ACT NOW: SAVE THE MAUI DOLPHIN (aka NORTH ISLAND HECTOR'S DOLPHIN)

The critically endangered Maui dolphin (North Island Hector's dolphin) of New Zealand is on the brink of extinction. Only about 70-100 Maui dolphins have survived the onslaught of commercial and recreational set net fishing and commercial trawlers.
In January 2003, New Zealand's Minister of Fisheries wisely banned commercial and recreational set netting in Manukau Harbor, however, to give full and effective protection to the Maui dolphin, trawler fishing must be banned and the ban on set netting must be extended to encompass all harbors within the range of this magnificent marine mammal.
MAKE A DIFFERENCE AND ACT NOW!

Write government officials in New Zealand and demand full protection for the critically endangered Maui dolphin. You may use this sample letter or write your own. Be sure to fill in your name and home or business address in the body of the letter. Finally, enter your correct email address and click on ACT NOW. The letter will automatically be sent to all of the recipients listed in the form.

ACT NOW LETTER TO NEW ZEALAND OFFICIALS

HRt. Hon. Helen Clark
Prime Minister
Hon. Jim Anderton
Deputy Prime Minister
Hon. Pete Hodgson
Ministry of Fisheries
Hon. Sandra Lee
Minister of Conservation
Hon. Phil Goff
Minister of Foreign Affairs
Hon. Steve Maharey
Minister of Social Services and Employment
Hon. Trevor Mallard
Minister of Education
Hon. Margaret Wilson
Minister of Labour
Hon. Mark Burton
Minister of Tourism
Hon. Marian Hobbs
Minister for the Environment

Dear Sirs and Madam:
I commend the government of New Zealand for its ban on commercial and recreational set netting in Makulua Harbor as an important first step in the protection of the magnificent, yet critically endangered Maui dolphin.
To fully protect these rare animals and ensure their future survival, I urge the government of New Zealand to move quickly with a ban on trawler fishing as well as expanding the ban on set netting to encompass all harbors within the known range of Maui dolphins.
As you know, during the past two years six more critically endangered Maui dolphins have died and all of the available evidence strongly suggests they drowned after becoming entangled in fishing nets. Clearly, we must act quickly and decisively to protect and save the world's rarest marine mammal, and one of nature's most extraordinary creations, by establishing a marine sanctuary that will effectively ban commercial and recreational set netting and pair trawling within the entire range of the Maui dolphin.
Wherever they have been established, marine sanctuaries have been shown to benefit not only targeted endangered species such as the Maui dolphin, but also marine recreational users, sport fishers and commercial fishers who enjoy increased marine species abundance and diversity in areas adjacent to marine preserves.
Therefore, I want you to know that I join with the many citizens of New Zealand and the global conservationist community who care deeply about the Maui dolphin and are calling on the government of New Zealand to fully protect it by taking immediate and decisive action to ban set netting and pair trawling within its entire range.
Let us do everything we possibly can on our watch to ensure that our children, their children, and all generations to come will enjoy the Maui dolphin as a living, thriving species rather than a text book photo and a caption about another magnificent animal driven off the face of this planet by our greed and ignorance.
Sincerely,
Concerned Traveler