Speak out for the last 55 Maui’s dolphins

Written By: - Date published: 1:19 pm, March 19th, 2012 - 30 comments
Categories: Conservation - Tags:

Many of you will know the perilous plight of Maui’s & Hector’s dolphins.  Maui’s are now as low as 55 adults, so we can’t lose another moment.

The government are consulting on emergency protection for Maui’s right now.  While what they’re suggesting doesn’t go far enough, it’s a crack in the door and a shot at saving the species.

Sign and share:

Please, please sign on this link it’s easy & quick and will add your voice to the other 1000 that have already signed, supporting the emergency protection.

You can sign the submission and a petition which will send a letter to the Ministers of Conservation and Primary Industries, Kate Wilkinson & David Carter. So in three clicks of the mouse you can access that page and send a submission and a letter in petition to the Govt.

In addition for a fun way of taking part, take a photo of yourself with a Maui’s dolphin image and post in on the visual petition at Let’s Face It on facebook – these will all be collated and presented outside Parliament on April 2.

– Christine Rose

30 comments on “Speak out for the last 55 Maui’s dolphins ”

  • Comments are now closed

  1. higherstandard 1
    19 March 2012 at 1:34 pm

    Done.

  2. lprent 2
    19 March 2012 at 1:42 pm

    Done. We need extended fish breeding areas anyway to keep the fisheries sustainable. May as well be there.

  3. vto 3
    19 March 2012 at 2:17 pm

    Not wanting to spoil the fun and certainly think more fish is better, but there seem to be far far more of the hectors dolphins than I ever come across before. This is not needed for them and I am sure that this measure is not the cause for the decline of mauis to 55.

    But the authorities seem to think this is the cause and will stop the decline so lets see. Again.

    Nets as a method of catching any fish however is pretty poor unless one is starving. So indiscriminatory and wasteful and deadly.

  4. Benjamin B. 4
    19 March 2012 at 3:35 pm

    D’oh that change.org site is one of the many that have completely and utterly broken the submit button.

    Plus, have any of those 2700+ signatories actually given up eating fish, I wonder? Cos if nobody eats fish then nobody catches fish and the dolphins are left alone. Simple, really.

    • felix 4.1
      19 March 2012 at 3:45 pm

      Wow that’s flawless logic Ben.

      Oh, except that even if every single one of the 2700+ signatories gave up eating fish, billions more people would still be eating it so it’s neither here nor there with regard to the validity of signing.

      But apart from that, awesome.

      • Benjamin B. 4.1.1
        19 March 2012 at 5:29 pm

        Look imho these online petitions are actually dangerous. I thought I’ll make an exception here and sign, but they’re still dangerous. Two reasons: 1) people believe they’ve done their duty when 2) the addressee doesn’t give a toss about the online petition.

        If we don’t give those politicians and fishermen *hell* then they will not care, ever. We need another 50000+ people demonstration for endangered species, habitats, ecosystems, all that.

        Blame me for not organising one… honestly I wouldn’t know how to go about it. Others have proven they know…

    • lprent 4.2
      19 March 2012 at 4:13 pm

      I guess that you know very little about the very limited range of this particular dolphin. Either that or you’re too ignorant to know that there are many species of dolphins from the species of Orca (a bloated form of dolphin) to those that live in the Amazon river. It isn’t like the choice is to stop fishing everywhere. Both the actual area being suggested and the area that should be reserved are pretty small.

      Your comment identifies you as a complete idiot.. Please improve rapidly.

      • grumpy 4.2.1
        19 March 2012 at 7:50 pm

        Idiot is a mild term in this case. Anyone who uses set netting to catch fish is one too…..

      • Benjamin B. 4.2.2
        20 March 2012 at 8:53 am

        Thanks a lot for staying away from personal attacks … like I know what kind of fish they catch off Taranaki …

        … other than that pretty much all fisheries are unsustainable, thought that was common knowledge.

  6. Kevin Welsh 6
    19 March 2012 at 3:50 pm

    I’m no expert, but with numbers as low as 55 adults, is that enough genetic diversity to sustain the Maui Dolphin?

    • Kotahi Tane Huna 6.1
      19 March 2012 at 4:05 pm

      Dunno about Dolphins, but according to DOC:

      In 1980 there were only five black robins in the world, with just a single breeding pair left. The survival of the species hinged on that last pair. A desperate and innovative management regime was quickly put into action that resulted in a successful population turnaround. Today, the population stands at around 200.

      • insider 6.1.1
        19 March 2012 at 5:57 pm

        my inexpert view is that they are probably doomed unless they can interbreed with southern hectors and we can relocate some of that population. Robins could be seen easily, tagged, tracked, eggs relocated to induce breeding. None of that can be done with dolphins unless we choose to capture the whole species (which could kill them straight off)

        • Kotahi Tane Huna 6.1.1.1
          19 March 2012 at 8:50 pm

          Or we could make their habitat a marine reserve before we become the only nation other than China that has managed to drive a dolphin species to extinction. What am I saying? The search for oil is far more important – we get royalties, you know!

  7. Matthew Whitehead 7
    19 March 2012 at 4:21 pm

    There’s also a petition on Avaaz if you prefer their system, or want to sign in multiple places to make it clear you’re behind protecting our indigenous dolphins:

    http://www.avaaz.org/en/petition/Save_The_Maui_Dolphin//?tta

  8. deuto 8
    19 March 2012 at 5:21 pm

    Done.

  9. belladonna 9
    19 March 2012 at 5:47 pm

    Done

  10. John 10
    19 March 2012 at 5:51 pm

    They say the population has dropped by 50% since 2005 with only one reported death in a set-net, Maybe they should look at other reasons of why the dolphins are dying. Trawlers are coming in to the dolphin area at night undetected, and no one is enforcing this. If a commercial fisherman using trawl nets or even 2 boats pair trawling catch a dolphin, they are not going to report the death to anyone, but will dispose of the dolphin.
    Banning set netting further down the coast with do nothing.

  11. felix 11
    19 March 2012 at 5:54 pm

    Has anyone asked the dolphins if they actually want to live?

    • Colonial Viper 11.1
      19 March 2012 at 7:53 pm

      That’s right. Where is the evidence.

      • RedLogix 11.1.1
        19 March 2012 at 8:22 pm

        Maybe they’re just bored with it all….

        • vto 11.1.1.1
          19 March 2012 at 8:30 pm

          Well I come across two washed up in last few years and they were bored stiff. Plus a great white once which was so bored it didn’t even mind the flies buzzing in and out of it.

  12. Herodotus 12
    19 March 2012 at 6:33 pm

    Our beloved council thinks that looking after our harbour is soley to be meassured on a financial basis. No to Marine reserves but yes to extending the influence of POA. No wonder we under value our environment.
    Next we will be told that due to financial pressures that expensive oxidation treatment ponds are to be phased out and replaced by pumping effluent directly out a few km’s into the harbour.
    At least a few thiousnad ar trying to make a difference 😉
    http://www.nzherald.co.nz/ports-of-auckland-limited/news/article.cfm?o_id=158&objectid=10790164
    http://www.nzherald.co.nz/marine/news/article.cfm?c_id=61&objectid=10791651

  13. grumpy 13
    19 March 2012 at 7:46 pm

    As a diver who spends a lot of time in the water at Akaroa, I am very pleased to sign the petition. I agree with vto that I have never seen so many Hector’s dolphins as there are now (in 40 years diving). Just shows how effective the current set net ban is…………..

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