Atlantic Spotted Dolphin

Photo: dougnaturalist · © all rights reserved

Atlantic spotted dolphins use the Speery pinnacle chain as a hunting ground, herding small fish against the rocky topography in coordinated ambush attacks that divers can observe at close range. The species is characteristically bold, regularly joining divers mid-dive and mimicking their fin kicks in a behaviour researchers interpret as play or social learning. Saint Helena's population is resident rather than migratory, giving it a degree of habituation to the island's dive boats that makes encounters here more reliable and extended than most Atlantic dolphin dive experiences.