sides; white or pink
with grayish regions on on belly; may appear brownish
chest and belly; very in water.
old animals white and
scarred.

DORSAL FIN

To 15 inches (38.1 cm); To 12 inches (30.5 cm) less
sharply falcate; pointed sharply falcate; pointed on
on tip. tip.

HEAD COLOR AND SHAPE

Blunted and creased on Uniformly brownish to gray
front; frequently all distinctly bottlenosed.
white in larger animals.

MARKINGS

Very often extensively Less frequently scratched
scarred. and scarred.

Distribution

Grampus are known to be distributed in temperate and tropical seas from
at least eastern Newfoundland, south at least to St. Vincent, Lesser
Antilles, and in the eastern and northern Gulf of Mexico. The species
may not be as rare as the paucity of records suggests. Though they have
been seen in Buzzards Bay on several occasions, grampus generally have
an oceanic range and, along the Atlantic coast of North America, may be
distributed from the Gulf Stream seaward, outside the theater of normal
boating traffic.

Stranded Specimens

Stranded grampus are most readily identifiable by 1) the presence of
only seven, or fewer, teeth in each side of the lower jaw (many of those
teeth may have dropped out in older animals and remaining teeth may be
extensively worn) and the absence of teeth in the upper jaw; 2) the
presence of a distinct crease or bifurcation in the melon on the extreme
front of the head; 3) the presence of numerous scratches and scars all
over the body; and 4) the tall, slender, sharply falcate dorsal fin
which may be more than 15 inches (38.1 cm) tall.

[Illustration: Figure 103.--Grampus are frequently found in small tight
groups "porpoising." From a distance they may resemble the Atlantic
bottlenosed dolphins, though grampus have taller dorsal fins, blunted
beakless heads, and lighter coloration. (_Photo off Washington State by
C. Fiscus._)]

[Illustration: Figure 104.--Grampus off Fistler, Scotland (top) and from
Baja California in the tank of Sea World, Inc., San Diego, Calif.
(bottom). Note the tall pointed dorsal fin, which remains dark even in
adult animals, the blunted head, which lacks a beak, and the extensive
scarring of the body. In the photo on the right, note also the long
pointed flippers and the white head characteristic of older animals.
(_P