Black dolphin
| Black dolphin | ||||||||||||
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Black dolphin |
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Lagenorhynchus obscurus | ||||||||||||
| ( Gray , 1828) |
The black dolphin ( Lagenorhynchus obscurus ) is a very sociable and playful dolphin found in the coastal waters of the southern hemisphere. It was first described by the British whale researcher John Edward Gray . According to genetic analyzes, it is very closely related to the Pacific white- striped dolphin ( Lagenorhynchus obliquidens ), but scientists agree on its status as an independent species.
features
Black dolphins reach a body length of up to 2.1 meters and a mass of around 100 kilograms, although the size can vary greatly within the individual populations . The largest specimens are found in the coastal waters off Peru . The back coloration of the dolphins is between dark gray and black, whereby their fin has the same color on the front edge, but is clearly lighter on the rear edge; the throat and belly are light gray to white. On each side, a white stripe runs from the back to a wide, light gray patch on the tail. Between this spot and the stripe there remains a characteristic, thorn-shaped section of the dark color on the back, through which this species can always be recognized. Otherwise it can be confused with any other species of its genus due to great similarities.
distribution
Black dolphins live in the coastal areas of South America in the area of Chile , Peru , Argentina and the Falkland Islands , on the west coast of Africa off Namibia and South Africa and on the east coast of New Zealand . They can also be found in Tasmania , New South Wales and various archipelagos in the southern oceans. You can cover long distances, but this is not expected to be regular hikes.
Threat and protection
The number of black dolphins still alive today is unknown, but it is not assumed to be endangered. An estimate of the animals of Patagonia in the 1990s showed a regional population of about 7,000 animals.
On the coast of Peru, black dolphins are hunted with harpoons and used commercially, mainly as bait for crab fishing. Several thousand animals are killed every year. Outside of Peru, the main threat to dolphins is death in fishing nets, in which they can regularly become entangled and drown. However, the number of these accidents has decreased since trawling was largely banned.
Because of their acrobatic "skills" and their playfulness, the black dolphins are among the most popular destinations for whale -watching tourists , especially in Kaikoura , New Zealand, where the tours can also be used to observe the sperm whales .
Web links
- Lagenorhynchus obscurus in the endangered Red List species the IUCN 2006. Posted by: Cetacean Specialist Group, 1996. Retrieved on 12 May, 2006.