July 2008 - MARMAM - devlists.uvic.ca

Announcement for Special Session: The Impacts of Mercury Contamination on the Health of Marine Mammals
by Adam Schaefer 24 Jul '08

24 Jul '08

We are currently in the process of proposing a special session at next years 9th International Conference on Mercury as a Global Pollutant in Guiyang,China: June 7-12, 2009. The purpose of the session is to examine the impacts of mercury contamination on marine ecosystems and the resulting health effects on marine mammal populations. A special focus on the role these animals have as potential sentinels for human and ecosystem health will be incorporated into the content. We are currently looking for researchers who are involved in projects focusing on mercury and health to submit tentative titles for either an oral or poster presentations to participate in this conference. For more information on the conference visit http://www.mercury2009.org <http://www.mercury2009.org/> . Please contact Adam Schaefer, aschaefer(a)hboi.fau.edu with any further questions or proposals. Adam Schaefer, MPH Marine Mammal Research and Conservation Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institution at Florida Atlantic University Adam Schaefer, MPH Marine Mammal Research and Conservation Program Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute at Florida Atlantic University 5600 US 1 North Ft. Pierce, Florida 34946 772.465.2400 (Ext 594) aschaefer(a)hboi.fau.edu

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Symposium on Monitoring Strategies for Marine Mammal Populations - first announcement
by Cecile Vincent 24 Jul '08

24 Jul '08

FIRST ANNOUNCEMENT AND CALL FOR PRESENTATION *Symposium on Monitoring Strategies for Marine Mammal Populations, * *La Rochelle, France, November 21-23, 2008* Hosted by the* University of La Rochelle *(LIENSs / CRMM)** http://marinemammal.univ-lr.fr/colloque2008En.html Theme : Marine mammals are important actors in marine ecosystems. Their position of top predators confers them a general value of indicators of marine ecosystem conservation state and exposes them to several types of pressures related to human activities at sea, including accumulation of contaminants along food webs and interactions with fisheries. Other sources of pressures and threats, independent of their role of top predators, include /inter alia/ disturbance, collisions with ships and acoustic pollution. In most European countries, marine mammals are protected by national, EU and international texts, which clarify the responsibility of governments in monitoring and conservation of these populations (Marine Protected Areas, national regulation on protected species, Habitat Directive, Common Fishery Policy, regional agreements ASCOBANS and ACCOBAMS, ...). However indicators proposed to estimate the status of marine mammal populations are only defined in very general terms, with mainly two criteria that are fairly easy to express but difficult to document: abundance and distribution. Other approaches are empirically used but their value as monitoring tools has not been really assessed; they notably include acoustic monitoring, stranding schemes, coastal watch and at-sea sightings from platforms of opportunity. As a consequence, to elaborate properly a strategy for monitoring the conservation status of marine mammal populations in Europe, it is necessary to compare available methods and estimate the performance of potential indicators, in terms of their capacity to detect changes in wild populations and of their cost-effectiveness. The objectives of the meeting will thus encompass the following topics: *1. Expressing the societal demand in monitoring marine mammal populations* *2. Converting the societal demand into measurable parameters* *3. Existing practices of monitoring* *4. Marine mammal population indicators and their performance* *5. Examples of integrated monitoring strategies* Expected participants would include people in charge of public environmental policies, in particular as to the monitoring and conservation of marine mammal populations and habitats at national, EU and international levels, research groups in marine mammal biology and conservation and field correspondents or operators who collect and synthesize data relative to the state of conservation of marine mammal populations. It will thus be a unique opportunity to gather actors involved at all levels in monitoring marine mammal populations, from policy makers to data collectors. Online abstract submission and online registration will be soon possible on the symposium website at: http://marinemammal.univ-lr.fr/colloque2008En.html For more information do not hesitate to contact us at: conference2008(a)univ-lr.fr <mailto:conference2008@univ-lr.fr> The organizing committee : The Ecology and Conservation of Marine Mammal research group of the University of La Rochelle (constituted of /Centre de Recherche sur les Mammifères Marins/ CRMM and /Littoral Environnement et Sociétés/ LIENSs, Joint Research Unit 6250 CNRS/ULR) will host an international symposium on strategies for monitoring marine mammal populations, from 21-23 November 2008 in La Rochelle, France. The symposium is hosted by: University of La Rochelle, France sponsored by: French Agency of the Marine Protected Areas, French Ministry of Environment, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Regional Council of Poitou-Charentes and supported by: ACCOBAMS, ASCOBANS For the organizing committee, Pr Vincent Ridoux, University of La Rochelle.

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Current Delphinus population estimate, Gulf of California
by William Rossiter 24 Jul '08

24 Jul '08

Please note the inquiry is for current estimates, therefore unpublished. Please reply directly to Hannah Robson <hannah.robson(a)bbc.co.uk> Posted to MARMAM for BBC by Cetacean Society International. Hannah Robson writes: I'm working on a BBC Television series about different marine environments in which we filmed underwater in a number of locations around the world. For one of our films in the series we travelled to the Gulf of California where we encountered a large pod of common dolphin, which we were able to film. I'm looking to find out what is known about population figures for common dolphin in this sea. Are numbers declining or increasing? Is there any indication that the marine protected / conservation areas are protecting the population. I'm be really grateful for you any information you have. With many thanks and all the very best Hannah Robson Oceans BBC Science Room MC5D4 BBC Media Centre 201 Wood Lane London W12 7TQ Tel: +44(0) 208 008 0535 E-mail: hannah.robson(a)bbc.co.uk

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new paper on foraging ecology
by PeterStevick＠aol.com 23 Jul '08

23 Jul '08

The following paper has recently been published: Stevick, P.T., Incze, L.S., Kraus, S.D., Rosen, S., Wolff, N. and Baukus, A. 2008. Trophic relationships and oceanography on and around a small offshore bank. Marine Ecology Progress Series 363:15-28. ABSTRACT: Small offshore banks may be sites of intense feeding by upper trophic level predators. We studied the distribution of cetaceans, seabirds, pelagic fish, euphausiids and zooplankton over a 9 × 15 km bank to determine the conditions and processes that concentrated prey there and to examine the relative importance of bottom-up or top-down controls. Euphausiids were the primary prey during most foraging activity. While these were widespread in subsurface waters, foraging was concentrated on dense surface swarms that formed during daylight hours over 2 small crests. Internal wave passage resulted in upward movement and concentration of euphausiids in these areas through a coupling of physical processes and euphausiid behavior, resulting in surface swarms. Thus, internal waves appear to provide a critical mechanism enhancing trophic energy transfer. The formation of dense, localized and accessible prey concentrations was more important to foraging than was the overall available prey biomass. The estimated maximum daily consumption of euphausiids by cetaceans, seabirds and herring combined was <0.4% of the estimated instantaneous euphausiid biomass, and top-down control was unlikely to have substantially influenced euphausiid biomass at this site. Some predator species that do not prey extensively on euphausiids or herring were more prevalent in off-bank waters. The scales of predictability and the temporal dynamics of such features determine the manner in which populations of upper trophic level organisms utilize a variable environment. Pdf files of the paper are available from _peterstevick(a)aol.com_ (mailto:peterstevick@aol.com) Cheers, Peter Stevick **************Get fantasy football with free live scoring. Sign up for FanHouse Fantasy Football today. (http://www.fanhouse.com/fantasyaffair?ncid=aolspr00050000000020)

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ambient noise recording devices summary
by Frank Thomsen (Cefas) 23 Jul '08

23 Jul '08

Colleagues I would like to thank everyone who answered my request ref. ambient noise recording systems posted earlier. I have produced a summary of all the responses, which I would be happy to send out upon request. All the Best Frank ________________________________ Frank Thomsen Marine Scientific Advisor, Cefas Pakefield Road, Lowestoft, Suffolk, NR33 0HT, UK Tel: +44 (0)1502 52 4284 www.cefas.co.uk *********************************************************************************** This email and any attachments are intended for the named recipient only. Its unauthorised use, distribution, disclosure, storage or copying is not permitted. If you have received it in error, please destroy all copies and notify the sender. In messages of a non-business nature, the views and opinions expressed are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect those of the organisation from which it is sent. All emails may be subject to monitoring. ***********************************************************************************

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Analyzing Animal Societies
by Solange Brault 22 Jul '08

22 Jul '08

I am forwarding the message below from Hal Whitehead, which will be of interest to many MARMAMers. Solange Brault Associate Professor Biology Department University of Massachusetts - Boston Tel: (617) 287-6683 Fax: (617) 287-6650 e-mail: solange.brault(a)umb.edu ________________________________ From: hwhitehe(a)dal.ca [mailto:hwhitehe@dal.ca] Sent: Tue 7/22/2008 7:16 AM Subject: Analyzing Animal Societies Dear SOCPROG users: You might be interested in my new book: Whitehead, Hal Analyzing Animal Societies: Quantitative Methods for Vertebrate Social Analysis. 2008, University of Chicago Press. 320 p., 16 halftones, 28 line drawings, 59 tables. US$29 This book describes and discusses the techniques contained in SOCPROG, as well as other quantitative methods for analyzing animal social systems. For more information, or to order, go to: http://www.press.uchicago.edu/cgi-bin/hfs.cgi/00/254497.ctl If you do not wish to receive messages about SOCPROG, just let me know and I will take you off the list. Thanks Hal

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new publication: Cetartiodactyla phylogeny
by Laura May-Collado 22 Jul '08

22 Jul '08

This new Cetartiodactyla Phylogeny is accessible in Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution web site. Agnarsson, I., May-Collado, L.J., The phylogeny of Cetartiodactyla: The importance of dense taxon sampling, Mol. Phylogenet. Evol. (2008), Doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2008.05.046 -- Laura J. May-Collado, Ph.D. Affiliate Assistant Professor Department of Environmental Science & Policy George Mason University Email: lmaycollado(a)gmail.com Personal Home Page: www.delphinids.com

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PhD thesis
by Thomas Doniol-Valcroze 21 Jul '08

21 Jul '08

Hi, The following PhD thesis is available online: Doniol-Valcroze, T. 2008. Habitat Selection and Niche Characteristics of Rorqual Whales in the Northern Gulf of St. Lawrence (Canada). PhD Thesis, McGill University, Montreal, Canada. 146 p. I want to mention that this work would not have been possible without the involvement of two scientists who passed away very recently: Dr. David Sergeant provided great mentorship and guidance in the early stages of the project, and Dr. François Saucier generously contributed the environmental data used in most of the analyses. The PDF (8 MB) can be downloaded at: http://www.rorqual.com/englisch/PhD_Thesis_TDV.pdf I can be contacted by e-mail at: thomas.doniol-valcroze(a)mail.mcgill.ca ******************************************* Thomas Doniol-Valcroze, Ph.D. 4514, Chambord Montreal, Qc, H2J 3M7 Canada Tel: 514-521-1182 thomas.doniol-valcroze(a)mail.mcgill.ca *******************************************

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[ECS-TALK] & MARMAM Summary of Cetacean news week 28/29 (July 11 to July 20, 2008)
by Catharina Clausen 20 Jul '08

20 Jul '08

Dear MARMAM and ECS subscribers, in the following please find the summary of Cetacean news of the last 9 days. (July 11, 2008) CT Scan Performed On Stranded Pygmy Killer Whale 'Pete'; Lesions Found In Lungs - http://www.underwatertimes.com/ news.php?article_id=14859021073 (July 13, 2008) Navy Plan Would Curtail Bombing, Search for Mines, Assist Whales - http://www.redorbit.com/news/business/1475178/ navy_plan_would_curtail_bombing_search_for_mines_assist_whales/ (July 14, 2008) ENVIRONMENT-AUSTRALIA: New Plan to Undermine Japanese Whaling - http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=43168 (July 14, 2008) Warming threatens migratory whales' feeding grounds - http://www.nzherald.co.nz/feature/story.cfm?c_id=26&objectid=10521350 (July 15, 2008) Cardigan named dolphin hot-spot - http:// www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/2008/07/15/cardigan-named- dolphin-hot-spot-91466-21339900/ (July 15, 2008) Whale carcass to be removed by week's end - http:// www.honoluluadvertiser.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080715/ NEWS01/807150342/1001/LOCALNEWSFRONT (July 15, 2008) Whale attack leaves N.L. skipper quaking - http:// www.canada.com/montrealgazette/news/story.html?id=3b1e5063-5411-4fd4- a80c-49b6bc1fe4b5 (July 15, 2008) Aberdeen lays claim to “Whale-Watching Capital of Europe” title - http://www.aberdeencity.gov.uk/acci/web/site/ CouncilNews/pr/pr_whales_150708.asp (July 16, 2008) Is infant albino humpack whale wayward calf of Migaloo? - http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/story/ 0,22049,24025184-5006009,00.html (July 17, 2008) Killer whale flips seals out of water with its tail - http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/main.jhtml?xml=/earth/2008/07/17/ eawhale117.xml# (July 17, 2008) Hamilton Norman’s close encounter with a minke whale - http://www.hamiltonadvertiser.co.uk/news/local-news/hamilton-news/ 2008/07/17/hamilton-norman-s-close-encounter-with-a-minke- whale-51525-21353460/ (July 17, 2008) Interns study 'rare' specimen - http:// media.www.redandblack.com/media/storage/paper871/news/2008/07/17/News/ Interns.Study.rare.Specimen-3391778.shtml (July 18, 2008) Dead dolphin found dumped in garden - http:// www.thisisdorset.net/display.var. 2402032.0.dead_dolphin_found_dumped_in_garden.php (July 18, 2008) Stranded rare dolphin has to be put down - http:// www.thisiscornwall.co.uk/homepagenews/Stranded-rare-dolphin/ article-226149-detail/article.html (July 18, 2008) International conservation agency asks Turks and Caicos government to halt dolphinarium - http:// www.caribbeannetnews.com/news-9227--37-37--.html (July 18, 2008) Japan Clears Seamen Over Claims of Stolen Antarctic Whale Meat - http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news? pid=20601101&sid=aB_CckHzUCmU&refer=japan (July 19, 2008) Rotting whale stinks up Hawaiian street - http:// www.gatorsports.com/article/20080719/NEWS/968278983/1016/ NEWS&title=Rotting_whale_stinks_up_Hawaiian_street (July 20, 2008) Humans hit beach, count dolphins - http:// www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/bal-md.dolphins20jul20,0,2749182.story All best, Catharina Clausen ************************************************************************ ** baiji.org foundation Kanzleistrasse 127 CH-8004 Zurich Switzerland tel. (+41) 43 317 10 00 fax (+41) 43 317 10 09 mobil (+41) 79 281 18 65 catharina(a)baiji.org ************************************************************************ **

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New publications week 24
by Jan Herrmann 20 Jul '08

20 Jul '08

Dear all, here are some new publications of week 24/ 2008, which haven't been announced on MARMAM earlier AFAIK. By clicking the following link you are guided to a website, where the following references are linked to their according journal homepages. There you can find abstracts and contact information: http://www.mmbib.com/news.php Please do not contact MARMAM, the MARMAM editors or me for reprints. Thank you. Thanks to all of you who sent in reprints to be included in the weekly announcements. Kindest Regards, Jan Herrmann CETACEA Akamatsu, T. et al. (2008): Estimation of the detection probability for Yangtze finless porpoises (Neophocaena phocaenoides asiaeorientalis) with a passive acoustic method. The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America 123(6): 4403-4411. Endo, T. et al. (2008): Contamination levels of mercury and cadmium in melon-headed whales (Peponocephala electra) from a mass stranding on the Japanese coast. Science of the Total Environment 401(1-3): 73-80. Kinghorn, A. et al. (2008): Teeth as biomonitors of selenium concentrations in tissues of beluga whales (Delphinapterus leucas). Science of the Total Environment 402(1): 43-50. Rosa, C. et al. (2008): Heavy metal and mineral concentrations and their relationship to histopathological findings in the bowhead whale (Balaena mysticetus). Science of the Total Environment 399(1-3): 165-178. Simard, Y., N. Roy, and C. Gervaise (2008): Passive acoustic detection and localization of whales: effects of shipping noise in Saguenay-St. Lawrence Marine Park. The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America 123(6): 4109-4117. PINNIPEDIA Gray, R., P. Canfield, and T. Rogers (2008): Trace element analysis in the serum and hair of Antarctic leopard seal, Hydrurga leptonyx, and Weddell seal, Leptonychotes weddellii. Science of the Total Environment 399(1-3): 202-215. Jay, C.V., P.M. Outridge, and J.L. Garlich-Miller (2008): Indication of two Pacific walrus stocks from whole tooth elemental analysis. Polar Biology 31(8): 933-943. Yin, X. et al. (2007): Mercury-selenium association in antarctic seal hairs and animal excrements over the past 1,500 years. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 26(3): 381-386. OTHER MARINE MAMMALS Andersen, M. et al. (2008): Movements of two Svalbard polar bears recorded using geographical positioning system satellite transmitters. Polar Biology 31(8): 905-911. Bechshøft, T.Ø. et al. (2008): Differences in growth, size and sexual dimorphism in skulls of East Greenland and Svalbard polar bears (Ursus maritimus). Polar Biology 31(8): 945-958. Hermanussen, S. et al. (2008): Flame retardants (PBDEs) in marine turtles, dugongs and seafood from Queensland, Australia. Marine Pollution Bulletin 57(6-12): 409-418. Schliebe, S. et al. (2008): Effects of sea ice extent and food availability on spatial and temporal distribution of polar bears during the fall open-water period in the Southern Beaufort Sea. Polar Biology 31(8): 999-1010. -- --> jan.herrmann -at - cetacea.de

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