Māui dolphin, one of the world’s smallest and most endangered whales*

photo New Zealand Whale and Dolphin Trust

How I came to know about the Māui dolphin

Noemi Knight was a guest on my Women Mind the Water Artivist Series podcast. She recounted how when she was a youngster on vacation with her grandparents, she’d paddled among some dolphins. She hadn’t thought about that encounter in the waters of New Zealand until last year when her son discovered a photograph, dating back to the 1980s, among the pages of a family album. Noemi decided to do some research to learn something about the dolphins. She discovered that the little marine mammals were nearly extinct. .  

“Honestly, it shocked me, because they were so interesting and so unique that I was surprised that they hadn't been more protected. New Zealand does have protections in place, but they still have a lot of issues. The fishing industry conflicts with tourism, which conflicts with them needing to protect these dolphins, because the areas that they live, there's heavy fishing, there's heavy tourism, and that leaves the conflicts with the dolphin,” Noemi told me.  

Noemi contacted The New Zealand Whale and Dolphin Trust, a research-driven organization committed to the conservation of New Zealand’s whales and dolphins. Their research includes population surveys, studies of whale and dolphin reproduction, survival and human impacts and seeking ways to assure the marine mammals recovery and sustainability. What she learned motivated her to take up the Māui dolphin’s cause. The elementary school teacher decided she’d write a children’s book to spread the word about the dolphins. She hopes the release of the book Popoto, the Māui dolphin will inspire significant interest to generate a concerted effort to save the little whale. (Go to her podcast page for a link to order the book)

Smallest and rarest of the whales

The popoto or Māui dolphin is one the world’s smallest whales.* It is found off the west coast of New Zealand’s North Island. At roughly 4-5.5 feet in length and 100 or so pounds, the popoto (New Zealand’s indigenous peoples word for dolphin) or Māui dolphin is human-sized. The rounded black fin on its back makes it unique among whales. Precious little is known about the Māui dolphin but it is clear that it’s population estimated at about 50 individuals is on the verge of extinction. 

The Māui dolphin is listed on the International Union for the Conservation of Nature’s Red List of Critically Endangered Species. This designation is based on the whale’s extremely small population, their slow reproductive cycle, and the number of mortality factors the dolphins encounter in their extremely restricted range. They are typically found within 330 feet of the shore, a zone where they are highly likely to encounter humans. Furthermore, it’s been estimated that the dolphins occupy only about 19 miles of the New Zealand coastline.

One might think that the dolphins’ tendency to live in shallow coastal waters as well as their unique appearance and exclusiveness to New Zealand would make them a celebrated cause for the island nation. However, it seems they have not received sufficient public support to demand effective dolphin protection. Despite the New Zealand Whale and Dolphin Trust’s detailed research protective measures have helped slow down the rapid population decline but the measures have been insufficient to halt the declines.  

According to Elisabeth Slooten and Stephen Dawson in a March 2021 article published in Frontiers in Marine Science what is needed is “effective conservation action” something the authors say “can be difficult to achieve and often comes down to political will.” Clearly as the Māui dolphin population size shows “a sustainable solution has not been reached.”

photo New Zealand Whale and Dolphin Trust

Why are they facing extinction?  

The dolphins face multiple threats ranging from entanglement with fishing nets to strikes by boats and pollution. The New Zealand Whale and Dolphin Trust Dolphin endorse protection be extended to all waters up to 100m deep. These measures include reducing the threat of entanglement with fishing gear posed by commercial as well as recreational nets. Additionally, speed zones need to be enacted and enforced to seriously reduce or eliminate dolphin death due to boat strikes. Underwater mining and construction within the dolphin’s range should be curtained. The problems of marine litter and other forms of pollution are more difficult to control; however, a concerted educational and enforcement effort should be mounted to reduce among other things plastic waste. This also applies to the control of feral cats and the disposal of pet waste particularly cat litter. Cats are known to be a vector for the disease oxoplasmosis. Oxoplasmosis has been identified in the waters off the New Zealand coast and implicated in the death of New Zealand dolphins. Of course, all these mortality factors are compounded by climate change.  

Management strategies to date have fallen short of Māui dolphin population recovery. A concreted effort to save the dolphin from extinction requires the population be returned to a non-threatened status. As the Māui dolphin is unique to New Zealand is up to that country to prevent the extinction, although this does not stop us from sending strong messages about our concern. The New Zealand policy makers need to know that the window to prevent the Māui dolphins extinction is rapidly closing. Very soon the unique little dolphin may be found only in the pages of a book.

• Since writing this story an alert reader pointed me in the direction of the vaquita. It seems that the vaquita holds the dubious title as the world’s tiniest marine mammal as well as the MOST endangered.. The vaquita lives in a small northerly section of the Gulf of California. Their survival is EXTREMELY precarious because there are only about 10 individuals in existence. This number is likely too small to allow for successful recovery and that could only occur if there were a recovery plan in place that was stringently enforced. Commercial gill netting is likely to cause the vaquitas demise.