Besides dolphins and killer whales, what other animals can be seen in Hauraki Gulf Marine Park?
Whale watching in New Zealand Whale watching in New Zealand is predominantly centered around the areas of Kaikoura and the Hauraki Gulf. Known as the 'whale capital', Kaikoura is a world-famous whale watching site, in particular for sperm whales which is currently the most abundant of large whales in New Zealand waters. The Hauraki Gulf Marine Park (just outside Auckland city) is also a significant whale watching area with a resident population of Bryde's Whales commonly viewed alongside other cetaceans Common Dolphins, Bottlenose Dolphins and Orca. Whale watching is also offered in other locations, often as eco-tours and in conjunction with dolphin watching. Land-based whale watching from New Zealand's last whaling station, which closed in 1964, is undertaken for scientific purposes, mostly by ex-whalers. Some compilations of sighting footages are available on YouTube.
Springer (killer whale) Springer (born late 1999 or early 2000), officially named A73, is a wild orca (also known as killer whale) from the Northern Resident community of orcas which every summer frequent the waters off the northern part of Vancouver Island, British Columbia (BC). In 2002, Springer, then a calf, was discovered alone and emaciated some 250 miles from her family's (called a pod), territory. Experts identified Springer by her vocal calls that are specific to her pod and by examining photographs of her eye patch. They were also able determine where Springer's pod was currently located.