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Nicole Imada

Wing

English Pre AP, Period 5

20 February 2018

Hector’s dolphin

The ocean is a most tranquil natural landscape, though beneath, is bustling with activity.

The typical hearty Cephalorhynchus body shape is evident in this species. The head is blunt, the

dorsal fin is squat and rounded, and the flippers are curved at the tips. Hector’s dolphin is one of

the minutest toothed cetaceans in the world and is prevalent to New Zealand. This dolphin

received its name in honor of Sir James Hector, a Scottish scientist who labeled this dolphin for

the first time in the decade of 1870’s. Hector's dolphin is predominant to the coastal waters of

New Zealand, where it is threatened by fisheries bycatch, pollutants and boat disturbance. This

stunning, poorly known animal’s color design meticulously bear a resemblance to that of the

killer whale. Some of these entities have been kept in captivity, where they were lethargic and

seemed uncomfortable at first, but when their water was made to some extent cloudy, in

compliance to their habitation in the wild, they responded favorably, settling down and becoming

more receptive. A subtly shaded, crescent-shaped black band marks the head just behind the

blowhole. The throat and belly are creamy white, severed by dark-grey bands meeting between

the flippers. A white stripe extends from the belly onto each flank below the dorsal fin.
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She splashes out of the water in one clean leap. Her stocky body gracefully glides

through the air, showing off her very distinctive black, rounded dorsal fin, with a convex trailing

edge and undercut rear margin. Her overall appearance as she leaps is a very light grey, but

within closer inspection discloses a wide diversity of colors and shades. Her black mask

encircling her eyes catches the attention of many, creating a criminal appearance for such a small

innocent creature. As she splashes back down into the water a blue dorsal fin encircles her, one

of her greatest predators. She glides through the water at a quick tempo into a small enclosed

area, her only protection from this predator.

The “Hector’s Dolphin” happens to be one of the most endangered animals to exist today.

Hector’s dolphin is the smallest of dolphins. This species is sexually dimorphic, with males

being slightly shorter and lighter in weight than females. This dolphin has no discernable beak

therefore contributing to its size. The color of the Hector’s dolphin rang from black to creamy

white, extending all over its body. With its short stocky stature, the Hector’s dolphin adults reach

lengths of 1.5 m (females being slightly larger than males), and newborn calves are about sixty to

seventy centimeters long. The weight wavers around 40 and 60 kilograms, though weights of up

to 57 kg have been reported.

The Hector’s dolphin is found only in the inshore waters of Aotearoa/New Zealand. They

are found near the coast of the South Island though distribution can be sporadic.

Inhabitants are focused between Haast and Farewell Spit in the west, around Banks Peninsula in

the east, and Te Waewae Bay and Porpoise Bay/Te Whanaga Aihe in the south. On the occasion,

Hector's dolphins can reach the North Island.

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While all dolphins are carnivores, Hector’s dolphin’s diet correlates. These dolphins

prefer to hunt in pods up to 8 in shallow water. This species can be seen looking foro cod,

herring, squid, various fish and other small prey towards the shore. The Hector’s dolphin is

believed to be influenced on the size of their prey rather than the kind of prey. Like most

dolphins, Hector’s dolphins use echolocation to search for their food. Creating a detailed picture

of their surroundings, this species sends out a high frequency click that recoils off any

surrounding objects. This is not used at all times, possibly causing such a large percent of

dolphins to be caught up in nets.

Female hector’s reach sexual maturity between seven to nine years old. Males reach

sexual maturity at five to nine years old. Every two or three years females can produce one calf.

This makes population increase a very slow process. Most females may have only four or five

calves in their lifetime. In between November and mid-February, calving occurs frequently. The

calves tend to stay with their mothers for at most two years. The reproduction rate of Hector’s is

barely two percent each year. They can breed two to four times a year. Both male and female are

polygamous. Males only search for receptive females when mating and when they do, they court

them by performing jumps, executing chases, showing the belly and establishing physical

contact. In groups that have more members, tend to demonstrate these acts more frequently. In

the summer, mating tends to occur and within ten to twelve months, females give birth to the

calves.
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(Hector’s dolphin and calf)

This species can form pods or “mini pods” which are composed of two up to ten entities.

These “mini pods” are known to form large temporal pods by associating with other “mini pods”.

Males and females have the liberty to transfer to other groups or pods. The Hector’s dolphin

species are slow swimmers compared to other species of dolphins. In the winter they move away

from the coast and in the spring, they migrate to other regions or yields back to the coasts where

they were previous summers.

The Hector’s dolphin is a highly threatened animal. Seven thousand, four hundred entities

have been estimated currently. This species has a status of “Endangered” in the red list of the

International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN). That means they are in danger of

becoming extinct. The focal factors of this are Bycatch with gillnets, collisions with boats,

contamination of their habitat with chemicals produced by humans that accumulate in the body

of the dolphin and cause health problems and decrease fertility rates, loss of habitat as a result of

coastal development, and disturbance originated by boats that transport tourists. There are also

natural predators of this species including sharks and killer whales also known as orca. Though

man is the main source of the hector’s dolphins’ endangerment through inshore fishing, there are

many natural predators which assist in this endangerment.

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(endangered hector’s dolphin)

Many activist organizations are working diligently to protect the remaining Hector’s

dolphin population. One organization that has actively been involved in protecting the hector’s

dolphin is The Department of Conservation. Their main focus is to protect and restore these

species. “We run programs to protect and restore our species, places and heritage, and provide

opportunities for people to engages with these treasures” Their works toward protecting and

restoring the hector’s dolphins have noticeably made a change in their society. The Marine

Mammals Protection Regulations were introduced in 1992 to control marine mammal tourism

activities. Set-net controls were introduced to Canterbury in 2002 and in west coast North Island

in 2003.DOC, in a joint initiative with the Ministry of Fisheries developed a Draft Threat

Management Plan released in 2007. View the Draft plan on the MPI website (external site).

Since then additional fisheries restrictions have been implemented along with four new marine

mammal sanctuaries and alterations to the Banks Peninsula marine mammal sanctuary.

Investigation and scientific studies continue to increase our knowledge about each sub-species’

ecology, preservation status, life history, and threats. Enhanced organization practices are

constantly being sought after for these dolphins in an effort to guarantee their survival into the

future.
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Leaping gracefully over and through the ocean, the hector’s dolphin is a small, wonderful

mammal. With the hector’s dolphin’s population dramatically declining due to human

population, preservation groups work together with scientific investigators to protect them and

avoid any further reduction in the population and/ or possible extinction. Preservation groups and

scientific investigators are not the only ones who can make a change. Through the educating of

the community, the effects of humans to the hector’s dolphin can be prevented, protecting the

population. Creating safe atmospheres for the hector’s dolphins will contribute to the

preservation of future populations.

 Works cited

“Department of conservation-Te Papa Atawhai.: Hectors dolphin” New Zealand Government.

http://www.doc.govt.nz/nature/native-animals/marine-mammals/dolphins/hectors-

dolphin. Accessed 7 Feb. 2018. Web.

"Endangered species relying on change in focus." New Zealand Herald [Auckland, New Zealand], 26

May 2008, p. 13. Science in Context, web.

http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A179392286/SCIC?u=hend78154&xid=c4828860. Accessed

7 Feb. 2018.

"Hector's dolphin (Cephalorhynchus hectori)." Encyclopedia of Endangered Species, vol. 1, Gale, 2009.

Research in Context, web.

http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/CV2644710282/MSIC?u=hend78154&sid=MSIC&xid=bdb6

c51. Accessed 7 Feb. 2018.

Rayment, W., Dawson, S., Slooten, L. and Childerhouse, S. (2006) Offshore distribution of

Hector's dolphin at Banks Peninsula. DOC Research and development Series 232.

Department of Conservation, Wellington. Accessed 7 Frb. 2018.

Reeves, R.R., Dawson, S.M., Jefferson, T.A., Karczmarski, L., Laidre, K., O’Corry-Crowe, G., Rojas-

Bracho, L., Secchi, E.R., Slooten, E., Smith, B.D., Wang, J.Y. & Zhou, K. 2013.Cephalorhynchus

hectori. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2013:

e.T4162A44199757.http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2013-1.RLTS.T4162A44199757.en.

Accessed 7 Feb. 2018.