Alaska reports for the harbour porpoise cluster along the Inside Passage and the Gulf of Alaska coast, with the densest reports from Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve, Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge, and Prince William Sound. These are exactly the kind of sheltered, shallow bays and fjords this small porpoise favors over open water, staying close to shore rather than ranging far offshore.
It hunts fish almost exclusively, working alone or in small loose groups rather than the bigger, more social pods dolphins form. In Alaska waters it likely takes herring, capelin, and other schooling fish close to the surface. Orcas and grey seals both take harbour porpoises, an unusual predator role for a seal to play against a fellow marine mammal.
Records run year-round but peak from May through August, when coastal fish runs pull porpoises in close to shore. It’s a shy animal that’s easy to miss even in busy water, so the record count says more about where people have looked than about how many porpoises are actually there.
Full species profile
