Cephalorhynchus hectori
Silhouette: Chris huh · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~40%
Hector's dolphin (Cephalorhynchus hectori) is one of six dolphin species belonging to the genus Cephalorhynchus. Distinctive features of the species include a rounded dorsal fin, grey, white, and black coloration, and a stocky body shape. Their lifespan is typically around 20 years, and the species favours shallow coastal waters around the South Island, where they live in small groups and use echolocation clicks to communicate.
Threats to the species include bycatch in gillnets and trawls, disease, genetic issues, and additional anthropogenic hazards. Action to conserve the species has been taken through the establishment of marine protected areas and other recent protections.
Hector's dolphin was named after New Zealand scientist and explorer James Hector (1834–1907), who became the director of the Colonial Museum in Wellington (now the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fiordland National Park | 🇳🇿 New Zealand |
More parks will be added in future updates.
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Hector's Dolphin sighting in Fiordland National Park on a given day, based on 7 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 6th most-seen of the 12 mammals we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 40%, if each day is a fresh chance.
May to July
In those months about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Hector's Dolphin in Fiordland National Park on a given day, against under 5% in April and August–November, the lowest months.
Between 9 am and noon
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Hector's Dolphin sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Only Fiordland National Park, in our data
Fiordland National Park is the only park on Wallace's Line with enough records to rate Hector's Dolphin sightings: about 10% of wildlife watchers there report one on a given day.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Hector's Dolphin is recorded against all the mammals logged in Fiordland National Park (7 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
