Order: Cetacea.

Family: Phocoenidae.

Size: Length- 5.6 to 6.6 ft (1.7-2 m).

Weight: 154 to 220 lb (70-100 kg).

Key Features: Small head with the blowhole on top; melon rounded, no beak; mouth line curved upwards towards the eyes. Behind the blowhole, there is a slight depression like a neck crease because of which Finless Porpoise enjoys flexibility of neck with the head can be rotated freely; no dorsal fin, flippers long with blunt tips; colour is uniform grey often with bluish tinge, lips and chin being lighter in; 13 to 12 pairs of spade-shaped teeth in each jaw.

Voice: Low pitched-calls; echolocation clicks up to 1000 times per second; breathes with a “popping” or sneezing sound.

Breeding: Single calf born after gestation period of around 10 months. Weaned at 10 months; females sexually mature at 6 yrs; males at 4 yrs. May live up to 33 yrs in the wild.

Diet: Fish, crustacean, shrimp and squid.

Habitat: Porpoises inhabit inshore coastal waters and estuaries, and are also said to frequent rivers.

Habits: Generally found in pairs, groups of up to 10; young calves are said to travel clinging to their mother’s backs; exhibits evasiveness around oceangoing vessels and other human activity; some have been seen performing “tail stands” and doing “spy hops”- quickly poking their heads out of the water just past the eyes and disappearing into the water again.

Conservation Status: Species listed as ‘Vulnerable’ globally on IUCN red list.

Distribution in Gujarat: More instances of Finless Porpoise stranding have been recorded along the Pakistan Coast than in Gujarat. During the study of marine mammals of the Gulf of Kachchh in 2002, 14 individuals were sighted including on dead porpoise near Sachana.

 

 

 

 

 

References:

• Singh, H.S. (2003). Sea mammals in marine protected area in the Gulf of Kachchh, Gujarat State, India, Indian Journal of Marine Sciences, Vol. 32(3), pp. 258-262.

• Sathasivam, K. (2004). Marine Mammals of India. Universities Press (India) private limited. Hyderabad. Pp: 40

• Marine Mammals Facts Courtesy: Animal Fact Files- Mammals. The Brown Reference Group Plc.