Documenting a pod of Bottlenose Dolphins.

Our research is based on the use of systematic boat-based surveys for describing the distribution and habitat use of different marine mammal species. We employ photo-identification techniques for the recognition of individual whales and dolphins, and we have developed new statistical approaches for using these data to determine abundance estimates and occupancy patterns. This photographic sampling is complemented by the collection of skin and faecal samples for molecular genetic analysis, and we have developed a novel technique for the successful amplification of marine mammal DNA from faeces.

These genetic techniques are being used to assess levels of genetic diversity and investigate the structuring of marine mammal populations. Detailed observations, both vessel-based and shore-based, are made on behaviours, habitat use, and social interactions to better understand the ecology of marine mammal species sighted.

General Objective: Examining coastal Atlantic bottlenose dolphin population ecology.

• To determine abundance estimates for bottlenose dolphins on Little Bahama Bank.

• To understand the ecology of bottlenose dolphins around Abaco Island.

• To address the conservation needs of bottlenose dolphins in the area.

General Objective: Assessing the ecology of Blainville's beaked whales.

• To assess the habitat preferences of Blainville's beaked whales around Abaco Island.

• To understand the occupancy patterns of Blainville's beaked whales around Abaco Island.

• To identify the biological parameters of Blainville's beaked whales around Abaco.

• To examine the molecular genetics of Blainville's beaked whales around Abaco Island.

To identify the conservation concerns for this species: What can we do to help protect them?
A stranding workshop is being discussed to help train Bahamians throughout the archipelago in how to best deal with stranded animals. This will help the survival rates of stranded animals, and where necessary, improve the accuracy and level of detailed information recorded during necropsies, of those animals that do die, in an attempt to always perform proper cause analysis.

How great are the impacts of military operations on beaked whales in the area?
Six marine mammals stranded in the Bahamas in the first four months of 2006. Three of these animals, two of which were beaked whales, stranded on the site of the US Navy base (AUTEC) on Andros Island. Previously, in 2000, there was a mass stranding (including species of beaked whales) in the Bahamas that was directly attributed to a US Navy exercise being conducted in the area. Therefore we think the impacts of military operations on beaked whales in the area are great.

What mitigation changes need to take place?
In addition to the stranding workshop detailed above, a governmental working group has been set up to address the situation on Andros Island (AUTEC), and the Bahamas Marine Mammal Research Organisation has been invited to be a part of this working group.

General Objective: Understanding sperm whale occurrence around Abaco Island.

• To understand sperm whale distribution around Abaco.

• To determine abundance estimates for sperm whales in South Abaco.

• To contribute to the North Atlantic and Mediterranean Sperm Whale Catalogue.

• To contribute to a worldwide stock assessment study of this endangered species (conducted by the SW Fisheries Center, La Jolla, CA, USA).

General Objective: Documenting marine mammal occurrence and distribution in The Bahamas.

• To contribute to the understanding of the marine biodiversity of The Bahamas.

• To understand species' occurrence and distribution.

• To identify the conservation concerns and potential threats to marine mammals in The Bahamas.