Balloon shark vs common bottlenose dolphin

Cephaloscyllium sarawakensis compared with Tursiops truncatus

Key Differences

Balloon shark is Critically Endangered while common bottlenose dolphin is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Balloon shark	common bottlenose dolphin
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum same	Chordata (cordados)	Chordata (cordados)
Class	Chondrichthyes (Cartilaginous Fish)	Mammalia (mamíferos)
Order	Carcharhiniformes (Ground Sharks)	Cetacea (Whales & Dolphins)
Family	Scyliorhinidae	Delphinidae (Oceanic Dolphins)
Genus	Cephaloscyllium	Tursiops (Bottlenose Dolphins)
Species	Cephaloscyllium sarawakensis	Tursiops truncatus

Evolutionary Relationship

Balloon shark and common bottlenose dolphin share a common ancestor at the Phylum level: Chordata. (cordados)

View Phylum: Chordata

Conservation Status

Balloon shark

CR — Critically Endangered

common bottlenose dolphin

LC — Least Concern

Population: ~600.0K

Trend: Stable →

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Balloon shark	common bottlenose dolphin
Diet	—	Carnivore
Average Lifespan	—	45 years
Average Length	—	3.0 m
Average Weight	—	300.0 kg

Habitat & Geographic Range

Balloon shark

Habitat

Inhabits tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests within the Indomalayan biogeographic realm.

Range

Found in Taiwan. Currently classified as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

common bottlenose dolphin

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests, and tropical and subtropical grasslands and savannas, among 12 distinct biome types. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Widely distributed across Asia (Taiwan), Europe (6 countries), and South America (Colombia, Ecuador, Venezuela).

Balloon shark

The Balloon shark (Cephaloscyllium sarawakensis) is a species in the genus Cephaloscyllium. It is currently classified as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List. Inhabits tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests within the Indomalayan biogeographic realm.

common bottlenose dolphin

A espécie de golfinho mais estudada e reconhecida, os roazes habitam oceanos quentes e temperados de todo o mundo, desde águas costeiras rasas até ao mar aberto. Altamente inteligentes com grandes cérebros em relação ao tamanho corporal, demonstram auto-reconhecimento, comunicação complexa e aprendizagem social. Vivem em sociedades fluidas de fissão-fusão e cooperam para arrebanhar peixes. Uma espécie indicadora chave da saúde dos ecossistemas marinhos.