Name Manx Whale and Dophin Watch/People's Trust for Endangered Species
Location Peel, Isle of Man
Period June to December 2014
Web www.mwdw.net / www.ptes.org
Project Description
Manx Whale and Dolphin Watch is a non-governmental organization dedicated to the research and protection of cetaceans around the Isle of Man. People's Trust for Endangered Species is a charity dedicated to research and protection of endangered species and habitats. PTES provided a Mammal Internship grant for the project 'Risso's dolphins (Grampus griseus) around the Isle of Man: Passive Acoustic Monitoring and visual observations to determine seasonal presence and habitat use'.
Web www.mwdw.net / www.ptes.org
Project Description
Manx Whale and Dolphin Watch is a non-governmental organization dedicated to the research and protection of cetaceans around the Isle of Man. People's Trust for Endangered Species is a charity dedicated to research and protection of endangered species and habitats. PTES provided a Mammal Internship grant for the project 'Risso's dolphins (Grampus griseus) around the Isle of Man: Passive Acoustic Monitoring and visual observations to determine seasonal presence and habitat use'.
Summary of Project
The Risso's dolphin is a widespread species, but probably approaching the limit of its range around the British Isles. It is thought to prefer continental shelf waters between 400m and 1000m deep, which makes its presence in the Irish Sea and around the Isle of Man interesting as these waters are only about 100m deep. The British Isles population is likely to be a distinct unit, as it has been shown to be genetically distinct to the Mediterranean population. Though now listed as of Least Concern the Risso's dolphin was previously Data Deficient, which it certainly still is for this region as there are no population estimates here. There have been photo-identification matches between the Isle of Man and Wales so it appears that these animals move across the Irish Sea, but it is unclear how may use the area or how important particular parts of the area are. Risso's dolphins and calves (sometimes with foetal folds indicating a very recent birth) are often seen in Manx waters in the summer months, so the area could be important for raising young.
The aim of this project is to deploy two C-PODs in Manx waters to collect acoustic detections of cetaceans, hopefully including the Risso's dolphin. This will be backed up by visual surveys of the same areas. This will hopefully allow estimation of the time Risso's dolphins are present or absent in certain areas around the island. This preliminary acoustic study will give an insight into the usefulness of this method in the study of Risso's dolphins around the Isle of Man, and will contribute to the currently limited knowledge of this species.
Worked primarily independently on the C-POD project, with support from Tom Felce of Manx Whale and Dolphin Watch. Determined suitable locations for C-POD deployment based on sightings of Risso's dolphins from dedicated surveys and public reporting. Assembled suitable moorings for the C-PODs. Tested and prepared the C-PODs on land before deployment from a small boat. Performed watches from land of the C-POD locations to provide concurrent visual observations. Crowd-funded the purchase of a theodolite for more accurate cetacean tracking from land. Learnt the C-POD software available for download and analysis of acoustic data.
Alongside this work, also assisted with the other work of Manx Whale and Dolphin Watch such as boat surveys, photo-identification work, and public outreach events.
Skills
- ArcMap plotting of cetacean effort based and public sightings to determine C-POD locations
- Learnt to splice rope for attaching weights and buoys to C-PODs
- Tested and prepared C-PODs on land ready for deployment
- Deployed two C-PODs from a small (~6m) research boat
- Theodolite tracking of cetaceans from land at C-POD locations
- Learning of C-POD software for data management and analysis
- Interview with Manx Radio about my project
- Wrote short article for PTES magazine Wildlife World
- Oral presentation at Edward Forbes Bicentenary Marine Science and Conservation Conference
Tom Felce
T +44 1624 844 686
E felcet@hotmail.com
