comments

Argentina

2017

Seasonality Uncertain

Chile

2017