Date:  24 December 2025

Dolphin researcher Jochen Zaeschmar from the Far Out Ocean Research Collective spotted the solitary dolphin this week, and it has since been observed in English Bay in the Opua channel. DOC has authorised Jochen to locate the individual and take a DNA sample to confirm which species it is.

DOC Marine Species Senior Advisor Kristina Hillock says sightings of Hector’s or Māui dolphins in this location are very rare. “This would be just the second confirmed sighting of a Hector’s in Northland in 100 years,” Kristina says.

Hector’s dolphins were once found along the coast of most of the South Island as well as parts of the North Island. Today, Hector’s dolphins are classified as nationally vulnerable and live in different sub-populations around the South Island. They are only occasionally seen around the North Island.

The Māui dolphin is a nationally critical subspecies of the Hector’s dolphin, which is found on the west coast of the North Island, mainly between Taranaki and Kaipara Harbour. It is estimated just 54 adult Māui dolphins remain.

The two dolphins are not easily distinguished from each other without genetic analysis but are readily identifiable from other dolphins. Both Hector’s and Māui dolphins are grey and white, with black markings and a distinctive black rounded fin, shaped like Mickey Mouse’s ear. “If the dolphin has a rounded fin, call it in,” is DOC’s message to the public on reporting on the species.

Report any sighting to 0800 DOC HOT (0800 362 468) or use the SeaSpotter app (available for download in App Store and Google Play).

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