Mammals

A marine mammal is a mammal that is primarily ocean-dwelling or depends on the ocean for its food.

Whales & Dolphins: Whales belong to a group of mammals called cetaceans, which also includes dolphins and porpoises. Most people call the larger cetaceans whales, and the smaller ones dolphins. However, some species that we call whales actually belong to the dolphin family. In New Zealand there are five such whales: the killer whale (orca), short-finned pilot, long-finned pilot, false killer and melon-headed whales.
Seals: Three species breed around New Zealand’s coastline and on its temperate and subantarctic islands. These are the New Zealand fur seal, the New Zealand or Hooker’s sea lion, and the southern elephant seal. A fourth, the leopard seal, is a frequent visitor. Leopard seals breed in the New Zealand-claimed sector of Antarctica, the Ross Dependency, along with Weddell seals, crabeater seals and Ross seals.

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