Tethys in Puglia

In occasione dei primi dieci anni dall’istituzione della Riserva Marina di Porto Cesareo (Lecce), il 30 e 31 ottobre, si è svolto il workshop intitolato “Pesca e gestione delle aree marine protette”.

All’evento, organizzato dall’Università del Salento, dal Consorzio di gestione dell’Area Marina Protetta di Porto Cesareo e dalla Società Italiana di Biologia Marina, è stato invitato anche Giovanni Bearzi, presidente dell’Istituto Tethys.

La presentazione di Bearzi, dal titolo “Delfini e pesca in Mediterraneo: depredazione e interazioni trofiche in aree marine soggette a varie misure di tutela”, verteva sulle ricerche condotte da Tethys nelle due aree di studio dell’isola di Kalamos (Grecia) e dell’area marina protetta di Porto Cesareo. Bearzi ha delineato le problematiche relative all’eccessivo sforzo di pesca effettuato intorno a Kalamos e il conseguente declino della popolazione di delfino comune, e ha illustrato i risultati dello studio appena conclusosi relativo alle interazioni tra cetacei e pesca costiera nell’area marina protetta della località pugliese.

L’evento ha rappresentato per Tethys un’interessante occasione di confronto con la realtà della pesca artigianale e con quella di ricercatori, tecnici e operatori delle aree marine protette italiane e transfrontaliere.

Silvia Bonizzoni

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Per ulteriori informazioni:
Libro degli abstract del workshop
Apulia Dolphin Project
Ionian Dolphin Project

When swordfish conservation biologists eat swordfish

I wrote a short essay that was accepted as an Editorial in the renown scientific journal Conservation Biology.

This article is now in press and its published version should be out in February 2009. I would like to share it with Blog readers ahead of print.

The essay is meant to be food for thought for people including myself.

Giovanni Bearzi

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Bearzi G. In press. When swordfish conservation biologists eat swordfish. Conservation Biology (scheduled February 2009). (84 Kb)

ECS 2009

On 2-4 March, 2009, the 23rd Annual Conference of the European Cetacean Society will take place in Istanbul (Turkey) and will be hosted by the Turkish Marine Research Foundation (TÜDAV).

Since climate change is a major concern all over the world both on land and at sea and there is increasing evidence of its negative effects on biodiversity, the theme of the conference is ‘Climate change and marine mammals’.

The scientific committee of the conference is composed by Graham Pierce, Mario Acquarone,
 Alexei Birkun,
 Peter Evans,
 Alexandre Gannier,
 Ali Cemal Gücü,
 Colin MacLeod,
 Giuseppe Nortabartolo di Sciara (Tethys honorary president), Ayaka Öztürk,
 Bayram Öztürk, and Simone Panigada (Tethys vice-president).

The conference organizers welcome contributions relating to topics such as 1) historical catch records of cetaceans in the Black Sea, 2) Mediterranean monk seals and their management/conservation, 3) marine mammals of the Eastern Mediterranean and the Black Sea. However, talks and posters on all aspects of marine mammal science are equally appreciated.

If you are interested, please note that abstracts must be submitted no later than November 3rd, 2008, and that early registration ends on January 7th, 2009.

SB

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For more information:
European Cetacean Society 2009

Marine Mammal Symposium

The 10th annual seminar of CRMM (Centre de Recherche sur les Mammifères Marins) field correspondents, called ‘Monitoring Strategies for Marine Mammal Populations Symposium’, is scheduled for November 21st to 23rd, 2008, and takes place in La Rochelle, France.

The meeting aims to gather stakeholders, scientists and field biologists to discuss issues relating to the following topics: expressing the societal demand in monitoring marine mammal populations, converting the societal demand into measurable parameters, existing practices of monitoring, marine mammal population indicators and their performance, examples of integrated monitoring strategies.

Scientists such as Peter Evans, Aleta Hohn, Giuseppe Notarbartolo di Sciara (Tethys honorary president), Graham Pierce, Vincent Ridoux and Mark Tasker will be there as invited speakers.

If you are interested, please note that online registration is open for few more days, until October 30th.

Silvia Bonizzoni

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For more information:
Monitoring Strategies for Marine Mammal Populations Symposium

New Mediterranean monk seal breeding colony in the Aegean Sea, Greece

An island previously reserved for military use turned out to be a safe heaven for the endangered Mediterranean monk seal. Three out of the eight caves are suitable for pupping and in 2004 ten pups were identified, four in 2005 and seven in 2007.

Being off limits for all but the military, the beaches of this island provided a safe place for mothers and pups to rest, a behavior that has not been observed in this species in the Mediterranean Sea recently.

This newly discovered colony, with relatively high natality compared to other breeding sites in the Mediterranean Sea and the rare use of open beaches, is of outstanding conservation value and is in urgent need of effective protection.

Eleonora De Sabata

Illustration: distribution of Mediterranean monk seal, from Monachus Guardian

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For more information:

Dendrinos D., A.A. Karamanlidis, S. Kotomatas, V. Paravas, S. Adamantopoulou. 2008. Report of a new Mediterranean monk seal (Monachus monachus) breeding colony in the Aegean Sea, Greece. Aquatic Mammals 34(3):355-361.

A dark time for scientists in Italy

The grim situation of research in Italy is raising international interest. An editorial recently published on Nature, one of the top science journals, portrays a scary picture (see link below).

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Cut-throat savings
Editorial -- Nature 455, 835-836 (16 October 2008) | doi:10.1038/455835b; Published online 15 October 2008

Call for the conservation of common dolphins around Kalamos, Greece

Scientific research done by Tethys since 1991 documented ecosystem damage caused by overfishing in the Greek waters east of Lefkada and around the island of Kalamos - a Natura 2000 area.

This resulted in ecosystem collapse and decline of marine megafauna including formerly abundant short-beaked common dolphins.

Local and regional non-governmental organizations have now joined forces to call for urgent fisheries management action that may result in ecosystem recovery, protect biodiversity, preserve fish stocks, and allow for the long-term survival of artisanal fisheries.

To see the Call: http://www.cetaceanalliance.org/call/

Giovanni Bearzi

An encounter with a dying killer whale calf

Our friend Chris Johnson, while on a vaquita research expedition in Mexico, witnessed and documented an encounter with a lone killer whale calf.

Watch the video at:
http://www.whaletrackers.com/blogs/expedition-vaquita/killer-whale.html

Risposta cetoquiz

Solo una persona ha azzardato pubblicamente una risposta al cetoquiz del 14 ottobre scorso. L'ipotesi di 'uno zifio anziano' ha una sua verosimiglianza. Si tratta in effetti di un cetaceo odontoceto, ma non di uno zifio.

La foto, scattata in Mar Ligure nel corso della campagna di ricerca 2008 del Cetacean Sanctuary Research, ritrae la sezione anteriore della testa di un capodoglio, probabilmente di età avanzata. Una pigmentazione non comune e inaspettata che può aver tratto in inganno.

La foto qui riportata (click sulla foto per ingrandire) mostra una parte più riconoscibile dello stesso individuo, in posizione verticale e a bocca aperta, mentre è impegnato a socializzare con altri capodogli.

Grazie a Sabina Airoldi per la segnalazione!

GB

La Storia delle Cose

E' stato finalmente tradotto in italiano il magnifico The Story of Stuff.

La versione sottotitolata si può vedere su:

http://it.youtube.com/watch?v=TNRdMDpFipE (Parte 1 di 3)

http://it.youtube.com/watch?v=cBgtEoFAt7s (Parte 2 di 3)

http://it.youtube.com/watch?v=qBXgNgABdqs (Parte 3 di 3)

Una versione doppiata (malino, per cui si perde il pathos della versione originale) si trova su: http://www.alessandropagano.net/blog/2008/08/20/the-story-of-stuff/

Per la versione inglese originale (ovviamente migliore):

http://www.storyofstuff.com/

Ionian Dolphin Project updated

The web site of Tethys' Ionian Dolphin Project has just been updated and renewed.

It now includes a comprehensive report of some of the work done by Tethys collaborators in the eastern Ionian Sea across 18 years - between July 1991 and September 2008.

Please visit the new site at: Ionian Dolphin Project.

Delphi's Dolphins

In 2009 the Tethys Research Institute will launch a dolphin research and conservation project in the Gulf of Corinth, Greece, in the context of Tethys' long-standing Ionian Dolphin Project.

The Gulf is a semi-closed area inhabited by three cetacean species: bottlenose dolphins, striped dolphins and short-beaked common dolphins.

Surveys at sea with inflatable craft will be conducted between April and September 2009. Detailed information and photo albums can be found online at: http://www.tethys.org/tri_courses/courses_index_e.htm (Select: Ionian Dolphin Project)

Researchers and volunteers will stay in a comfortable field station located in the beautiful village of Galaxidi, a short drive away from the stunning archeological site of Delphi.

Bottlenose dolphins in the Mediterranean

Tethys president Giovanni Bearzi, together with colleagues Caterina Maria Fortuna and Randall R. Reeves, have just published a review paper on bottlenose dolphins in the Mediterranean Sea.

Bearzi G., Fortuna C.M., Reeves R.R. 2008. Ecology and conservation of common bottlenose dolphins Tursiops truncatus in the Mediterranean Sea. Mammal Review. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2907.2008.00133.x

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Ecology and conservation of common bottlenose dolphins Tursiops truncatus in the Mediterranean Sea

Giovanni Bearzi, Caterina Maria Fortuna and Randall R. Reeves

Copyright © 2008 Mammal Society/Blackwell Publishing

ABSTRACT

1. Bottlenose dolphins Tursiops truncatus are amongst the best-known cetaceans. In the Mediterranean Sea, however, modern field studies of cetaceans did not start until the late 1980s. Bottlenose dolphins have been studied only in relatively small portions of the basin, and wide areas remain largely unexplored.

2. This paper reviews the ecology, behaviour, interactions with fisheries and conservation status of Mediterranean bottlenose dolphins, and identifies threats likely to have affected them in historical and recent times.

3. Whilst intentional killing was probably the most important cause of mortality until the 1960s, important ongoing threats include incidental mortality in fishing gear and the reduced availability of key prey caused by overfishing and environmental degradation throughout the region. Additional potential or likely threats include the toxic effects of xenobiotic chemicals, epizootic outbreaks, direct disturbance from boating and shipping, noise, and the consequences of climate change.

4. The flexible social organization and opportunistic diet and behaviour of bottlenose dolphins may allow them to withstand at least some of the effects of overfishing and habitat degradation. However, dolphin abundance is thought to have declined considerably in the region and management measures are needed to prevent further decline.

5. Management strategies that could benefit bottlenose dolphins, such as sustainable fishing, curbing marine pollution and protecting biodiversity, are already embedded in legislation and treaties. Compliance with those existing commitments and obligations should be given high priority.

E' nato Giorgio!

Il figlio della ricercatrice Tethys Arianna Azzellino è nato il 30 settembre alle 18:52.

Arianna racconta: "Le ore di sonno sono in media 4 o 5 a notte e ogni tanto si riesce a rubacchiare qualche mezz'ora di sonno durante il giorno... Ciononostante è sicuramente l'esperienza più bella e intensa della vita vista fin qui!"

Auguriamo a Giorgio una lunga e felicissima permanenza in questo mondo.

How to sex a dolphin

Assessing the ratio of males to females in endangered populations is important for conservation work. Sexing a dolphin at sea is tricky, not least because the genital area of the mammal is usually concealed beneath the water. Researchers generally have to rely on time-consuming observations, either inferring a female's sex from its close association with a calf or taking sharp photos of the genital area (and the dorsal fin). The alternative is a biopsy sample, potentially unpleasant for the animal, again combined wih photos allwing for the individual identification of that individual.

Lucy Rowe and Stephen Dawson, marine biologists at the University of Otago in Dunedin, New Zealand, found an alternative. They recently published a paper reporting how photographs of dorsal fins were used to determine the gender of bottlenose dolphins in a well-studied population in New Zealand's Doubtful Sound. This technique allowed to sex the animals from features measured solely from dorsal fin identification photographs, routinely collected as part of non-invasive population monitoring.

The pair teamed an over-the-counter digital camera with a pair of laser pointers, which project two reference spots precisely 10 cm apart onto the dorsal fin. This procedure allowed an accurate determination of dorsal fin size. The digital photographs were then compared with existing fin and sex records for the population.

Applying this technique, the two researchers found that dorsal fins of males had significantly more scars than female's, probably as a result of aggressive behaviour among males. Fins had a median of 15% scar tissue, whereas in females this was just 3.9%. Conversely, the dorsal fins of females tended to have a greater number of patchy skin lesions, with a median of 12.1% coverage compared with males' 6.8%. Rowe and Dawson then used a statistical analysis of number of fin nicks, fin size and scarring to correctly predict the sex of 93% of 43 dolphins.

This laser technique could potentially be applied to other populations of dolphin or even to other species with slight sexual dimorphism. The authors are currently testing their technique to another population of dolphins in the nearby Dusky Sound, and "initial signs are good".

Annalise Petroselli

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Rowe L., Dawson S. 2008. Determining the sex of bottlenose dolphins from Doubtful Sound using dorsal fin photographs. Marine Mammal Science doi: 10.1111/j.1748-7692.2008.00235.x

More information: Nature.com