Pod of 16 dolphins spotted in Auckland river may have been chased there by killer whale

Tuesday, 25 June 2019

Project Jonah helped 16 dolphins return to the open ocean after they were stranded in a river in north Auckland.

Dolphins found six kilometres up a shallow north Auckland river have been safely 'shepherded' to the open ocean.

The pod of around 16 of the aquatic mammals were most likely to have ended up in the Weiti River after fleeing an orca, experts said.

Weiti River is located in north Auckland.

Project Jonah, a charity caring for stranded whales and dolphins, received a call about dolphins a long way up the river, near Silverdale, around 9am on Tuesday.

General manager Daren Grover said the 'highly unusual' event had him worried the pod would get stuck in the shallow mangroves, especially considering it was low tide.

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To counter this, several boats were placed further up the river to create a 'wall of noise' that aimed to stop the dolphins going any further.

After several hours, the pod was returned back to the open water with the help of the turning tide.

'It is not unheard of for dolphins to swim into rivers but this is not a place where dolphins are seen,' Grover said.

The reason for the odd choice of direction could have been for food, but more than likely they were avoiding a predator such as orca in the area, he said.

'This outcome wouldn't have been possible without help from locals, and rangers from the Department of Conservation Auckland,' he said.

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