Hector's+Dolphin

Hector’s Dolphin // Cephalorhynchus hectori  //  This is a picture of one of hector's dolphin specie. Habitat The hector’s dolphin is the rarest dolphin in the world. There about 7,400 dolphin’s remaining around south island. The hector’s dolphin if found in the shallow costal waters of Aotearoa/New Zealand. Populations are 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. In shore waters have become dangerous places for these marine mammals. Young dolphins are sometimes suck and killed by boats. Hector's dolphins inhabit a wide range of water temperatures around 6.3-22°C. This map shows where you can find Hector’s dolphin in New Zealand. Physiology  Hector’s dolphin is the smallest dolphin in the delphinidae family, which there are 32 species in the world. By being so small they have the ability to swim faster. This dolphin is in the group of mammals because they are warm blooded they breathe from the air and finally they suckle milk from their mother. All this adaptations help the dolphin survive. They have the blow hole to breathe. They have excellent eye sight under water and above water witch help they catch pray. They also are really smart because the hunt or travel in packs called schools. Hectors dolphin have a rounded dorsal helping in stopping, steering, and the coordination of fine movement. The forehead of the hector’s slope down to the tip. Hector’s use echolocation to find their food. They send out high frequency ‘clicks’ that bounce off surrounding objects and [|fish], giving the dolphins a detailed [|picture of] their surroundings. This sonar is not used all the time, which may be one of the reasons why the dolphins get caught in nets. They have a unique pattern the side of the head, the flippers, dorsal fin and the tail are black. The belly is white and the rest of the body is grey these are adaptations to catch pray. This is the anatomy of a dolphin witch has many adaptations to survive in the shallow waters. Species Interactions Hectors dolphin’s feed on fish and other sea creatures found in shallow water. There pray can be flounder, red cod, mackerel, crabs and squid. Hector’s tend too form small groups. They are curios animals too because they will stop to observe what the boat is doing. They are playful and social creatures. Hector’s are the pray of sharks and orca. Hector’s stay in schools about 2-20, they are the only dolphins that stay in packs up to 50 dolphins. This is the actual size of a hector’s dolphin compared to a normal sized human. They are the smallest dolphins in the world. This picture shows how Hector’s dolphins are silly and like to show off when humans are around. Reproduction The male first makes a clicking sound telling the female he is interested. If the female returns the sound or touching they are ready to mate. When the female is ready to mate, she will either swim on the surface of the water or swim on her side to allow the male to mate with her. This process is very brief as it lasts only a few seconds. The female Hector’s are 10 kilograms bigger then the males. Female have one calf every two to three years. The calves are 50-60cm long and they stay close to mother about three years to provide milk and protection Hector’s dolphin have only 4-6 calves a lifetime so that decreases the population to grow and they live to be 16 to 20 years old. The mother is talking care of her calve and protecting it from any harm. They mother and calve travel together for about three years.
 * Domain  ||   Eukarya   ||
 * Kingdom  ||   Animalia   ||
 * Phylum  ||   Chardata   ||
 * Class  ||   Mammalia   ||
 * Order  ||   Cetacean   ||
 * Family  ||   Delphinidae   ||
 * Genus  ||   Cephalorhynchus   ||
 * Species  ||   Hectori   ||

Free Topic a drawing of a hector's dolphin Work Cited Internet: [] [] [] [] Book: Whales & Dolphins of the world