Common Porpoise
Phocoena phocoena
- KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
- PhylumChordata (Cordats)
- ClassMammalia (Mamífers)
- OrderCetacea
- FamilyPhocoenidae (Porpoises)
- GenusPhocoena (Typical Porpoises)
- SpeciesPhocoena phocoena (Common Porpoise)
The harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) is one of eight extant species of porpoise. It is one of the smallest species of cetacean. As its name implies, it stays close to coastal areas or river estuaries, and as such, is the most familiar porpoise to whale watchers. This porpoise often ventures up rivers, and has been seen hundreds of kilometres from the sea. The harbour porpoise may be polytypic, with geographically distinct populations representing distinct races: P. p. phocoena in the North Atlantic and West Africa, P. p. Wikipedia →
5–10% of wildlife watchers report a Common Porpoise sighting in Olympic National Park, based on 38 days of visitor records from GBIF citizen-science data.
Closest Relatives at Olympic National Park
📅 Monthly Probability
☀️ When They're Spotted
Most active during daytime hours (6am–6pm) · across all parks (global)
Global Distribution
Where this species is recorded worldwide. Restricted to human observations from 2019 onwards — the same kind of record and the same period the probabilities on this page are built from, so collar-tracking studies, camera-trap arrays and museum specimens are excluded. Around Santa Rosa that removes 5,924 GPS fixes from a handful of tagged jaguars.
where this species is recorded (GBIF density — it tracks where observers go, not how likely a sighting is) · parks where it occurs — tap a pin for the sighting probability there
Parks Where Found
| # | Park | Country | Probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Acadia National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Wrangell-St. Elias National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Snowdonia National Park | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 4 | Pacific Rim National Park Reserve | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 5 | Great Bear Rainforest | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 6 | Wadden Sea National Park | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 7 | Olympic National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 8 | Vatnajokull National Park | 🇮🇸 Iceland | |
| 9 | Redwood National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 10 | Katmai National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 11 | Gros Morne National Park | 🇨🇦 Canada |
Quick answers
What are the chances of seeing a Common Porpoise in Olympic National Park?
About 6% of wildlife watchers report a Common Porpoise sighting in Olympic National Park, based on 38 days of visitor records from GBIF citizen-science data.
When is the best time to see Common Porpoise in Olympic National Park?
August has the highest sighting rate for Common Porpoise in Olympic National Park in our monthly data.