• Harbour porpoise
• Delphinus phocoena Linnaeus, 1758; Swedish Seas.
• Delphinus ventricosus Lacepède, 1804; River Thames.
• Phocoena tuberculifera Gray, 1865; Margate, Kent.

Weight:

• 54-65kg (B142)

Length:

• 1.4-1.7m / 4.5-5.5ft (D23)
• Female: about 170cm; male: about 145cm (B142).
• Neonate: 67-80cm (B142).

External Appearance:

• Head: short, blunt with no forehead or beak. Upper and lower jaws black.
• Teeth: small, spade shaped, 19-28 pairs in each jaw
• Dorsal fin: in centre of back, small and triangular.
• Colouration: Dorsal dark grey, flanks have paler patch, abdomen white. Grey line jaw-line to flippers.
• Flippers: short, slightly rounded, black
• Tail flukes: black, have central notch.
• (B142)

• British Isles: mainly along Atlantic coasts of south and west Ireland, western Scotland, northern North Sea around north-eastern Scotland.

(B51, B142)

Movement:

• British Isles: seen most frequently July to October (B142)

Habitat:

• Mainly coastal waters (B142).

Fish also crustaceans and Loligo cephalopods.

Fish include: Clupea, Ammodytes, Sprattus, Scomber, Sardinea, Micromesistius, Trisopterus, Merluccius, Trachurus, Pollachius, Gadus, Merlangius spp.

(B142)

Feeding Behaviour: --

Breeding:

• Young born mainly May to August (can be as early as March).
• Gestation about 11 months.
• Lactation about 8 months.
• Calving interval one to two years.
• (B142).

Breeding Behaviour: --

Activity:

• Mainly slow swimmer, although can reach 22 km/hour.
• Does not bow-ride.
• Does not normally leap clear of the water.
• (B142).

Social Behaviour:

• Mainly solitary or in small groups.
• Sometimes large feeding aggregations (e.g. 200-300 individuals).
• (B142)

Conservation:

• Declined in southern North Sea and English Channel (B142).

Threats: Drowning in fishing nets, coastal pollution, changes in fish stocks (B142)

Organisations (UK Contacts):

• Wildlife and Countryside Directorate, Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions (DETR)
• The Mammal Society
• Mammals Trust
• British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR)
• Cetacean Research & Rescue Unit (CRRU)
• Earthkind
• The Hebridean Whale & Dolphin Trust
• Sea Life Centres
• Sea Mammal Research Unit
• Sea Watch Foundation
• UK Marine Mammal Strandings Project
• Whale & Dolphin Conservation Society

Electronic Library (further reading):

• MARINE MAMMAL MEDIC HANDBOOK
• Oil Spills and Marine Wildlife: Guidelines for a Response
• RSPCA - Stranded whales, dolphins and porpoises
• Stranded Cetaceans
• British Mammal Factsheets

General Legislation:

• "Porpoises (Cetacea)" are listed on Schedule 5 (Protected animals) of the LUK2 - Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 of the United Kingdom. (W5.Oct01)
• This species is listed on Schedule 6 (Animals which may not be killed or taken by certain methods) of the LUK2 - Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 of the United Kingdom. (W5.Oct01)
• The Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 adds "reckless damage or disturbance" to the offence of intentionally damaging any structure or place which a wild animal listed in Schedule 5 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 together with a further extension to protect Schedule 5 cetaceans by the addition of an offence of "intentionally or recklessly disturbing a cetacean or basking shark in any place".

Individual techniques:

• Refloatation of Stranded Whales & Dolphins
• Lifting and Moving of Stranded Whales & Dolphins
• Accommodation of Casualty Whales & Dolphins