60 THE ANIMALS OF NEW ZEALAND 



The Dolphin. 



Delphinus delphis. 



Beak at least half the length of the gape. Flippers shorter thau the 

 gape. Teeth about 45 in each jaw. Above brown; below white, the 

 white extending over the eye. Fins dark, the dorsal and pectorals often 

 with a large white blotch. Length about six feet. The North Island as 

 far as Cook Strait. 



The dolphin chiefly frequents the open sea, often far from 

 land. It is gregarious, and feeds largely on flying-fish. 



Genus Orca. 



Teeth, about 12 on each side of the jaw, very large and stout. 

 Flippers very large, nearly as broad as long. Dorsal fin near the 

 middle of the back, very high and pointed. 



The Killer Whale. 



Orca gladiator. 

 Dark above, and white below; a white mark over the eye. 

 The killer whale has been described as the wolf of the ocean. 

 Several of these whales, which are active and ferocious, unite in 

 attacking the larger species. Mr. F. Bullen was once an onlooker 

 at a terrible fight in the waters, in which three killers were the 

 aggressors. He says: "The first inkling of what was really going 

 on was the leaping of a killer high into the air by the side of the 

 whale, descending upon the victim's l)road smooth liack with a 

 resounding crash. I saw that the killer was provided with a pair 

 of huge fins, one on his back, the other on his belly, which at 

 first sight looked as if they were also weapons of offence. A 

 little observation convinced me that they were fins onl,y. Again 

 and again the aggressor leapt into the air, falling each time on to 

 the whale's back, as if to beat him to submission. The sea 

 foamed and boiled like a cauldron, so that it was only occasional 

 glimpses I was able to get of the killers, until presently the 

 worried whale lifted his head clear out of the surrounding 

 smother, revealing two furies hanging, one on each side, to his 



