Tucuxi dolphin  (Sotalia fluviatilis)

Range

Occurring in the river systems of the Amazon and the Orinoco, as well as along the coasts from Brazil to Nicaragua, the tucuxi dolphin is split into two subspecies. The freshwater subspecies, Sotalia fluviatilis fluviatilis, inhabits only fresh water and is found as much as 250 kilometres up the Orinoco River system and as much as 2,500 km up the Amazon River system. The marine subspecies, Sotalia fluviatilis guianensis, is found in the coastal estuaries and bays of the east coast of South America as far south as the Brazilian city of Florianópolis (2).

View a distribution map for this species at UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre.

Habitat

The freshwater subspecies inhabits rivers and lakes, but is not found in flooded forests and avoids rapids, whereas the marine subspecies inhabits shallow, protected estuaries and bays (2).

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