The worldwide demand for bottlenose dolphins for the captive display industry is high, and the Black Sea population meets a significant proportion of this demand. The number caught for export to aquaria almost doubled between 1995 and 1998. Mortality of Black Sea bottlenose dolphins during capture, transport and captivity is high.

In the Black Sea, (which borders Turkey, Georgia, Russia, Ukraine, Moldova, Romania, and Bulgaria), bottlenose dolphins are losing their habitat. The habitat that remains has been damaged by extensive pollution, coastal development, vessel traffic, and over-fishing.Furthermore, the population has never rebounded from the massive hunting of the early 20th century. Commercial dolphin hunting has only been banned since 1966 by the former Soviet Union, Georgia, Bulgaria, and Romania, and since 1983 by Turkey. Poaching reportedly continues.

In agreement with several international organizations, Georgia has proposed to list this population in Appendix I (all populations of bottlenose dolphins are already in Appendix II), so that it may be protected from international trade. However, a ban on trade in animals from this population would not be difficult to enforce because the Black Sea bottlenose dolphin is both geographically and genetically distinct from other bottlenose dolphins, even those in the nearby Mediterranean and East North Atlantic.