Bottlenose Dolphin

Photo: Frank Krasovec · CC BY-NC

Resident bottlenose dolphins around Motu Nui are among the most interactive underwater dolphin encounters in the Pacific, frequently approaching divers with curiosity and escorting them along the wall for extended periods. Their social complexity is evident in the varied behaviors visible here — mothers with calves, juveniles at play, and adults coordinating hunts over the submerged reef shelf. Because Easter Island supports no large fishing fleet, the dolphins here have had little negative contact with humans and remain genuinely curious.