Enjoy your newsletter here: Mornington Peninsula Term 4 ISIC Newsletter 2024 opt
Split Fin is perhaps Australia’s best-known killer whale. Known to researchers since 2003, Split Fin was first photographed near the old whaling town of Eden in New South Wales. She and her pod have been sighted almost every year since, moving from Jervis Bay down to Tasmania and even South Australia!
It is believed that Split Fin is the matriarch of a family of killer whales.
She is also the most recognisable due to the damage to her dorsal fin which was almost certainly caused through contact with a boat propeller. The fact that she survived this injury is remarkable in itself but to survive and thrive as leader of her family group is truly something special.
Wilson is a rather boisterous showoff. This youngster was first photographed in October 2020 near Rodondo Island off Wilsons Promontory. It is unclear whether they are a male or female, but they were in the company of another humpback whale as they made their journey south.
On this windy Spring day, whale watchers were treated to a spectacular and prolonged display of tail slapping, head lunging, and general playfulness. Wilson and their companion paused their southerly migration to seemingly enjoy their last moments off the Australian mainland before heading into the cold Southern Ocean.
Martha was first photographed by the Dolphin Research Institute off Mount Martha in August 2011. She was accompanied by four presumed male humpback whales who appeared to be competing for the right to mate with her.
The pod was very active in the area and were quite violent toward each other at times. Our research team were in the midst of this amazing event and managed to photograph the unique fluke of Martha.
But this is not the only sighting of this whale! After uploading images to the online platform Happywhale, we were excited to learn that Martha was first sighted in Hervey Bay, Queensland, in 2008.
Feeder was first photographed in July of 2020 by citizen scientist, Barb Wallace off Pyramid Rock, Phillip Island.
On this day, Feeder was actively feeding on small baitfish and was accompanied by common dolphins. Over the course of the following week, Feeder was sighted a further three times and was seen feeding during each encounter.
While we now know that feeding in Bass Strait is not as rare as once thought, Feeder was one of the individuals who prompted us to investigate this behaviour more closely.
Ginger is one of Western Port’s more residential bottlenose dolphins. First seen in 2006 swimming with surfers, she has been a regular fin along Western Port beaches throughout the years.
Since she was first identified, Ginger has had four known calves: Smooth, Blaze, Prince, and most recently, a new calf in 2026. A credit to her mothering, Smooth, Blaze and Prince have all survived after leaving their mother’s side, with Blaze and Prince now regulars along Western Port’s beaches themselves.
We are always excited to receive sighting reports from citizen scientists in the area, helping us continue to follow Ginger and her growing family.
DD is one of the few males we know of in Port Phillips unique common dolphin community. He was born in 2012 to a mother we call Square Notch. At just 8 months old, DD suffered an injury to his dorsal fin, possibly from a boat propeller. Despite his injury, this resilient dolphin doesn’t seem to be at all affected by his “damaged dorsal” fin, which is how he got the name “DD”. He is now regularly sighted with other resident dolphins like BUD and Lucky who also sport old injures.
Tall Fin was first seen in 2006 and has been sighted every year since. He is one of Port Phillips resident males and loves the limelight, often outshining the other dolphins when we are trying to photograph them for ID purposes.
Tall Fin has a very slender and tall fin, with no obvious markings, which is unusual for a dolphin that must be approaching 25 years of age. Over the years, we have seen Tall Fin mating with various females in the bay suggesting some of the calves in Port Phillip may be his. We have also seen him “baby-sitting” calves for extended periods of time.
V-Nick is one of Port Phillip’s first common dolphins, having first been seen in 2005. In fact she is dolphin #1 in our catalogue of over 150 common dolphins. She is easily identifiable by a “V” shaped nick at the top of her dorsal fin and has been seen most years since 2005. She is a champion mother of five, having her first known calf in 2008. Most of her calves we have been able to keep track of and watch grow, and most recently, we have even been able to track V-Nick’s first grand-calf born in early 2023!
Poke is one of the original common dolphins we discovered in Port Phillip in 2005, or “OGs”, as they are fondly referred to at DRI. Poke, who is at least 25 years of age, is still regularly seen on surveys, often spotted with V-Nick, Tall Fin and Esther.
During the last 20 years, she has been a super-mum, giving birth to seven calves in the Bay! One of Poke’s earlier calves was injured in its first year, possibly by a propeller. The fact that the calf survived is a credit to Poke as a mum and the health of the calf.
Violet is one of Port Phillip’s remarkable common dolphins, and was named after a very special supporter of the Dolphin Research Institute.
Violet was first seen in Port Phillip in 2015 and became a first-time mum in early 2020. Violet spent the next one and a half years raising her young calf in the protected waters of the Bay. More recently, in 2025, Violet was spotted with her second calf!
Whilst we don’t often spot her in Port Phillip, we believe this free spirited dolphin often spends her time out in Bass Strait, likely socialising with hundreds of other common dolphins.
