British Columbia Outdoor Wilderness Guide
Description - This porpoise has a stocky, black
body with large white sections on the flanks and belly.
The head is small and beakless. They are 6 to 8 feet
long, weighing up to 400 pounds.
- They are commonly seen offshore and inshore from southern
California to Alaska. Being a deepwater animal it comes
close to shore where their are canyons or deep channels.
Sightings are common in Hecate Strait, Queen Charlotte
Strait, Juan de Fuca Strait, and exposed seaways like
Queen Charlotte Sound, Dixon Entrance and Fitzhugh Sound.
- This is the fastest swimmer of the cetacean reaching
speeds of up to 35 mph. They kick up a rooster tail
of spray when they surface and are enthusiastic bow
riders on boats. Dall's Porpoise feeds on a wide variety
of fish, squid and crustaceans. The killer whale is
known to attack Dall's Porpoise; many die each year
in fishing gear intended to catch fish and human hunters
who relish porpoise meat are another enemy. They are
not threatened in the west coast range.