Learning Center What is a mineral?The most common minerals on earth Information for Educators Mindat Articles The Elements The Rock H. Currier Digital Library Geologic Time

Minerals by Properties Minerals by Chemistry Advanced Locality Search Random Mineral Random Locality Search by minID Localities Near Me Search Articles Search Glossary More Search Options

The Mindat Manual Add a New Photo Rate Photos Locality Edit Report Coordinate Completion Report Add Glossary Item

Mining Companies Statistics Users Mineral Museums Clubs & Organizations Mineral Shows & Events The Mindat Directory Device Settings The Mineral Quiz

Photo Search Photo Galleries Search by Color New Photos Today New Photos Yesterday Members' Photo Galleries Past Photo of the Day Gallery Photography

BETA TEST - Fossil data and pages are very much experimental and under development. Please report any problems

Delphinus

Photos

Photo Gallery

Source Data

Source	ID	Link
Global Biodiversity Information Facility ID (GBIF)	Not linked to a GBIF record.
PaleoBioDB ID (PBDB)	36703	https://paleobiodb.org/classic/checkTaxonInfo?taxon_no=36703

Rank

genus (PBDB)

Taxonomy (PBDB)

Life : Animalia : Chordata : Mammalia : Cetacea : Delphinidae : Delphinus

Classification
(PBDB,GBIF)

Rank	Name	Author
-	Eukaryota
-	Opisthokonta	Cavalier-Smith 1987
kingdom	Animalia
-	Triploblastica	Lankester 1877
-	Nephrozoa	Jondelius et al. 2002
-	Deuterostomia	Grobben 1908
phylum	Chordata	Haeckel 1847
subphylum	Vertebrata	Lamarck 1801
superclass	Gnathostomata	Gegenbauer 1874
-	Osteichthyes
-	Sarcopterygii	Romer 1955
subclass	Dipnotetrapodomorpha
subclass	Tetrapodomorpha
-	Tetrapoda
-	Reptiliomorpha	Säve-Söderbergh 1934
-	Anthracosauria	Säve-Söderbergh 1934
-	Batrachosauria
-	Cotylosauria
-	Amniota	Haeckel 1866
-	Synapsida	Osborn 1903
-	Therapsida
infraorder	Cynodontia
-	Epicynodontia	Hopson and Kitching 2001
infraorder	Eucynodontia	Kemp 1982
-	Probainognathia	Hopson 1990
-	Mammaliamorpha	Rowe 1988
-	Mammaliaformes	Rowe 1988
class	Mammalia	Linnaeus 1758
order	Cetacea	Brisson 1762
-	Pelagiceti	Uhen 2008
-	Neoceti	Fordyce and de Muizon 2001
suborder	Odontoceti	Flower 1867
infraorder	Delphinida	Muizon 1984
superfamily	Delphinoidea	Flower 1865
family	Delphinidae	Gray 1821
subfamily	Delphininae	Flower 1867
genus	Delphinus	Linnaeus 1758

Common Name

common dolphin

Opinions (PBDB)

Name	Rank	Opinion	Evidence	Author
Delphinus	genus	belongs to Cete	stated without evidence	Linnaeus, 1758
Delphinus	genus	belongs to Delphinidae	stated without evidence	Gray, 1821
Delphinus	genus	belongs to Delphinina	stated without evidence	Gray, 1825
Delphinus	genus	belongs to Delphinidae	stated without evidence	De Kay, 1842
Delphinus	genus	belongs to Delphinina	stated without evidence	Gray, 1846
Delphinus	genus	belongs to Delphinidae	stated without evidence	Gray, 1850
Delphinus	genus	belongs to Delphinina	stated without evidence	Gray, 1864
Delphinus	genus	belongs to Delphinidae	stated without evidence	Gray, 1866
Delphinus	genus	belongs to Delphininae	stated without evidence	Flower, 1867
Delphinus	genus	belongs to Delphinina	stated without evidence	Gray, 1868
Delphinus	genus	belongs to Delphinidae	stated without evidence	Scammon and Cope, 1869
Delphinus	genus	belongs to Delphininae	stated without evidence	Gill, 1871
Delphinus	genus	belongs to Delphinidae	stated without evidence	Ameghino, 1889
Delphinus	genus	belongs to Delphininae	stated without evidence	Hay, 1902
Delphinus	genus	belongs to Delphinidae	stated without evidence	Palmer, 1904
Delphinus	genus	belongs to Delphinoceti	stated without evidence	Abel, 1919
Delphinus	genus	belongs to Delphinidae	stated without evidence	Zittel, 1925
Delphinus	genus	belongs to Delphininae	stated without evidence	Weber, 1928
Delphinus	genus	belongs to Delphinidae	stated without evidence	Dal Piaz, 1929
Delphinus	genus	belongs to Delphininae	stated without evidence	Hay, 1930
Delphinus	genus	belongs to Delphinidae	stated without evidence	Simpson, 1945
Delphinus	genus	belongs to Delphininae	stated without evidence	Fraser and Purves, 1960
Delphinus	genus	belongs to Delphinidae	stated without evidence	Hershkovitz, 1966
Delphinus	genus	belongs to Delphininae	stated without evidence	Kasuya, 1973
Delphinus	genus	belongs to Delphinidae	stated without evidence	Barnes, 1977
Delphinus	genus	belongs to Delphinidae	stated with evidence	Pilleri, 1987
Delphinus	genus	belongs to Delphinidae	implied	Carroll, 1988
Delphinus	genus	belongs to Delphininae	stated without evidence	de Muizon, 1988
Delphinus	genus	belongs to Delphininae	implied	McKenna and Bell, 1997
Delphinus	genus	belongs to Delphinidae	stated without evidence	Rice, 1998
Delphinus	genus	belongs to Delphininae	stated without evidence	LeDuc et al., 1999
Delphinus	genus	belongs to Cetacea	second hand	Sepkoski, 2002
Delphinus	genus	belongs to Delphininae	implied	Buchholtz and Schur, 2004
Delphinus	genus	belongs to Delphinidae	stated without evidence	Mead and Brownell, 2005
Delphinus	genus	belongs to Delphininae	stated without evidence	Agnarsson and May-Collado, 2008
Delphinus	genus	belongs to Delphinidae	stated without evidence	Fordyce and Roberts, 2009
Delphinus	genus	belongs to Delphininae	stated without evidence	Geisler et al., 2011
Delphinus	genus	belongs to Delphinidae	stated with evidence	Murakami et al., 2014
Delphinus	genus	belongs to Delphininae	stated with evidence	Marx et al., 2016

Status (PBDB)

extant

Taxon Size (PBDB)

Extant Size (PBDB)

5 (38%)

First Recorded Appearance

23.0 - 20.4 Ma
Miocene

Environment

marine,freshwater (based on Odontoceti)

Motility

actively mobile (based on Cetacea)

Diet

piscivore, carnivore (based on Delphinidae)

Reproduction

viviparous (based on Odontoceti)

Ontogeny

modification of parts (based on Cetacea)

Taphonomy

hydroxylapatite (based on Odontoceti)

Primary Reference (PBDB)

C. Linnaeus. 1758. Systema Naturae per Regna Tria Naturae, Secundum Classes, Ordines, Genera, Species, cum Characteribus, Differentiis, Synonymis, Locis. Editio Decima 1:1-824

Fossil Distribution

Subtaxa

Name	Status	Common Name(s)	Fossil Occurrences	Oldest	Youngest
Delphinus brevidens ✝ species	accepted (GBIF) listed (PBDB)		2	23.0 Ma Miocene	23.0 Ma Miocene
Delphinus capensis species	doubtful (GBIF) listed (PBDB)	Long-beaked Common Dolphin			0 Ma Extant
Delphinus delannoy ✝ species	accepted (GBIF) listed (PBDB)		2	13.8 Ma Miocene	5.33 Ma Miocene
Delphinus delphis species	accepted (GBIF) listed (PBDB)	Short-beaked Common Dolphin	20	5.33 Ma Miocene	0 Ma Extant
Delphinus dewaeli ✝ species	accepted (GBIF) listed (PBDB)
Delphinus domeykoi ✝ species	accepted (GBIF) listed (PBDB)		2	16.0 Ma Miocene	5.33 Ma Miocene
Delphinus rikuzenensis ✝ species	accepted (GBIF) listed (PBDB)		1	5.33 Ma Miocene	5.33 Ma Miocene
Delphinus taramelli ✝ species	listed (PBDB)		2	23.0 Ma Miocene	16.0 Ma Miocene
Delphinus capensis tropicalis subspecies	accepted (GBIF) listed (PBDB)				0 Ma Extant
Delphinus wasii ✝ species	accepted (GBIF) listed (PBDB)
Eudelphinus compressus ✝ species	accepted (GBIF) listed (PBDB)

Synonymy List

Year	Name and Author
1758	Delphinus Linnaeus p. 77
1780	Delphinus tursio Fabricius
1789	Delphinus feres Bonnaterre
1804	Delphinus feres Lacépède p. 312
1811	Delphinus Illiger p. 143
1817	Delphinus coronatus Blainville p. 152
1817	Delphinus pernettensis Blainville p. 154
1817	Delphinus bertini Desmarest
1818	Delphinus niger Lacepede
1821	Delphinus Gray p. 310
1822	Delphinus pernettyi Desmarest
1825	Delphinus Gray p. 340
1826	Delphinus lunatus Lesson
1826	Delphinus minimus Lesson
1829	Delphinus coronatus Fischer p. 505
1829	Delphinus pernettyi Fischer p. 506
1829	Delphinus tursio Fischer p. 506
1829	Delphinus feres Fischer p. 513
1842	Delphinus De Kay p. 136
1846	Delphinus Gray p. 35
1846	Delphinus tursio Gray p. 37
1846	Delphinus Gray p. 85
1847	Delphinus tursio Nilsson p. 602
1850	Delphinus Gray p. 105
1850	Delphinus tursio Gray p. 109
1852	Delphinus tursio Gervais p. 149
1853	Delphinus Pictet p. 381
1863	Delphinus Gray p. 200
1864	Delphinus Gray p. 236
1864	Delphinus (Clymene) tursio Gray p. 237
1866	Steno coronatus Gray p. 238
1866	Delphinus Gray p. 239
1866	Delphinus Owen p. 17
1867	Delphinus Cope p. 144
1867	Delphinus Flower p. 115
1868	Delphinus Gray p. 5
1868	Eudelphinus Van Beneden and Gervais p. 600
1869	Delphinus Scammon and Cope p. 21
1870	Delphinus Gray p. 772
1871	Delphinus Gill p. 125
1872	Delphinus Gill p. 95
1874	Delphinus Brandt p. II
1880	Eudelphinus tasmaniensis Van Beneden and Gervais
1880	Eudelphinus Van Beneden and Gervais p. 600
1889	Delphinus Ameghino p. 885
1890	Delphinus Cope p. 609

Year	Name and Author
1894	Delphinus Paquier p. 48
1895	Delphinus Flores p. 12
1898	Delphinus Trouessart p. 1031
1902	Delphinus Hay p. 593
1904	Delphinus Palmer p. 220
1904	Eudelphinus Palmer p. 274
1904	Delphinus Trouessart p. 765
1912	Delphinus Turner p. 131
1919	Delphinus Abel p. 772
1925	Eudelphinus Portis p. 14
1925	Delphinus Zittel p. 87
1926	Delphinus Schneider p. 154
1928	Delphinus Kellogg p. 33 figs. Table 1
1928	Delphinus Weber p. 389
1929	Delphinus Dal Piaz p. 84
1930	Delphinus Hay p. 588
1945	Delphinus Simpson p. 103
1951	Delphinus Ellerman and Morrisson-Scott p. 730
1952	Delphinus Sherman p. 99
1960	Delphinus Fraser and Purves p. 112 figs. Figure 26
1963	Delphinus Scheffer and Rice p. 6
1966	Stenella pernettyi Hershkovitz p. 40
1966	Delphinus Hershkovitz p. 41
1973	Delphinus Kasuya p. 61
1977	Delphinus Barnes p. 323 figs. Table 1
1987	Delphinus Pilleri p. 110
1988	Delphinus Carroll
1988	Delphinus de Muizon p. 162
1991	Delphinus Vidal p. 5
1997	Delphinus McKenna and Bell p. 384
1998	Delphinus Rice p. 111
1999	Delphinus LeDuc et al. p. 639 figs. Figure 2
2001	Delphinus Fordyce and de Muizon p. 179
2002	Delphinus Sepkoski, Jr.
2004	Delphinus Buchholtz and Schur p. 384 figs. Figure 1
2005	Delphinus Mead and Brownell p. 727
2008	Delphinus Agnarsson and May-Collado p. 981 figs. Fig. 2
2008	Delphinus Uhen et al. p. 592
2008	Delphinus Whitmore and Kaltenbach p. 218
2009	Delphinus Fordyce and Roberts p. 553
2010	Delphinus Canto et al. p. 20
2011	Delphinus Geisler et al. p. 6 figs. Table 1
2013	Delphinus Perrin et al. p. 571
2014	Delphinus Murakami et al. p. 507 figs. Figure 10
2016	Delphinus Marx et al. p. 140

References

Linnaeus C. , Systema Naturae per Regna Tria Naturae, Secundum Classes, Ordines, Genera, Species, cum Characteribus, Differentiis, Synonymis, Locis. Editio Decima 1, 1-824 doi:10.5962/bhl.title.542

Lacépède B. , Histoire Naturelle des Cetacees

Illiger C. , Prodromus Systematis Mammalium et Avium

Blainville H. M . D. Delphinorhynques, Nouveau Dictionnaire d'Histoire Naturelle 9, 151-152

Gray J. E. On the natural arrangement of vertebrose animals, The London Medical Repository Monthly Journal and Review 15, 296-310

Gray J. E. An outline of an attempt at the disposition of Mammalia into Tribes and Families, with a list of genera apparently appertaining to each Tribe, Annals of Philosophy, new series 10, 337-344

Fischer J. B. , Synopsis Mammalium, 1-752

Gray J. E. On the cetaceous animals, The zoology of the voyage of H. M. S. Erebus and Terror, under the command of Capt. Sir J. C. Ross, R. N., F. R. S., during the years 1839 to 1843 1 & 2, 1-53

Gray J. E. On the British Cetacea, Annals and Magazine of Natural History 17, 82-85

Nilsson S. , Skandinavisk Fauna, 1-656

Gray J. E. , Catalogue of the Mammalia in the collection of the British Museum, with descriptions of all the species and figures of the genera. Part I. Cetacea, 1-153

Gervais P. , Zoologie et Paléontologie Françaises (Animaux Vertébrés) ou Nouvelles Recherches sur les Animaux Vivants et Fossiles de la France [French Zoology and Paleontology (Vertebrate Animals) or New Research on the Living and Fossil Animals of France] 1–3, 1-274+

Pictet F. -J. , Traité de Paléontologie ou Histoire Naturelle des Animaux Fossiles Considérés dans Leurs Rapports Zoologiques et Géologiques [Treatise of Paleontology or the Natural History of Fossil Animals Considered in their Zoological and Geological Relationships] 1, xiv-584

Gray J. E. On the Cetacea which have been observed in the seas surrounding the British Islands, Proceedings of the Scientific Meetings of the Zoological Society of London 1864, 195-248

Gray J. E. , Catalogue of Seals and Whales in the British Museum, 1-402

Owen R. On some Indian Cetacea collected by Walter Elliot, Esq., Transactions of the Zoological Society of London 6 1, 17-47

Cope E. D. An addition to the vertebrate fauna of the Miocene period, with a synopsis of the extinct Cetacea of the United States, Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia 19 4, 138-157

Flower W. H. Description of the skeleton of Inia geoffrensis and the skull of Pontoporia blainvillii, with remarks on the systematic position of these animals in the Order Cetacea, Transactions of the Zoological Society of London 6, 87-116

Gray J. E. , Synopsis of the species of whales and dolphins in the Collection of the British Museum, 1-10

Van Beneden P. J., Gervais P. , Ostéographie des cétacés vivants et fossiles, comprenant la description et l'iconographie du squelette et du système dentaire de ces animaux; ainsi que des documents relatifs à leur histoire naturelle, 1-634

Scammon C. M., Cope E. D. On the cetaceans of the western coast of North America, Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia 22, 13-63

Gray J. E. Notes on the arrangement of the genera of delphinoid whales, Proceedings of the Scientific Meetings of the Zoological Society of London 1870, 772-773

Gill T. Synopsis of the primary subdivisions of the cetaceans, Communications of the Essex Institute 6, 121-126

Gill T. Arrangement of the Families of Mammals, Smithsonian Miscellaneous Collections 11 230, 1-98

Brandt J. F. Ergänzungen zu den Fossilen Cetaceen Europa's, Mémoires de L'Academie Impériale des Sciences de St. Pétersbourg, VIIE Série 21 6, 1-54

Ameghino F. Contribución al conocimiento de los mamíferos fósiles de la República Argentina [Contribution to the knowledge of the fossil mammals of the Argentine Republic], Actas de la Academia Nacional de Ciencias de la República Argentina en Córdoba 6, xxxii-1027

Paquier V. Etude sur quelques cetaces du Miocene, Memoires Societe Geologique de France 12, 1-20

Flores E. Catalogo dei mammiferi fossili dell' Italia meridionale continentale, Atti della Acccademia pontaniana 25 18, 3-48

Trouessart E. L. , Catalogus mammalium tam viventium quam fossilum 5, 665-1264

Hay O. P. (1902) , Bibliography and Catalogue of the Fossil Vertebrata of North America. Bulletin of the United States Geological Survey 179, 1-868

Palmer T. S. (1904) Index generum mammalium: a list of the genera and families of mammals, North American Fauna 23, 1-984

Trouessart E. L. (1904) , Catalogus Mammalium Tam Viventium Quam Fossilium, Fourth Edition, 1-929

Abel O. (1919) Die Stämme der Wirbeltiere, Walter de Gruyter, Berlin, Leipzig, 914 p.

Portis A. (1925) Resti di cetacei (Odontoceti, Delphinoceti) dal Pliocene argilloso delle Vicinanze di Roma, Bollettino del R. Ufficio Geologico d'Italia 50 3, 1-19

Schneider C. O. (1926) Lista preliminar de los mamiferos fosiles de Chile, Revista Chilena de Historia Natural 30, 144-156

Hay O. P. (1930) Second Bibliography and Catalogue of the Fossil Vertebrata of North America, Carnegie Institution of Washington 390 II, 1-1074

Simpson G. G. (1945) The principles of classification and a classification of mammals, Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 85, 1-350

Ellerman J. R., Morrisson-Scott T. C. S. (1951) , Checklist of Palaearctic and Indian Mammals 1758 to 1946, 1-810

Sherman H. B. (1952) A list and bibliography of the mammals of Florida, living and extinct, Quarterly Journal of the Florida Academy of Sciences 15 2, 86-126

Fraser F. C., Purves P. E. (1960) Hearing in Cetaceans, Bulletin of the British Museum (Natural History) 7 1, 1-140

Scheffer V. B., Rice D. W. (1963) A list of the marine mammals of the world, United States Fish and Wildlife Service Special Scientific Report - Fisheries 431, 1-12

Hershkovitz P. (1966) Catalog of Living Whales, United States National Museum Bulletin 246, 1-259

Barnes L. G. (1977) Outline of eastern North Pacific fossil cetacean assemblages, Systematic Zoology 25 4, 321-343

Pilleri G. (1987) , The Cetacea of the Italian Pliocene, 1-160

Carroll R. L. (1988) , Vertebrate Paleontology and Evolution, 1-698

de Muizon C. (1988) Les relations phylogenetiques des Delphinida (Cetacea, Mammalia), Annales de Paleontologie 74 4, 159-227

Vidal O. (1991) Catalog of osteological collections of aquatic mammals from Mexico, NOAA Technical Reports NMFS 97, 1-36

McKenna M. C., Bell S. K. (1997) , Classification of Mammals Above the Species Level, 1-640

Rice D. W. (1998) Marine Mammals of the World: Systematics and Distribution, The Society for Marine Mammalogy Special Publication 4, 1-231

Fordyce R. E., de Muizon C. (2001) Evolutionary history of the cetaceans: a review, Secondary Adaptations of Tetrapods to Life in the Water, 169-233

Sepkoski, Jr. J. J. (2002) A compendium of fossil marine animal genera, Bulletins of American Paleontology 363, 1-560

Mead J. G., Brownell R. L. (2005) Order Cetacea, Mammalian Species of the World, 723-743

Agnarsson I., May-Collado L. J. (2008) The phylogeny of Cetartiodactyla: The importance of dense taxon sampling, missing data, and the remarkable promise of cytochrome b to provide reliable species-level phylogenies, Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 48, 964-985

Uhen M. D., Fordyce R. E., et al (2008) Odontoceti, Evolution of Tertiary Mammals of North America II, 566-606

Whitmore F. C., Kaltenbach J. A. (2008) Neogene Cetacea of the Lee Creek Phosphate Mine, North Carolina, Virginia Museum of Natural History Special Publication 14, 181-269

Fordyce R. E., Roberts C. D. (2009) Fossil Pinnipedia and Cetacea, New Zealand Inventory of Biodiversity, 553

Canto J., Yanez J., et al (2010) Estado actual del conocimiento de los mamíferos fósiles de Chile, Estudios Geologicos 66 2, 255-284 doi:10.3989/egeol.39778.05

Geisler J. H., McGowen M. R., et al (2011) A supermatrix analysis of genomic, morphological, and paleontological data from crown Cetacea, BMC Evolutionary Biology 11 112, 1-33

Perrin W. F., Rosel P. E., et al (2013) How to contend with paraphyly in the taxonomy of the delphinine cetaceans?, Marine Mammal Science 29 4, 569-588 doi:10.1111/mms.12051

Murakami M., Shimada C., et al (2014) Eodelphis kabatensis, a new name for the oldest true dolphin Stenella kabatensis Horikawa, 1977 (Cetacea, Odontoceti, Delphinidae), from the upper Miocene of Japan, and the phylogeny and paleobiogeography of Delphinoidea, Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 34 3, 491-511 doi:10.1080/02724634.2013.816720

Marx F. G., Lambert O., et al (2016) Cetacean Paleobiology, 1-319

Data courtesy of: PBDB: The Paleobiology Database, Creative Commons CC-BY licenced. , GBIF: the Global Biodiversity Information Facility, various licences, iDigBio, various licences, and EOL: The Encyclopedia of Life (Open Data Public Domain). Because fossils are made of minerals too!

Quick NavTop Fossil Distribution Subtaxa Synonymy List References

Mindat.org is an outreach project of the Hudson Institute of Mineralogy, a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization.
Copyright © mindat.org and the Hudson Institute of Mineralogy 1993-2024, except where stated. Most political location boundaries are © OpenStreetMap contributors. Mindat.org relies on the contributions of thousands of members and supporters. Founded in 2000 by Jolyon Ralph.
Privacy Policy - Terms & Conditions - Contact Us / DMCA issues - Report a bug/vulnerability Current server date and time: May 4, 2024 21:32:43

Go to top of page