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Dead Maui’s dolphin found at Ngaranui beach

Date: 09 March 2007

A female Maui’s dolphin was found dead on Ngaranui Beach, a popular surf beach south of Raglan, this morning.

A member of the public found the dolphin at 9.30am today and reported it to the Department of Conservation (DOC). The dolphin was recovered by DOC staff later today and sent to Massey University for necropsy.

The dolphin, a 1.52m long adult female, was partly decomposed and is suspected to have been dead for several days.

DOC is hoping the results of the necropsy will reveal the cause of death.

With the latest population estimate (2004) of 111, Maui’s dolphin are the most critically endangered marine mammal in the world.

“It’s really upsetting to find this Maui’s dolphin dead, especially after the exciting record of twelve Maui’s just southwest of Manu Bay four days earlier,” says DOC spokesperson Sietse Bouma.

“Female dolphins are not sexually mature until they are seven to nine years old, and produce just one calf every two to four years, so any population increase is slow. With current numbers of dolphins so low, any death has a major impact on rebuilding the population.”

This latest death is the fourth Maui’s found dead in the last four months. In December a mother and calf were recovered from Kariotahi Beach and in November a dead newborn Maui’s dolphin was found at Sunset Beach, just south of Port Waikato.

DOC said they rely on members of the public to act as eyes and ears on their behalf.

“We really appreciate the public’s help in finding and reporting these animals,” says Sietse.

Any sightings of stranded or beach-cast marine mammals should be reported immediately to DOC on 0800 DOC HOT (0800 362 468). Any illegal set-netting on west coast beaches should be reported to the Ministry of Fisheries on 0800 4 POACHER (0800 4 76224).