Striped Dolphin - Taxonomy

Taxonomy

The Striped Dolphin is one of five species traditionally included in the genus Stenella; however, recent genetic work by LeDuc et al. (1999) indicates that Stenella, as traditionally conceived, is not a natural group. According to that study, the closest relatives of the Striped Dolphin are the Clymene Dolphin, the Common Dolphins, the Atlantic Spotted Dolphin, and "Tursiops" aduncus, which was formerly considered a subspecies of the Bottlenose Dolphin. The Striped Dolphin was described by Franz Meyen in 1833. The specific name coeruleoalba (from Latin caeruleus 'dark blue' and albus 'white') refers to the characteristic blue and white stripes on the flanks.