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September 2015 - In This Issue:
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Welcome to Nicks 'n' Notches Online, the enewsletter of the
Sarasota Dolphin Research Program.
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RESEARCH, CONSERVATION
AND EDUCATION SINCE 1970.
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| The Sarasota Dolphin Research Program (SDRP) is a collaborative partnership dedicated to dolphin research, conservation and education. It began in 1970 at Mote Marine Laboratory when Blair Irvine and high school student Randy Wells began a tagging study to find out if dolphins on Florida's central west coast from southern Tampa Bay to Charlotte Harbor remained in the area or traveled more widely. Our discovery of long-term residency set the stage for all of our future efforts, by demonstrating opportunities to study individually identifiable dolphins throughout their lives.
Two of the dolphins first identified in 1970-71 have been seen in 2015, and we are currently observing dolphins up to age 65, including members of up to five concurrent generations. Our dolphin research, conservation, and education work is conducted under the umbrella name "Sarasota Dolphin Research Program." This name links the efforts of several organizations and individuals that work together to ensure the continuity of our long-term dolphin 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 its fleet of six small research vessels, two 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.
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More than $5,000 raised during Giving Challenge
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A special
thank you goes out to all who donated to the Sarasota Dolphin Research Program during the 2015 Giving Challenge, and to
the Community Foundation of Sarasota County, The Patterson Foundation, Manatee Community Foundation, Knight Foundation and William G. and Marie Selby Foundation for supporting the Challenge.
We are very pleased to have raised more than $5,000, plus more than $3,000 in matching funds from The Patterson Foundation. We will use the money raised to replace crucial aging field equipment, including camera systems for photo-identification, the primary tool for our work, and meters for environmental measurements, such as water temperature, salinity, and dissolved oxygen.
As you know, we take many thousands of photos every year, documenting the presence, condition and daily lives of the 160 resident Sarasota Bay dolphins and those in nearby waters.
Your support is greatly appreciated -- you are helping to keep the world's longest-running study of a wild dolphin population running!
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Notes from the Field and Lab...
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Randall Wells, Ph.D., Director
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Our busy summer continues with a host of happenings... here's a snapshot of what the SDRP has been up to lately:
Monthly dolphin photographic identification surveys continued, documenting 11 calves born to Sarasota Bay regulars so far this season, and all appear to be doing well. One of these calves was the first to be born to "Ginger," a resident female who we helped to rescue when she stranded in 2008 at age 3. We monitored Ginger's transition back into the wild following treatment at Mote Marine Laboratory's dolphin hospital.
We're also continuing our seasonal fish surveys and finding typical numbers and species of dolphin prey fish so far this year.
SDRP Lab Manager Jason Allen continued our program of capacity-building when he traveled to heavily polluted Galveston Bay, Texas, to help establish a dolphin research program there. He led a training session in biopsy dart sampling. This new program is being led by a former SDRP graduate student, Kristi Fazioli, through the University of Houston-Clear Lake. This effort is particularly timely given a recent oil spill and documentation of dolphins with unusual skin disorders. Helping to build dolphin research programs worldwide is a key part of our conservation mission and it's exciting to see that a graduate student mentored through the SDRP is now creating a new program that will help conserve and protect wild dolphins in Texas. We wish Kristi much luck in her endeavors!
We received a NOAA Prescott grant that will support follow-up tagging and tracking services for monitoring rescued or released/rehabilitated/stranded dolphins in the Southeastern U.S.
University of Aberdeen (Scotland) Master's student Eilidh Siegal completed her thesis as part of our funded SeaGrant project on human interactions with dolphins:
- Siegal, E. 2015. Identifying the causes of human-dolphin interactions using spatially explicit capture-recapture methods. Master's thesis, Applied Marine and Fisheries Ecology, University of Aberdeen. 53 pages.
And finally, I've been actively engaged in the fast-track process of preparing and reviewing information on the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill's impacts on dolphins. NOAA will provide this information to the Department of Justice as part of the potential settlement of the case with BP.
September is proving to be just as busy as the summer, so be sure to look for more news in October!
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| If you look closely, you can see an embedded hook with monofilament fishing line trailing off the rear of Riptorn's dorsal fin in this August photo. |
AGE: 43
SEX: Male
A DOLPHIN'S LIFE:
Riptorn is perhaps one of the most distinctive dolphins in Sarasota Bay. The SDRP has known this dolphin since 1980 and he has had scoliosis for as long as we've known him.
In 1983, Riptorn was struck by a boat propeller, which led to his sliced and folded dorsal fin. SDRP and Mote Marine Laboratory's Stranding Investigations Program get frequent calls from concerned members of the public because of his fin appearance and his typically slow movements.
Unfortunately, he approaches boats and anglers. In August, during our regular
monthly photo-ID surveys, Jason Allen
observed Riptorn with a fish hook in his
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| Riptorn is shown in this September photo without the hook and line. Photos copyright Sarasota Dolphin Research Program. NMFS Scientific Research Permit No. 15543. |
dorsal fin. The hook had a small amount
of monofilament trailing from it.
The situation didn't appear life threatening and given Riptorn's advanced age and generally compromised condition, the National Marine Fisheries Service did not believe intervention would be warranted. Fortunately, Riptorn was able to shed the hook and line by himself, and he was seen by SDRP staff on Sept. 9 without the line.
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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.
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