Boto

Boto is a name used by people from Portugal for special kinds of dolphins that live in the Amazon and Orinoco rivers and their smaller streams. Some of these dolphins, called botos, only live in fresh water. These dolphins are usually pink, and they get even pinker as they grow older.

The pink color of a boto shows how old and mature it is, especially for male dolphins. This is similar to how antlers show strength in red deer or tusks in narwhals. As botos age, their bodies get covered in scar tissue, and they lose some of their dark coloring, which makes them turn a lighter pink.

Classification

The botos are a group of dolphins that share similar traits through evolution.

The genus Sotalia has two species. The Guiana dolphin lives along the Atlantic coast of Brazil. The tucuxi lives in the rivers of the Amazon.

Burmeister's porpoise is a dolphin that lives in the ocean from Santa Catarina to the south.

The Amazon river dolphin lives only in fresh water in the Amazon basin and is considered Endangered.

The Araguaian river dolphin is a newly discovered species found in the Araguaia-Tocantins basin of Brazil.

The La Plata dolphin is another dolphin found in Brazil’s coastal waters, ranging from Espírito Santo to the south.

• Suborder Odontoceti
  • Superfamily Delphinoidea
    • Family Delphinidae
      • Genus Sotalia
        • Species Sotalia fluviatilis, tucuxi
        • Species Sotalia guianensis, costero
    • Family Phocoenidae
      • Genus Phocoena
        • Species Phocoena spinipinnis, Burmeister's porpoise
  • Superfamily Platanistoidea
    • Family Iniidae
      • Genus Inia
        • Species Inia araguaiaensis
        • Species Inia geoffrensis
          • Subspecies Inia geoffrensis geoffrensis, Amazon river dolphin
          • Subspecies Inia geoffrensis boliviensis, Bolivian river dolphin
          • Subspecies Inia geoffrensis humboldtiana, Humboldt's river dolphin
    • Family Pontoporiidae
      • Genus Pontoporia
        • Species Pontoporia blainvillei, la Plata dolphin or Franciscana

Folklore

In the Amazon River areas of northern Brazil, people tell stories about the boto. According to these stories, the boto can look like a human or a merman, and is sometimes called boto-cor-de-rosa, which means "pink boto" in Portuguese. The tales often describe the boto interacting closely with people.