Tursiops truncatus
SoCal bottlenose live year-round in small resident pods of 10–30 animals and are regulars inside Newport Harbor and Malibu Lagoon. They use a learned technique called strand feeding — chasing fish onto shallow sand margins — and individual dolphins here have been photo-ID catalogued for decades.
Newport & Long Beach operators share daily trip counts — you can see what was spotted before you book. Other operators don't publish daily reports.