Hector’s dolphin facts
Not only are Hector’s rare, they are also very small (less than 1.6m long), which makes them the world’s smallest dolphin. Once found around most of our coastline, there were an estimated 21,000 to 30,000 in the 1970s, but now there are less than 8,000 Hector’s dolphins alive.
They are listed as endangered by the IUCN (International Union for the Conservation of Nature), meaning that the Hector’s dolphin is at serious risk of extinction.
Why are they in danger?
The biggest danger to Hector’s and Maui’s dolphins is set netting. Set nets are responsible for more than 60% of all deaths where the cause of death is known. However, set nets are likely to pose a much higher risk because many deaths aren’t reported.
Habitat and Feeding
Hector’s prefer shallow water (usually less than 100m deep). They feed on fish that swim close to the surface in shallow, often sandy-bottomed waters, making frequent short dives to find food, such as flounder, red cod, mackerel, crabs and squid.
The Hector’s are homebodies — they usually stay within the same areas. As a result Hector’s populations are highly fragmented, with limited mixing between populations.
They use echo-location to locate their prey — it’s like seeing with sound, a kind of marine radar. Dolphins send out a stream of high frequency clicking noises and when the sound strikes an object it bounces back and the dolphin can tell by listening what the object is - what kind of fish it is, how far away it is and how fast it is moving. In familiar areas, their echo-location is turned off, which means they may not detect dangers like set nets.
Of all the dolphins seen in New Zealand waters, Hector’s (and Maui’s) dolphins are the only ones with a rounded dorsal fin —all other species of dolphin found in New Zealand waters have crescent shaped fins that are more pointed. They also have distinctive black markings on their fins, tails, flippers and faces.
Why are they called Hector's Dolphin?
The Hector’s dolphin was named after Sir James Hector (1834 to 1907), who was the curator of the Colonial Museum, in Wellington. He examined the first specimen found of the dolphin and was the most influential New Zealand scientist of his time.
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