Welcome to Nicks 'n' Notches Online, the enewsletter of the
Sarasota Dolphin Research Program.
|
|
|
|
RESEARCH, CONSERVATION
AND EDUCATION SINCE 1970.
|
The Sarasota Dolphin Research Program (SDRP) is a collaboration dedicated to dolphin research, conservation and education.
It began in 1970 at Mote Marine Laboratory when Blair Irvine and high school student Randy Wells started a pilot tagging study to find out whether dolphins on Florida's central west coast remained in the area or traveled more widely. In 1974, with a contract from the U.S. Marine Mammal Commission, they were joined by Michael Scott and expanded the study with radio-telemetry.
Their subsequent discovery of long-term residency set the stage for today's efforts by demonstrating opportunities to study individually identifiable dolphins throughout their lives in a natural laboratory setting.
Our work is conducted under the name "Sarasota Dolphin Research Program." This name ties together several organizations dedicated to ensuring the continuity of our long-term research, conservation and education efforts in Sarasota Bay and elsewhere.
The SDRP has been operated by the Chicago Zoological Society (CZS) since 1989.
"Dolphin Biology Research Institute," is a Sarasota-based 501(c)3 nonprofit corporation established in 1982. It provides logistical support with research vessels, towing vehicles, computers, cameras, field equipment, etc.
Since 1992, the program has been based at Mote Marine Laboratory on City Island in Sarasota Bay, with office, lab, storage and dock space and easy access to boat launching ramps within the home range of the Sarasota Bay resident dolphins.
|
|
 |
|
Ed. Note: Dr. Randy Wells has been out in the field, so we asked Dr. Katie McHugh to share some of the latest news from the SDRP.
|
|
Notes from the Field and Lab...
|
|
Katie McHugh, Ph.D., Staff Scientist
|
Feeding wild dolphins puts them at increased risk from injuries or even death, according to a study published earlier this year by
postdoctoral research fellow Dr. Fredrik  Christiansen of Murdoch University in Australia, who used data collected by the Sarasota Dolphin Research Program and Mote Marine Laboratory to put hard numbers to something we've long suspected was true.
This new analysis, which I also co-authored with Lars Bejder, Eilidh Siegal, David Lusseau, Elizabeth Berens McCabe, Gretchen Lovewell and Randy Wells, is titled
"Food provisioning increases the risk of injury in a long-lived marine top predator" and was published in the journal Royal Society Open Science.
The paper looked at data gathered during
1993-2014 and the injury risks for 404 dolphins. We found that, on average, animals that were conditioned to seek food from humans -- for instance by going after discarded bait or trying to eat an angler's catch -- had double the risk of injury over time than those that were not conditioned in this fashion. The dolphins' risk of injuries also increased as they aged.
It was the first study to directly link human-related feeding of wild dolphins to increased risk of injuries from other human interactions: entanglement in fishing gear, hooking, ingestion of fishing line and hooks and even boat strikes. The risks increased whether the feeding by humans was intentional or not.
Over the same period, we also noticed that the number of dolphins seeking and accepting food provided by humans was also increasing, and our analyses showed that this was most likely because dolphins are learning this behavior from their parents or peers.
Untangling a wild dolphin from fishing gear and other plastic.
Photo taken under NOAA Permit #18786.
|
|
|
These findings underscore the importance of the outreach and education component of the SDRP. You might remember from an earlier post that in 2016 we applied for and received a grant from the Disney Conservation Fund to find new ways to reach out to the public to educate them on ways they can keep dolphins safe and healthy in the wild.Specifically, our goal was to reach the groups that would be most likely to have a real impact on dolphins in the wild -- anglers and boaters.
One activity the grant has supported was surveys conducted by high school and college interns at local, land-based fishing hotspots to gather data on the trash left behind in these locations and to track human-dolphin interactions.
Students conducted weekend surveys at Sharky's Pier, the Venice jetties, North Siesta Bridge, Ringling Bridge/Otter Key Bridge, New Pass Bridge, Longboat Pass Bridge, Anna Maria City Pier, Rod & Reel Pier and the South Sunshine Skyway Fishing Pier. The students conducted surveys, while
 at the same time cleaning up the areas; they removed thousands of pieces of trash and more than 1 km -- more than half a mile -- of discarded fishing line from these piers, bridges and beaches. They also planned and led two debris clean-up events on City Island in Sarasota and recruited other teens to help and log the debris they collected on the
Marine Debris Tracker. (Available for free on iTunes and GooglePlay -- download yours now and start tracking the trash you collect.) More than 50 interns and students participated in these activities.
We also have taken part in area fishing and boating-related events to share information with these groups and are also testing a new app that will allow boaters and anglers to share information with us on their interactions with dolphins in the wild. The new app will allow fishermen and boaters to send us real-time reports about any dolphins they encounter that are scavenging or begging for food. The information will help us gain more information on risky dolphin behaviors and the locations where dolphins with bad habits are hanging out, so we better target information on dolphin-safe boating and fishing behaviors.
Click on the images below to download your own copy of our "Dolphin-Friendly Fishing & Viewing Tips" and to share the "Don't Feed Wild Dolphins" PSA with your friends and family!
Until next time...
Katie
|
Dr. Katie McHugh was recently featured on  Mote Marine Laboratory's podcast "Two Sea Fans" talking about the dolphins of Sarasota Bay.
In each episode, hosts Joe Nickelson and Hayley Rutger invite scientists to share stories of their research. Download episodes by searching
"Two Sea Fans" in the iTunes store
(it's free).
|
|
Name:
F109, aka Scooter
Age:
22
Sex: Female
A Dolphin's Life:
Scooter has been observed more than 948  times since her birth in 1995. She is the second calf of Vespa (FB79) -- an animal we've previously featured here in part because of her own bad behaviors
Scooter has given birth to five calves during her lifetime -- the most recent born just this summer. Only the new calf, which does not yet have a name, and Scooter's offspring nicknamed Skeeter have survived.
Like her mother and other members of this dolphin family, Scooter engages in bad feeding habits -- stealing bait and catch from fishing boats, stalking piers and jetties, eating discarded catch, etc. In addition to the direct risks associated with bad feeding habits -- fishing gear entanglement and hooking and the possibility of getting hit by boats -- this family shows how these behaviors can be passed down through the generations, compounding the problem.
Please don't feed wild dolphins -- intentionally or accidentally. It's not good for you (it's illegal) and it's certainly not good for them!
|
|
|
Scooter stalking a fishing boat.
|
|
|
|
|
Scooter and her new calf.
|
|
|
Dolphin Biology Research Institute (DBA Sarasota Dolphin Research Program)
is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit organization dedicated to research and conservation of dolphins and their habitat. Employer Identification No. 59-2288387; Florida Charitable Contributions Solicitations Registration No. CH1172. A COPY OF THE OFFICIAL FLORIDA REGISTRATION AND FINANCIAL INFORMATION MAY BE OBTAINED FROM THE DIVISION OF CONSUMER SERVICES BY CALLING TOLL-FREE (800-435-7352) WITHIN THE STATE OR AT WWW.FRESHFROMFLORIDA.COM. REGISTRATION DOES NOT IMPLY ENDORSEMENT, APPROVAL, OR RECOMMENDATION BY THE STATE. THIS ORGANIZATION RETAINS 100% OF ALL CONTRIBUTIONS RECEIVED.
|
STAY CONNECTED
|
|
|
|
|
