Perth Dolphins

Akuna is our most recognisable dolphin, with the triangular notch at the top of her dorsal fin, she is easily spotted even at a distance. Akuna is an adult female, first recorded in the Swan River in 2009. Her latest calf, Kaya, was born in June 2022 and the two are regularly sighted throughout the Riverpark. Unfortunately, Akuna has a sad reproductive history, with many of her calves passing away. In 2021, her young calf was euthanised due to severe injuries from a fishing line entanglement.

Moon is an adult female, born into the Riverpark community in 2001. She is often seen in the river with her calf Nganga, who is now considered a juvenile. Juveniles are no longer dependent on their mother, however, the two still spend a lot of time together, foraging and socialising. Moon has also had a sad reproductive history, her calf born in 2019 tragically drowned after becoming entangled in an abandoned crab pot. Her only other known surviving calf is female Djinda, who is now 9 years old.

Claw was first recorded in 2009, she is missing the tip of her rostrum (mouth). We do not know how this happened, but we can see that her foraging and feeding ability is not affected by it. She is the mother to a newborn calf born in April 2023 named Smiley and to juvenile Bobby, born in April 2019.

Dunedoo was first recorded in 2009. She lost her first calf in 2016. Her second calf, Marnz (male) born in 2017 is now a juvenile and is regularly spotted spending time with other juvenile dolphins in the Riverpark. Dunedoo sadly lost her third calf in Feb 2022 but gave birth to another calf in April 2023. Sadly, this calf is now entangled in fishing line.

Panuni was first recorded in 2011, and is the mother of juvenile Cruze. Since then, Panuni has lost two calves: in 2019 her calf passed away within a month after birth, and in October 2022 she lost her 6 month old calf named Dambart. (photo pictured is Panuni with Dambart).

Daniele has a noticeable notch on the leading edge of her dorsal fin, caused by a fishing line entanglement. Daniele has also survived a shark attack, with only a few scars left on her body to tell the tale. Daniele currently has a calf named Blue, born in February 2022 and is also the mother of juvenile dolphin Slinky born in 2019.

Eden has had five calves since first being recorded in 2009. Unfortunately, she has lost a few and her calf Garden (who was a juvenile) has not been seen since 2018. Zephyr born to Eden in 2018 is still seen in the Riverpark with other juvenile dolphins, and Eden currently has a dependent calf, named Apple, born in Feb 2022.

Hugs was born to mother Cuddles, who is a resident dolphin in the adjacent waters (south of Fremantle). Hugs became independent in 2014, making herself a resident of the Riverpark community. She is most often observed in the Fremantle Ports area and lower reaches of the estuary. She gave birth to calf Bubbles in 2021 and we recently found out, Bubbles is a male.

Djinda was born in June 2014 to mother, Moon. Despite being slightly younger than the average age of a first-time mother dolphin, Djinda gave birth to calf Walken in April 2023. Sadly two months later, Walken was found deceased. A necropsy revealed that Walken died from a severe lungworm infection. You can read more about the necropsy findings here. Djinda is listed as a juvenile in our 2022 FinBook Guide, as she is less than 10 years old. Dolphins are considered mature adults from 10 years+. However, given that Djinda has had a calf, she is now considered an adult. Photo of Djinda with calf Walken, by Dr Delphine Chabanne.

Bottomslice is an adult Male, one of 4 resident male dolphins in Perth’s community. His alliance partner is Blackwall and they are usually seen together. They make their way through the Riverpark, often seen foraging and socialising with other resident dolphins as well as frequenting Cockburn Sound.

Blackwall has a noticeable chunk missing from the peduncle (between the dorsal fin and tail) which is suspected to be an old shark bite wound. He is often seen with his alliance partner, Bottomslice with the two regularly photographed synchronously swimming and courting females.

Extreme was first recorded in 2009 and has a noticeable skin ‘tag’ at the bottom of his dorsal fin. Extreme has been photographed with Bottomslice but is most often seen with another resident male, Kwillena Lookalike.

Kwillena Lookalike was first recorded in 2011 and was attacked by a shark in 2014, leaving him with some scars on his body. He is now often seen with resident male, Extreme with the two of them visiting Cockburn Sound frequently.