Monterey Bay Animals

Pacific white-sided dolphin

These dolphins keep close company. White-sided dolphins swim in herds numbering in the thousands. Members form a close-knit group and will often care for a sick or injured dolphin. Animals that live in such big social groups develop ways to keep in touch. Each dolphin identifies itself by a unique name-whistle. Staying close helps, too.

Sea otter

To stay warm in chilly ocean waters, otters wear the world’s densest fur. At its thickest, this two-layer fur is made up of more than a million hairs per square inch. (You’ve probably got 100,000 hairs or less on your whole head!)

Pelagic cormorant

Pelagic cormorants live along open, windswept coasts. They nest along with other cormorants and other seabirds on steep, remote cliffs where they’re safer from predators. Unlike Brandt's cormorants, which sometimes hunt cooperatively, pelagic cormorants hunt alone, often diving into heavy surf for crabs, worms and small fishes.

Brown pelican

This wonderful bird has a distinctive large pouch that hangs from the lower half of its long, straight bill. Brown pelicans are gray-brown, with dark wings and white heads with a yellowish crown. Since this bird often sits on breakwaters, jetties and wharf pilings, you might be lucky enough to get a close-up view of its yellow eyes, black legs and black, webbed feet. These birds are gregarious, usually flying in flocks. Their flight pattern may be a straight line or a V formation, with their powerful wing strokes alternating with short glides.