Pelorus Jack

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Dolphin famous for meeting and escorting ships

title: "Pelorus Jack" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["1912-animal-deaths", "individual-dolphins", "solitary-dolphins", "history-of-the-marlborough-district", "cook-strait", "individual-animals-in-new-zealand", "animals-in-mythology", "individual-wild-animals"] description: "Dolphin famous for meeting and escorting ships" topic_path: "history" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pelorus_Jack" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Dolphin famous for meeting and escorting ships ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox animal"]

FieldValue
namePelorus Jack
imagePelorus Jack.jpg
captionPelorus Jack in 1909
speciesRisso's dolphin
birth_date
death_date
years_active1888–1912
knownEscorting ships near French Pass
appearanceWhite colour with grey lines or shadings; round, white head
::

| name = Pelorus Jack | image = Pelorus Jack.jpg | caption = Pelorus Jack in 1909 | alt = | birth_name = | othername = | species = Risso's dolphin | breed = | gender = | birth_date = | birth_place = | death_date = | death_place = | resting_place = | resting_place_coordinates = | relativeage = | nationality = | employer = | role = | years_active = 1888–1912 | known = Escorting ships near French Pass | occupation = | awards = | term = | predecessor = | successor = | owner = | parents = | children = | weight = | height = | appearance = White colour with grey lines or shadings; round, white head | namedafter = | website = |New Zealand |label=Cook Strait |lat_dir=S | lat_deg=41 | lat_min=13 | lat_sec=46 |lon_dir=E | lon_deg=174 | lon_min=28 | lon_sec=59 |position=bottom |width= 160 |float=right |caption=Location of Cook Strait Pelorus Jack (fl. 1888 – April 1912; pronounced ) was a Risso's dolphin (Grampus griseus) that was famous for meeting and escorting ships through a stretch of water in Cook Strait, New Zealand. The animal was reported over a 24 year period, from 1888 until his disappearance after 1912. Pelorus Jack was usually spotted in Admiralty Bay between Cape Francis and Collinet Point, near French Pass, a notoriously dangerous channel used by ships travelling between Wellington and Nelson.

While it is claimed in the British book Breverton's nautical curiosities : a book of the sea that he was named after the pelorus, a marine navigational instrument, Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand explains that, based on local knowledge, the name came from Pelorus Sound / Te Hoiere because it was at the entrance to that stretch of water where he would regularly meet ships to accompany them.

Pelorus Jack was shot at from a passing ship, and was later protected by a 1904 New Zealand law.

Appearance

Pelorus Jack was approximately 13 ft long and was of a white colour with grey lines or shadings, and a round, white head. Although its sex was never determined, it was identified from photographs as a Risso's dolphin, Grampus griseus. This is an uncommon species in New Zealand waters, and only 12 Risso's dolphins have been reported in that area.

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8c/The_animals_of_New_Zealand;an_account_of_the_dominion's_air-breathing_vertebrates(1909)_(14775451543).jpg" caption="Pelorus Jack. Photographed by A. Pitt."] ::

History

Pelorus Jack guided the ships by swimming alongside a water craft for 20 minutes at a time. If the crew could not see Jack at first, they often waited for him to appear.

Despite his name, he did not live in nearby Pelorus Sound / Te Hoiere; instead, he would often guide ships through dangerous passages of French Pass. However, some local residents familiar with his habits claim that he never went through French Pass itself but stayed near the Chetwode Islands.

Pelorus Jack was first seen around 1888 when he appeared in front of the schooner Brindle when the ship approached French Pass, a channel located between D'Urville Island and the South Island. When the members of the crew saw the dolphin bobbing up and down in front of the ship, they wanted to kill him, but the captain's wife talked them out of it. To their amazement, the dolphin then proceeded to guide the ship through the narrow channel. And for years thereafter, he safely guided almost every ship that came by. With rocks and strong currents, the area is dangerous to ships, but no shipwrecks occurred when Jack was present.

Many sailors and travellers saw Pelorus Jack, and he was mentioned in local newspapers and depicted in postcards.

Jack was last seen in April 1912. There were various rumours connected to his disappearance, including fears that foreign whalers might have harpooned him. However, research suggests that Pelorus Jack was an old animal; his head was white and his body pale, both indications of age, so it is likely that he died of natural causes.

Since 1989, Pelorus Jack has been used as a symbol for the Interislander, a ferry service across the Cook Strait, and is incorporated into the livery of the ships in the fleet.

A statue of Pelorus Jack was unveiled at French Pass in 2016.

Shooting incident

In 1904, someone aboard the SS Penguin tried to shoot Pelorus Jack with a rifle. Despite the attempt on his life, Pelorus Jack continued to help ships. According to folklore, however, he no longer helped the Penguin, which shipwrecked in Cook Strait in 1909.

Protection

Following the shooting incident, a law was proposed to protect Pelorus Jack. He became protected by Order in Council under the Sea Fisheries Act on 26 September 1904. Pelorus Jack remained protected by that law until his disappearance in 1912. It is believed that he was the first individual sea creature protected by law in any country.

Cultural references

  • In 1945, when Bob Lowry founded his new press, Pelorus Press, in Auckland, his printer's device was a dolphin, referencing 16th century Venetian printer Aldus Manutius, and he named the press after Pelorus Jack. "It was a happy thought to maintain the old dolphin tradition. What more inevitable then ... than Pelorus Jack of the Sounds?"
  • Kipa Hemi Whiro, a kaumātua of Ngāti Kuia is reported in 1913 as being "very positive in his belief" that Pelorus Jack was "the self-same fish of ancient days", Kaikai-a-waro, a sea-god or taniwha who had guided his ancestor Matua-hautere across Cook Strait from the North Island to settle in the South Island many generations earlier.
  • "Pelorus Jack" is a Scottish country dance, named in honour of the dolphin. This dance features a set of alternating tandem half-reels (or heys) where two people act as one but swap who leads at the reel ends. It is also known as a Dolphin Reel.
  • Arthur Ransome mentions Pelorus Jack as accompanying ships and receiving protection in his 1932 novel Peter Duck. However, the character of Peter Duck incorrectly locates the dolphin as living in Sydney Harbour.
  • The story of Pelorus Jack is (with some changes) recounted in the 1960's Boris Karloff Tales of Mystery anthology comic series.
  • Singer/songwriter Andrea Prodan tells the tale of the dolphin in the song "Pelorus Jack" on his 1996 all-vocal record Viva Voce.
  • Two bulldogs, named Pelorus Jack I (1913–1916) and Pelorus Jack II (1916–1919), served as mascots of HMS New Zealand, the battlecruiser that the New Zealand government paid to have built for the Royal Navy.
  • The Cornish poet, broadcaster and teacher Charles Causley (1917–2003) retells the story of Pelorus Jack in a 44-line, traditionally crafted poem titled "Pelorus Jack" in his Collected Poems 1951–2000.

References

Further references

  • Ross E Hutchins and Jerome P Connolly – The saga of Pelorus Jack (1971)
  • Edmund Lindop and Jane Carlson – Pelorus Jack (1964)

References

  1. {{cite LPD. 2. pelorus. 565
  2. Casey, Susan. (2015-09-09). "Why do dolphins seek out encounters with humans?".
  3. Lawson, Will. (September 1924). "Pelorus Jack: A Complete History of the Wonderful Pilot Fish of New Zealand". J. S. Hines.
  4. Breverton, Terry. (20 September 2012). "Breverton's nautical curiosities : a book of the sea". [[Quercus (publisher).
  5. Hutching, Gerard. (1 September 2015). "The story of Pelorus Jack".
  6. Monaco, Annalisa Lo. (2020-08-18). "Pelorus Jack: lo straordinario Delfino "pilota" della Nuova Zelanda".
  7. "The Legend of Pelorus Jack". pelorus-jack.com.
  8. Parkinson, Brian. "Unique Wildlife of New Zealand – Pelorus". Ecotours New Zealand.
  9. Maori, A. G.. (June 1913). "Pelorus Jack". A. H. Ford.
  10. Sadler, F. W.. (1952). "The Nautical Magazine". Brown, Son and Ferguson.
  11. [[John Robbins (author). link. (11 June 2020 H J Kramer, {{ISBN). 9781932073416.
  12. [http://www.nzmaritime.co.nz/railferries.htm New Zealand's Cook Strait Rail Ferries] {{Webarchive. link. (27 July 2009 , New Zealand Maritime Record)
  13. (11 October 2016). "Much loved dolphin returns to French Pass". www.stuff.co.nz.
  14. [http://www.museumofwellington.co.nz/fact_sheets/pelorus_jack.pdf Pelorus Jack fact sheet] {{Webarchive. link. (21 May 2010 at the Museum of Wellington)
  15. "Wild Dolphins page 3".
  16. Atkinson, Tania. (1994-12-22). "Pelorus Jack: The Story of New Zealand's Famous Dolphin". HarperCollins.
  17. Alpers, A.F.G.. (1966). "Pelorus Jack". An Encyclopaedia of New Zealand.
  18. Hughes, Peter. (2000). "A Book in the Hand: Essays on the History of the Book in New Zealand". Auckland University Press.
  19. "Pelorus Jack".
  20. Thompson, David Millstone and Allison. "The Dolphin Hey: The Evolution and Transmission of a Dance Figure".
  21. (1987). "Peter Duck : a treasure hunt in the Caribbees". Godine.
  22. "Miracle from the Deep". ''Boris Karloff Tales of Mystery'' #16 (Gold Key Comics, 1963)
  23. "Pelorus Jack, the mascot {{!}} NZHistory, New Zealand history online".

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1912-animal-deathsindividual-dolphinssolitary-dolphinshistory-of-the-marlborough-districtcook-straitindividual-animals-in-new-zealandanimals-in-mythologyindividual-wild-animals