1888 – April 1912; pronounced /pəˈlɔːrəs/)[1] was a Risso's dolphin (Grampus griseus) that was famous for meeting and escorting ships through a stretch of water in Cook Strait, New Zealand.

Pelorus Jack was usually spotted in Admiralty Bay between Cape Francis and Collinet Point, near French Pass, a notoriously dangerous channel used by ships travelling between Wellington and Nelson.

[2][3] While it is claimed in the British book Breverton's nautical curiosities : a book of the sea that he was named after the pelorus, a marine navigational instrument,[4] Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand explains that, based on local knowledge, the name came from Pelorus Sound / Te Hoiere because it was at the entrance to that stretch of water where he would regularly meet ships to accompany them.

Despite his name, he did not live in nearby Pelorus Sound / Te Hoiere; instead, he would often guide ships through dangerous passages of French Pass.

However, research suggests that Pelorus Jack was an old animal; his head was white and his body pale, both indications of age, so it is likely that he died of natural causes.

[8] Since 1989, Pelorus Jack has been used as a symbol for the Interislander, a ferry service across the Cook Strait, and is incorporated into the livery of the ships in the fleet.