The common bottlenose dolphin is quite numerous in the tropical and temperate seas throughout the world. The species ranges far and wide and is considered to be the cetacean with the greatest ability to adapt to new surroundings.

The common bottlenose dolphin has been spotted as far north as Lofoten to the east and Nova Scotia to the west, although it is most common around the central North Atlantic. The bottlenose dolphin is widely mentioned in early Icelandic writings and is seen every now and then off the coast of Iceland.

Common bottlenose dolphins have streamlined bodies and a rounded head with a distinctive beak. They have a tall, sickle-shaped dorsal fin and broad, slightly pointed flippers. Common bottlenose dolphins are in no danger, as their numbers are abundant.

Common bottlenose dolphins are very social animals and live in small pods of up to 12 whales. Often, many pods group together to form congregations of hundreds of dolphins. The groups are often divided by sex, but common group forms are e.g. composed of related females with calves or only males, in which males tend to form groups based on friendships which can last for decades.

Common bottlenose dolphins hunt strategically in hunting groups, hunting a variety of fish species and squid. They have been witnessed killing a harbour porpoise intentionally by knocking them out of the water. The reason for this rare behaviour is not known but was not carried out for feeding purposes.