Despite the common and Latin names (albirostris means 'white beak' ), the short, stocky beak of the white-beaked dolphin is not always white. It may be black and white, grey and white, completely white or even black in colour in certain parts of the range. This large dolphin has a rotund body, with a high dorsal fin placed in the centre of the back, behind which there is a characteristic greyish white patch that allows this species to be easily identified. The back, tail and flippers are black or grey in colour, and the belly is white or pale grey.