Links
Surf Rider Foundation
The Coral Reef Alliance
American Cetacean Society
Hawaiian Whale Research Foundation
Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society
Surfers for Cetaceans - Whale & Dolphin Protection
Marine Mammal Facts
Dolphins,”Nai’a”
Plutarch, a Greek moralist and biographer made this statement: "to the dolphin alone, beyond all other, nature has granted what the best philosophers seek: friendship for no advantage".
Nai’a is the Hawaiian name for dolphin and 13 species of toothed dolphins live in the Hawaiian waters. The most common are the Hawaiian spinner, spotted, bottlenose and rough-toothed dolphins. Other members of the dolphin family, termed as whales (kohola), are pilot and false killer whales.
Spinner dolphins are the smallest of Hawaii’s
dolphins averaging about five feet in length as adults. They feed at night on squid and lantern
fish in the deep waters and come close to shore in the mornings to rest
in an alpha-state where they shut off half of their brain.
Bottlenose and Spotted dolphins feed night and day throughout the Hawaiian
waters. Each dolphin has a signature whistle to communicate and also use
sonar to navigate.
Echolocation is a technique on which Dolphins frequently rely to navigate,
locate food and communicate with other dolphins. The sound waves emitted
by the dolphins in communication and echolocation stimulate healing and
is claimed to affect brain wave pattern and human tissue.
Dolphins and whales both have the ability to see above and below water.
Stories of human relationships with dolphins go back many centuries. For example, when pirates threatened historian Herodotus of Arion’s life. While on board a ship he expressed a last wish to sing a final song. He decided that since he must die at the hands of pirates he might as well as jump overboard to take his own life. He sang, jumped, but did not drown. A dolphin heard his song and came to his rescue and carried him 200 miles to shore.
Whales, “kohola”
To Hawaiians, the whale is a representation of the Hawaiian god, Kanaloa - the god of animals in the ocean.
The largest brain in the world belongs to the sperm whale. Weighing some 9,000 grams, it is six to seven times larger than the human brain. The second largest brain in the world is the killer whale (or orca) at 6,000 grams. The next largest brain among the cetaceans is the bottlenosed dolphin at 1,500 grams, followed by human brains at approximately 1,200 grams.
North
Pacific humpback
whales - also known as the winged whales because of their pectoral fins
that are 15 feet long - migrate to Hawaii for the winter season to mate
and give birth. All
whales make sounds, however the males are known to sing songs to attract
the females, which is done by passing air through chambers of their body,
as they have no vocal chords. Humpback whales are protected
under the Marine Mammal Protection Act as an endangered species.
The sperm whale is the largest of the toothed
whales and is the deepest diving mammal in the world. Sperm whales use echolocation to help them
navigate while feeding on giant squid at depths of 2-3000 meters.
The short-finned pilot whales feed at depths of 600 meters.
Turtles, “Honu”
The Hawaiian Green Sea Turtle is the largest of the hard-shelled sea turtles and their life span is unknown. These turtles migrate up to 800 miles throughout the Hawaiian islands to lay their eggs and as a threatened species, they are protected under the Endangered Species Act.