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Sustainable Conservation of Marine Mammals: Latest Advances and Prospects

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A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Sustainability, Biodiversity and Conservation".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 April 2022) | Viewed by 11526

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Special Issue Editor

Dr. Patricia Arranz

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Guest Editor

Department of Animal Biology, University of La Laguna, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain
Interests: biodiversity; conservation; ecology and evolution; ecosystem ecology; marine ecology

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Marine mammals face a mix of anthropogenic impacts, including exposure to anthropogenic noise and possible impacts of global climate change that include potential shifts in prey availability. Many of these conservation pressures may elicit acute or chronic responses that may be detectable in individuals before population-level impacts become apparent. These responses include elevations in stress-associated hormones, declines in reproduction or foraging efficiency, depressed immune system, and declines in body condition. Such changes can be used as indicators to monitor the occurrence, extent, severity, and cumulative effects of various conservation-relevant pressures on marine mammals, and for assessing the effects of chronic sources of disturbance (shipping noise, seismic exploration and climate change). Furthermore, marine mammals have been proposed as model species to use as ‘ecosystem sentinels’, particularly migratory species, due to their use of multiple marine ecosystems across large geographical areas. Our present understanding of marine mammal physiology, behavior or ontogeny is limited compared with most other vertebrate taxa. Growing technology underpinning data-loggers and Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (AUVs) allows for gathering rich information on these species using a variety of non-invasive sampling methods. These monitoring techniques have the potential to greatly improve our understanding of the foraging energetics, metabolism or population dynamics of marine mammals, better enabling assessment of the relative impacts of such anthropogenic and ecological pressures and the mechanisms available for their conservation.

With this Special Issue, we have a chance to integrate studies both from historical population declines caused by industrialization of whaling, current threats and population recoveries, with associated management and monitoring plans as examples of conservation success. From an ecological perspective, that will allow us to identify past and present ecosystemic services of marine mammals, crucial not only for the conservation of the marine environment and the biodiversity but also for the wellbeing of humans and the planet.

Dr. Patricia Arranz
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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Keywords

sustainable
cetacean
extinction
monitoring
survival
population health
ecosystem function

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

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18 pages, 2923 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Body Condition and Allometry of Free-Ranging Short-Finned Pilot Whales in the North Atlantic

by Patricia Arranz, Fredrik Christiansen, Maria Glarou, Shane Gero, Fleur Visser, Machiel G. Oudejans, Natacha Aguilar de Soto and Kate Sprogis

Sustainability 2022, 14(22), 14787; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su142214787 - 09 Nov 2022

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 3016

Abstract

To understand the effects of anthropogenic disturbance on the nutritional health of animals, it is important to measure and understand the morphometrics, allometrics, and body condition of the species. We examined the body shape, allometric relationships, and body condition of short-finned pilot whales (Globicephala macrorhynchus) in three locations across the North Atlantic. Using unmanned aerial vehicles, the body length (BL) and width (along the body axis) were measured from photographs of the dorsal side, while body height (dorso-ventral distance) was measured on the lateral side. Seventy-seven pilot whales were measured (mean ± SD), including 9 calves (BL 2.37 m ± 0.118), 31 juveniles (2.90 m ± 0.183), and 37 adults (3.72 m ± 0.440). The body shape was similar among reproductive classes, with the widest point being anterior of the dorsal fin (at 30–35% BL from the rostrum). The cross-sectional body shape of the whales was flattened in the lateral plane, which increased towards the peduncle and fluke. The rostrum-blowhole distance and fluke width increased linearly with BL. The estimated volumes of pilot whales ranged between 0.15 and 0.32 m³ for calves, 0.25 and 0.64 m³ for juveniles, and 0.46 and 1.13 m³ for adults. The body condition (residual of log-volume vs. log-length) ranged from −34.8 to +52.4%. There was no difference in body condition among reproductive classes or locations. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Conservation of Marine Mammals: Latest Advances and Prospects)

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25 pages, 3314 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Behavioural Responses of Common Dolphins Delphinus delphis to a Bio-Inspired Acoustic Device for Limiting Fishery By-Catch

by Loïc Lehnhoff, Hervé Glotin, Serge Bernard, Willy Dabin, Yves Le Gall, Eric Menut, Eleonore Meheust, Hélène Peltier, Alain Pochat, Krystel Pochat, Thomas Rimaud, Quiterie Sourget, Jérôme Spitz, Olivier Van Canneyt and Bastien Mérigot

Sustainability 2022, 14(20), 13186; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su142013186 - 14 Oct 2022

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2220

Abstract

By-catch is the most direct threat to marine mammals globally. Acoustic repellent devices (pingers) have been developed to reduce dolphin by-catch. However, mixed results regarding their efficiency have been reported. Here, we present a new bio-inspired acoustic beacon, emitting returning echoes from the echolocation clicks of a common dolphin ‘Delphinus delphis’ from a fishing net, to inform dolphins of its presence. Using surface visual observations and the automatic detection of echolocation clicks, buzzes, burst-pulses and whistles, we assessed wild dolphins’ behavioural responses during sequential experiments (i.e., before, during and after the beacon’s emission), with or without setting a net. When the device was activated, the mean number of echolocation clicks and whistling time of dolphins significantly increased by a factor of 2.46 and 3.38, respectively (p < 0.01). Visual surface observations showed attentive behaviours of dolphins, which kept a distance of several metres away from the emission source before calmly leaving. No differences were observed among sequences for buzzes/burst-pulses. Our results highlight that this prototype led common dolphins to echolocate more and communicate differently, and it would favour net detection. Complementary tests of the device during the fishing activities of professional fishermen should further contribute to assessment of its efficiency. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Conservation of Marine Mammals: Latest Advances and Prospects)

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10 pages, 3412 KiB

Open AccessEssay

Conservation Hub: The Added Value of the Whale-Watching Industry

by Raquel De la Cruz-Modino and Mel Cosentino

Sustainability 2022, 14(20), 13471; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su142013471 - 19 Oct 2022

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2574

Abstract

Nature-based tourism activities are often sold as ‘ecotourism’, yet not all are educational, environmentally friendly, provide economic benefits to local communities, nor help achieve conservation goals. Whale-watching has the potential for ecotourism due to opportunities for supporting cetacean research, environmental education, and community engagement. Whalesafari, the first whale-watching company in the Arctic, is based in Norway and combines whale-watching with research, interpretation, and benefits for the local community. Researchers from around the world have carried out research on several aspects of sperm whales (the main target species), from abundance to diving behaviour, as well as other species. Tourists learn about cetaceans during a guided experience in the company’s museum before the trip. This whale-watching model has attracted over 350,000 tourists over the years, benefiting the local community (e.g., hotels, restaurants, other attractions). Tourism and whale research can establish synergistic relationships, involving several agents and promoting research careers, while at the same time leading to innovative advances in the ecology and tourism fields. Here, we summarise over 30 years of whale-watching eco-tourism activities and research in Northern Norway, highlighting synergistic examples and the opportunities opened through linking marine tourism and research. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Conservation of Marine Mammals: Latest Advances and Prospects)

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12 pages, 500 KiB

Open AccessData Descriptor

Whalers in “A Post-Whaling World”: Sustainable Conservation of Marine Mammals and Sustainable Development of Whaling Communities—With a Case Study from the Eastern Caribbean

by Russell Fielding

Sustainability 2022, 14(14), 8782; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su14148782 - 18 Jul 2022

Viewed by 2351

Abstract

The sustainable conservation of marine mammals depends not only upon considerations made for the marine mammals themselves. In many parts of the world, human societies have developed a deep reliance upon marine mammals as a food source. The sustainability and the equitable, sustainable development of these communities should be considered alongside efforts to conserve the marine mammals upon which people rely. As an example of the complexity inherent to simultaneous efforts on both fronts, this paper reviews and synthesizes two lines of research related to a small-scale whaling operation for odontocetes (dolphins and toothed whales) based in the Eastern Caribbean. The first considers the patterns of consumption and demand by the local public. The second analyzes the presence of mercury and other environmental contaminants in the tissues of the odontocetes. The results of this synthesis suggest that odontocete-based food products in the Eastern Caribbean are both highly popular and heavily contaminated, thus complicating an already-complex system in need of efforts toward both sustainability and sustainable development. The paper concludes with recommendations for both future research and future policy considerations. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Conservation of Marine Mammals: Latest Advances and Prospects)

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