Analysis of SSCP allowed ruling out any possible contamination with human and tunnid DNAs, because their SSCP patterns were different from those of Tursiops (Figs. 3 and 4). Polymorphism was detected for the BDR region of Cytochrome-b within T. truncatus, where dentin samples showed a unique pattern, while muscle positive controls showed other distinct ones (Fig. 3). Tursiops samples were collected from different geographical regions, suggesting that this polymorphism might be associated to geographical distribution.In conclusion, the present work confirmed the possibility of using dentin powder as a source of DNA for bottlenose dolphin population genetics and taxonomic studies through mtDNA analysis.