Categories
Animal Age

How old does a Hector’s dolphin get? (age expectancy)

What is the maximal age a Hector’s dolphin reaches?

An adult Hector’s dolphin (Cephalorhynchus hectori) usually gets as old as 20 years.

When born, they weight 5.84 kg (12.87 lbs) and measure 20 cm (0′ 8″). As a member of the Delphinidae family (genus: Cephalorhynchus), their offspring is 1 babies per pregnancy. Fully grown, they reach a bodylength of 87.5 cm (2′ 11″).

As a reference: Usually, humans get as old as 100 years, with the average being around 75 years. After being carried in the belly of their mother for 280 days (40 weeks), they grow to an average size of 1.65m (5′ 5″) and weight in at 62 kg (137 lbs), which is obviously highly individual.

A Hector's dolphin gets as old as 20 years

Hector’s dolphin (Cephalorhynchus hectori) is the best-known of the four dolphins in the genus Cephalorhynchus and, along with its subspecies Maui’s dolphin, is the only cetacean endemic to New Zealand. At approximately 1.4 m (4.6 ft) in length, it is one of the smallest cetaceans.Two subspecies occur: C. h. hectori, the more numerous subspecies, is found around the South Island, and the critically endangered Maui’s dolphin (C. h. maui) is found off the northwestern coast of the North Island. Hector’s dolphin is the world’s smallest and rarest dolphin. Maui’s dolphin is one of the eight most endangered groups of cetaceans. A 2010/2011 survey of Maui’s dolphin by the New Zealand Department of Conservation estimated only 55 adults remain.Hector’s dolphin was named after Sir James Hector (1834–1907), who was the curator of the Colonial Museum in Wellington (now the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa). He examined the first specimen found of the dolphin. The species was scientifically described by Belgian zoologist Pierre-Joseph van Beneden in 1881.Māori names for Hector’s and Maui’s dolphin include tutumairekurai, tupoupou and popoto.

Animals of the same family as a Hector’s dolphin

Not really brothers and sisters, but from the same biological family (Delphinidae):

Animals that reach the same age as Hector’s dolphin

With an average age of 20 years, Hector’s dolphin are in good companionship of the following animals:

Animals with the same number of babies Hector’s dolphin

The same number of babies at once (1) are born by:

Weighting as much as Hector’s dolphin

A fully grown Hector’s dolphin reaches around 50 kg (110.23 lbs). So do these animals: