This was a little unexpected, but as I was watching the Humpback Whales yesterday (26 July 2025), I caught a glimpse of a fin much closer to shore and realized it was a Bottlenose Dolphin (Tursiops truncatus).
I wasn't quite ready and didn't get a great photo, but I thought one photo was possibly good enough to identify the individual. So I sent it off to Bill Keener at The Marine Mammal Center. Sure enough, Bill was able to match this to a known female in their catalog. "Cepat" has been seen in Sonoma County before, and as far north as Sea Ranch.
Here's a few of her heading north:
P.S. I was curious about the name "Cepat," so I looked it up. Sounds like it's an Indonesian word meaning rapid, quick, or swift.
P.P.S. Many thanks to Bill for providing the background information about Cepat and for monitoring local marine mammals!