The fin on a dolphin’s back stabilises it as it moves through the water.
Killer whales are classified as dolphins – they have the biggest dorsal fin of all whales.
Killer whale cartoon by Anton van Helden
Ko tā te urutira o te aihe mahi he whakataurite i ana neke puta noa i te wai.
Kei te whakarōpūhia ngā kākahi hei aihe – kei te kākahi te urutira tino nui rawa o ngā tohorā katoa.
Large animals often have large brains. Dolphins have disproportionately large brains compared to their body size – just like humans.
Whales and dolphins are highly intelligent. They belong to a handful of mammals that can recognise themselves in a mirror. This group includes humans, some apes, and some elephants.
Ko te tikanga, whai roro nui ai ngā kararehe nui. He tuwhene te rahi o te roro o te aihe ki te rahi o te tinana – pēnei i te tangata.
Tino ihumanea te tohorā me te aihe. Nō te rōpū whāngote ēnei ka taea te tāutu i a rātou ake i roto i tētahi whakaata. Kei taua rōpū ko te tangata, ētahi momo makimaki, me ētahi arewhana.
No, he’s not the Easter Bunny, but here at Te Papa we’re just happy that Hemi the Hector’s dolphin made it in time for Easter.
Hemi is the star of our new interactive game in Whales Tohorä, Dolphin Danger!
Visit over Easter and help Hemi navigate his way through several life-threatening situations to the safety of the marine reserve. Watch out for the shark!
It’s a fun game, but the message is a serious one. New Zealand is home to the world’s rarest marine dolphin species - the Hector’s dolphin and it’s even rarer relative, the North Island Maui’s dolphin. There may be only 100 or so Maui’s dolphins left.
Unless we try harder to keep them safe, New Zealand could become the first country in the world to knowingly allow a marine dolphin to become extinct!
Dolphins get caught and drown in set nets. This kind of fishing is a major threat to the survival of our Hector’s and Maui’s dolphins. Fishing regulations are now in place and some marine mammal reserves have been set up, but dolphins still get caught.
We may criticise other countries, such as Japan, for their whaling activities but there’s more we can do ’at home’ to protect our own endangered marine mammals.
Marine mammals and the fishing industry don’t always mix well.
Yesterday the Department of Conservation released horrifying photos of dolphins caught by fishing trawlers in December off the west coast of the North Island.
Yes, most commercial fishing companies are following the rules and will stop fishing as soon as they see there are dolphins around but something needs to be done about those that don’t follow the rules.
More than 22 dolphins died in this one fishing trip – and that’s 22 dolphins too many.
