The Dall’s Porpoise (Phocoenoides dali) much like the Dall sheep is named after the famed naturalist W.H. Dall. Dall porpoises can be found primarily in the northern pacific from Japan to Alaska on down to northern California, some have been found as far south as the California Baja. Dall porpoises generally live in cold water below 60 degrees Fahrenheit. Generally Dall porpoises do not migrate outside of their range.
The Dall porpoise is a small cetacean, it ranges from 6-7.5 ft. in length and weighs 250-480 lbs.. The Dall porpoise is also very fast and can reach speeds up to thirty knots. The Dall porpoise is colored much like an orca black on the upper portion and white on its belly. These porpoises generally live in pods of 10-20 individuals, but may congregate in massive numbers to feed. The Dall porpoise is not too picky about what it eats their diet consists of squid, lantern fish, deep sea-smelt, and small schooling fish such as sardines and herring. The biggest threat to dall porpoises is the fishing industry, every year thousands of these species are caught in nets. They are also hunted mainly off of Japanese waters thankfully the hunting of dall porpoises has become increasingly regulated.
References
http://www.acsonline.org/factpack/DallsPorpoise.htm
http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/species/mammals/cetaceans/dallsporpoise.htm
http://dallsporpoise.org/index.php
http://www.eaglewingtours.com/016_WhalesandWild/2715_EagleWingWhal.html
