Maui's Dolphin.

Maui’s dolphin is a critically endangered species of dolphin that is so rare that they are extremely hard to find. There are some estimates that there are only about 45 Maui’s dolphin left alive.

Maui’s dolphin have grey, black and white markings on them. They are quite a small dolphin and they have a short nose. They are unusual because they also have a very round dorsal fin on their back. Maui’s dolphin like to swim in shallow water. They are mostly found in water that is no more than 20 metres deep.

There are records showing that a long time ago there used to be Maui’s dolphins living on the East Coast of the North Island. And in 1873 there was even evidence of a Maui’s dolphin found in Wellington harbour. But these days, you will only find a Maui’s dolphin on the West Coast of the North Island between Taranaki and north of Auckland.

Maui’s dolphins are very, very hard to find. There was one spotted around the Poverty Bay coast on the East Coast of the North Island but this was not for sure. Sometimes people think they have seen a Maui’s dolphin but then it turns out to actually be a Hector’s dolphin which can look a bit like one.

There have been 5 public sightings of Maui’s dolphin near New Plymouth since 2006 but that is all. And some of these sightings may have been incorrect.

Between 2012-2014, 5 aircraft and 6 boats all went out looking for Maui’s dolphin around the Taranaki coastline. They looked all over the place but there were no Maui’s dolphin ever spotted. The boats even went more than 7km out to see but still there were no dolphins seen anywhere.

There are threats to Maui’s dolphin which could make it become extinct. Sometimes they have been found caught in fishing nets and they have drowned. There are now bans on using fishing nets in some places to try to protect the Maui’s dolphin. Sometimes diseases can make them sick and this could be very bad if lots of them were to get sick. Especially with such a small population of them. And because they like to swim in shallow waters, it is possible for them to crash into a boat or a jet ski too.

The Maui’s dolphin are becoming so rare that it may be possible that there are none of them left. There are estimates that there could be 45 dolphins still alive but these are only estimates. And since they are almost never spotted anymore, who knows? Maybe there really are none of them left? But these clear photos show that they must still be around. Maybe there really are Maui’s dolphin left and we just need to try harder to protect them.