Rare Hector’s or Māui dolphin spotted off Paekākāriki

A marine biologist had an early Christmas present on Christmas Eve when he spotted a rare Hector’s or Māui dolphin swimming off the Kāpiti Coast.

Bob Zuur​, who lives in Paekākāriki, used to work for a conservation programme that managed the fishing impact on protected species like the Hector’s of Māui dolphins. He saw a post on the local Facebook group of sightings of a lone dolphin in the waves on Saturday morning and decided to investigate with his binoculars.

“It eventually swam out in front of our place and I thought that was like a Hector’s,” he said. “It’s not really possible to tell the difference.

“I got my binoculars then I raced down to the beach and took a long lens with me to get a photo.”

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Hector’s dolphins, one of the world’s rarest and smallest dolphins and classed as nationally vulnerable, are found primarily in the waters off the South Island. Their population is estimated to be about 15,000. Māui dolphins are found only along the west coast of the North Island, and it is estimated there are only about 54 individuals remaining.

Both are threatened by pollution and human activities.

The Department of Conservation’s (DOC) website said Hector’s and Māui dolphins are from the same dolphin species. They look similar to each other, but Māui dolphins have slightly larger skulls and longer snouts than a Hector’s dolphin.

The telling difference between a Hector’s and Māui dolphin and a common dolphin are their dorsal fins, with the former having a very rounded fin.

Zurr said he was “very excited” about the sighting.

“It’s critically important to record this given how extremely rare those dolphins are in this part of New Zealand and I was fortunate to get the photos,” he said.

A DOC spokesperson said the dolphin appeared to be a Hector’s or Māui dolphin, but it needed to be confirmed by its marine specialists, and they might not be able to tell which species it was from the photographs.

They also encouraged people to report sightings of a Hector’s or Māui dolphin online and include the date, time, location and photos or videos if possible.