A glimpse at the smallest member of the delphinidae family, the Hector's Dolphins are also very rare and endemic to NZ, they are seen in Akaroa Harbour in Canterbury.

The easiest way to identify the Hector's Dolphins in NZ waters is by the shape of their dorsal fin. It is rounded or crescent shaped as opposed to the more pointed shapes of all other species found in New Zealand coastal waters.

Of the two South Island populations of the Hector's Dolphin, one population lives around Banks Peninsula in Canterbury, and is often seen in the Akaroa Harbour.

Hector's dolphins, Cephalorhynchus hectori, Akaroa Harbour, Banks Peninsula, Canterbury, East Coast, South Island, New Zealand.