December 2022 - MARMAM - devlists.uvic.ca

ECS2023 - Extended deadline for abstract submission!
by Bruno Diaz Lopez 07 Dec '22

07 Dec '22

Extended deadline for abstract submission! ECS2023 We would like to inform you that the deadline for submitting abstracts for the ECS2023 conference, originally scheduled for December 9th 2022, has been extended until Wednesday December 14th 2022. Please hurry, as there will not be any more extensions. We invite you to submit abstracts for oral presentations and posters for the 2023 ECS Conference, which will be held April 18th-20th in O Grove, Galicia, Spain. The 34th ECS Conference in O Grove 2023 will be conducted in the traditional in-person format and all oral and poster presenters will be required to attend the meeting in person. In addition, all scientific communications will be made available digitally after the conference. This will be a great opportunity to reconnect in person after the pandemic years and talk about marine mammals, science, conservation, discuss research, meet colleagues, have fun and make friends. Abstracts are encouraged to address the meeting theme “OUR OCEANS, OUR FUTURE: Marine Mammal Behavioural Ecology & the Sustainable Use of Marine Resources” if appropriate, but doing so is not necessary. We welcome submissions on any topic that reports on new discoveries in marine mammal science. Abstracts must be submitted through the online form <https://www.europeancetaceansociety.eu/conference/submit-abstract-0> by December 14th, 2022 at 23:45 (CET). No late or emailed abstracts will be considered. For more information, visit <https://www.europeancetaceansociety.eu/conference/34th-annual-conference-ga…> If you have any further questions, please contact us at: <ecs2023(a)thebdri.com> See you in Galicia, Bruno Diaz Lopez Ph.D Chief biologist and Director The Bottlenose Dolphin Research Institute BDRI - www.thebdri.com Avenida Beiramar 192, O Grove 36980, Pontevedra, Spain Tel. 0034 684248552 he/him/his ResearchGate - GoogleScholar -https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0388-3289 Follow BDRI on Facebook , Instagram or mention us on Twitter. This email is confidential to the intended recipient(s) and the contents may be legally privileged or contain proprietary and private informations. It is intended solely for the person to whom it is addressed. If you are not an intended recipient, you may not review, copy or distribute this email. If received in error, please notify the sender and delete the message from your system immediately. Please note that neither the Bottlenose Dolphin Research Institute BDRI nor the sender accept any responsibility for any viruses and it is your responsibility to scan the email and the attachments (if any). Thank you for your cooperation.

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Publication: New mark-recap model and new Cook Inlet beluga demographic rate estimates
by Himes Boor, Gina 07 Dec '22

07 Dec '22

My coauthors and I are pleased to announce the publication of our recent open-access paper describing a new multi-event mark-recapture model to estimate reproductive and survival rates for species that exhibit extended parental care (e.g., belugas, dolphins, manatees) and for which offspring age is uncertain. We also provide the first robust estimates of the reproductive and juvenile survival rates of the endangered beluga whale population that resides in Cook Inlet, Alaska, USA. Citation: Himes Boor, G. K., McGuire, T. L., Warlick, A. J., Taylor, R. L., Converse, S. J., McClung, J. R., and Stephens, A. D., 2022, Estimating reproductive and juvenile survival rates when offspring ages are uncertain: a novel multievent mark-resight model with beluga whale case study: Methods in Ecology and Evolution, https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/2041-210X.14 [nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.com]<https://urldefense.com/v3/__https:/nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?…>032 Abstract: 1. Understanding the survival and reproductive rates of a population is critical to determining its long-term dynamics and viability. Mark-resight models are often used to estimate these demographic rates, but estimation of survival and reproductive rates is challenging, especially for wide-ranging, patchily distributed, or cryptic species. In particular, existing mark-resight models cannot accommodate data from populations in which offspring remain with parents for multiple years, are not always detected, and cannot be aged with certainty. 2. Here we describe a Bayesian multievent mark-resight modelling framework that uses all available adult and adult-offspring sightings (including sightings with older offspring of uncertain age) to estimate reproductive rates and survival rates of adults and juveniles. We extend existing multievent mark-resight models that typically only incorporate adult breeding state uncertainty by additionally accounting for age uncertainty in unmarked offspring and uncertainty in the duration of the mother-offspring association. We describe our model in general terms and with a simple illustrative example, then apply it in a more complex empirical setting using thirteen years of photo-ID data from a critically endangered population of beluga whales (Delphinapterus leucas). We evaluated model performance using simulated data under a range of sample sizes, and adult and offspring detection rates. 3. Applying our model to the beluga data yielded precise estimates for all demographic rates of interest despite substantial uncertainty in calf ages, including non-breeder survival and reproductive rates lower than that estimated for other beluga populations. Simulations suggested our model yields asymptotically unbiased parameter estimates with good precision and low bias even with moderate sample sizes and detection rates. 4. This work represents an important new development in multievent mark-resight modeling, allowing estimation of reproductive and juvenile survival rates for populations with extended adult - offspring associations and uncertain offspring ages (e.g., some marine mammals, elephants, bears, great apes, bats, and birds). Our model facilitated estimation of robust demographic rates for an endangered beluga population that were previously inestimable (e.g., non-breeder and juvenile survival, reproductive rate) and that will yield new insights into this population's continued decline. ________________________ Gina K. Himes Boor, PhD (she/her/hers) Assistant Research Professor Ecology Department Montana State University AJMJ 221B 406-580-1368

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New publication: Temporal occurrence of three blue whale populations in New Zealand waters from passive acoustic monitoring
by Barlow, Dawn Renee 06 Dec '22

06 Dec '22

Dear MARMAM community, On behalf of my coauthors, I am pleased to share our recent publication in the Journal of Mammalogy: Barlow, D.R., Klinck, H., Ponirakis, D., Holt Colberg, M., Torres, L.G. (2022). Temporal occurrence of three blue whale populations in New Zealand waters from passive acoustic monitoring, Journal of Mammalogy. https://doi.org/10.1093/jmammal/gyac106 Abstract: Describing spatial and temporal occurrence patterns of wild animal populations is important for understanding their evolutionary trajectories, population connectivity, and ecological niche specialization, with relevance for effective management. Throughout the world, blue whales produce stereotyped songs that enable identification of separate acoustic populations. We harnessed continuous acoustic recordings from five hydrophones deployed in the South Taranaki Bight (STB) region of Aotearoa New Zealand from January 2016 to February 2018. We examined hourly presence of songs from three different blue whale populations to investigate their contrasting ecological use of New Zealand waters. The New Zealand song was detected year-round with a seasonal cycle in intensity (peak February-July), demonstrating the importance of the region to the New Zealand population as both a foraging ground and potential breeding area. The Antarctic song was present in two distinct peaks each year (June-July; September-October) and predominantly at the offshore recording locations, suggesting northbound and southbound migration between feeding and wintering grounds. The Australian song was only detected during a 10-day period in January 2017, implying a rare vagrant occurrence. We therefore infer that the STB region is the primary niche of the New Zealand population, a migratory corridor for the Antarctic population, and outside the typical range of the Australian population. The full article is available online: https://academic.oup.com/jmammal/advance-article/doi/10.1093/jmammal/gyac10… Please do not hesitate to contact me with any questions or to request a PDF copy. Cheers, Dawn Dawn Barlow, PhD (she/her) Postdoctoral Scholar Marine Mammal Institute | Department of Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation Sciences Oregon State University | Hatfield Marine Science Center Geospatial Ecology of Marine Megafauna Lab<https://mmi.oregonstate.edu/gemm-lab> dawn.barlow(a)oregonstate.edu

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Webinar Recording: Redefining North Atlantic Right Whale Habitat-Use Patterns Under Climate Change
by Emily Knight 06 Dec '22

06 Dec '22

Marmam community, Thanks to all who were able to join our webinar on Redefining North Atlantic Right Whale Habitat-Use Patterns Under Climate Change, featuring Drs. Charles Greene, Cornell University, Erin Meyer-Gutbrod, University of South Carolina, and Kimberley Davies, University of New Brunswick. In their presentation, the research team discussed the main conclusions from their project, including the key results they produced over the last several years: * Webinar recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJQaWYO7ZpI * Paper: Ocean Regime Shift is Driving Collapse of the North Atlantic Right Whale<https://tos.org/oceanography/article/ocean-regime-shift-is-driving-collapse…>, August 2021, Oceanography (blog summary<https://www.lenfestocean.org/en/news-and-publications/cross-currents/2021/h…>) * Paper: Redefining North Atlantic Right Whale Habitat-Use Patterns Under Climate Change<https://aslopubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/lno.12242>, November 2022, Limnology and Oceanography (blog summary<https://www.lenfestocean.org/en/news-and-publications/cross-currents/2022/n…>) Please share these links with your networks! Thanks, -- Emily Knight Manager, Lenfest Ocean Program [LenfestOceanProgram-Logo-Color-(2)] 901 E Street NW, 3rd Floor Washington, DC 20004 SIGN UP<https://www.lenfestocean.org/en/about-us/contact-us/lenfest-newsletter-sign…> FOR LENFEST OCEAN NEWS w: 202-540-6389 | c: 202-384-6534 | e: eknight(a)lenfestocean.org<mailto:eknight@lenfestocean.org> www.lenfestocean.org<http://www.lenfestocean.org/>|twitter: @lenfestocean<https://twitter.com/LenfestOcean>

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Abstracts close this week! Australia/New Zealand student chapter of the Society for Marine Mammalogy conference
by Rebecca Boys 05 Dec '22

05 Dec '22

Dear MARMAMers, This is a reminder that abstract submissions for the next Australia/New Zealand student chapter of the Society for Marine Mammalogy conference close this Friday 9th December. The conference will be held in Hobart, Tasmania, on 14th and 15th of April 2023! We are offering free accommodation for 20 students for the conference, so please ensure that you register and submit your abstracts ASAP so that we can book your accommodation! You can find out more information on the conference website. https://anzscsmm.wixsite.com/anzscsmm/home [https://static.wixstatic.com/media/330c33_ddb5ea0ae36f436dbd1acaa07c9b7d2f~…]<https://anzscsmm.wixsite.com/anzscsmm/home> The Conference | ANZSCSMM<https://anzscsmm.wixsite.com/anzscsmm/home> The theory and practise of establishing linkages between marine predators and their prey. This workshop will host a panel discussion on modelling ecosystem interactions between predators and prey. anzscsmm.wixsite.com We look forward to seeing you there! ANZSCSMM Chapter Heads ------------------------------------------------------------- Rebecca M Boys Marine Biologist PhD Student Cetacean Ecology Research Group School of Natural Sciences Massey University Auckland New Zealand [cid:1e98e594-2af1-4557-a007-b23c5967e191]<https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Rebecca_Boys> [cid:8d89577d-4441-46ae-ab6b-d2367d88975a] <https://scholar.google.co.nz/citations?hl=en&user=7rHpOpMAAAAJ> [cid:9e13bfaf-cb0f-44b6-a9ee-fe27afa1cae0] <https://twitter.com/RebeccaMBoys> [cid:e18e7793-c677-4628-b8ac-d65d9e6e62a5] <https://www.facebook.com/CetaceanEcologyOrg/?__xts__[0]=68.ARBKlWSLR-YC7KHN…> [cid:181fe59d-5d33-46b4-b0a5-3bbcc9ed6c47] <https://www.massey.ac.nz/massey/explore/research/animal-veterinary/animal/m…> [cid:ef7305d2-65f1-4886-9318-d1c6d222185a] www.cetaceanecology.org/<https://www.cetaceanecology.org/> Australia and New Zealand Student Chapter SMM Committee member European Cetacean Society National Contact Person for New Zealand

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Reminder: Spring UF Aquatic Animal Health Courses
by Larkin,Iskande (Iske) 05 Dec '22

05 Dec '22

Hi All, The University of Florida, College of Veterinary Medicine would like to send notice that registration for our spring online courses are open. Aquatic Wildlife Health Issues is offered as an online Undergraduate course (VME-4013 ), a Graduate level course (VME-6011) and for Continuing Education credit (CE). These classes are designed to introduce students (upper level undergraduate and graduate) and professionals (with an AA or higher degree) to the natural history, anatomy, physiology, behavior and common health issues of aquatic species: whales and dolphins, seals and sea lions, manatees, sea turtles, crocodilians, fish and invertebrates. For more information about the class or enrollment, contact Dr. Iskande Larkin (ivlarkin(a)ufl.edu<mailto:ivlarkin@ufl.edu>). Marine Mammal Biology (VME-6014) is an online Graduate or Continuing Education (CE) course that will provide graduate students with a detailed overview of marine mammal species including cetaceans, sirenians, pinnipeds, mustelids, and ursids. Each module will broadly explore a particular ecological, biological, or physiological theme related to the study of marine mammals, including taxonomy and biodiversity, diving physiology, thermoregulation, foraging ecology, and reproduction as well as the many conservation and management issues faced by different marine mammal species. For more information about the class or enrollment, contact Dr. Iske Larkin (ivlarkin(a)ufl.edu<mailto:ivlarkin@ufl.edu>). Sincerely, Dr Larkin [AAH logo blue E-Mail Sig] Iske V. Larkin, PhD Lecturer & Education Coordinator Director of Aquatic Animal Health Program Department of Large Animal Clinical Sciences College of Veterinary Medicine University of Florida PO Box 100136 2015 SW 16th Ave Gainesville, Florida 32610 Office phone - 352-294-4095 Work cell - 352-494-1742 Fax - 352-392-8289 Program web page: http://aquatic.vetmed.ufl.edu<http://aquatic.vetmed.ufl.edu/> "To the world you might be one person, but to one person you might be the world." -Anonymous ________________________________

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PhD Opportunity - Sustainable Seal Tourism
by Sarah Marley 05 Dec '22

05 Dec '22

Dear colleagues, We are currently offering a competition-funded PhD project on sustainable seal tourism in collaboration between Scotland's Rural College and the University of Portsmouth. Summary included below, with a link to full advert and application instructions at the end. ***Sustainability of Seal Tourism in the Ythan Estuary*** Grey seals (Halichoerus grypus) have shown an increasing population trend across the UK since the 1960s, leading to growing overlap between seal occurrence and human activities. In the UK, long-term monitoring of seals is important for meeting various conservation legislation and management requirements. However, in a more applied sense, monitoring is also important for the mitigation of mounting anthropogenic threats in the form of fisheries bycatch, vessel traffic, marine pollution, renewable energy, and tourism activities. Understanding seal abundance, behaviour, and habitat-use at a national, regional, and local level is necessary to support effective management and conservation at a range of scales. The Ythan Estuary in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, is home to a recently-established grey seal haul-out. Believed to be the fastest-growing seal haul-out in mainland Scotland, over 5,000 animals have been counted at this site, representing ~26% of grey seals in the East Coast of Scotland Seal Management Area. However, this site is also growing in popularity with tourists. Since the appearance of the seal-watching point in 2008, this area has become a hotspot for nature-based recreational activities, with over 63,000 visitors in 2020 alone. Concerns are frequently raised about the potential for seals to be disturbed by visitors and past incidents have resulted in hundreds of seals stampeding into the water. Such events have received considerable public interest and news coverage. In 2017, the Scottish Government designated the Ythan Estuary as a seal haul-out site to provide additional protection for the seals from harassment. Other management interventions have tried to mitigate disturbance (e.g. fencing, signage), with varying levels of success. Discussions are currently underway about creating additional viewing platforms and a visitor centre to help with public education and visitor management. Yet, despite growing seal numbers at this site and on-going concerns over the impact of human disturbance, relatively little is known about the Ythan Estuary seals. There is a need to better understand how both seals and people are using this site to inform effective management. This project aims to examine the sustainability of seal tourism in the Ythan Estuary. This will be achieved by: (i) determining seal haul-out patterns and environmental drivers, (ii) quantifying disturbance events, (iii) investigating the socio-economics of current and future seal tourism, and (iv) exploring potential mitigation scenarios for reducing seal disturbance. Prospective students should have relevant fieldwork experience, strong data analysis skills, and be able to liaise confidently and sensitively with rural stakeholders. ***Supervisory Team*** Dr Sarah Marley (SRUC) Dr Nick Littlewood (SRUC) Dr Hannah Grist (SRUC) Prof Alex Ford (University of Portsmouth) ***Funding Notes*** This 3.5 year PhD studentship is open to UK and international students, providing funding to cover UKRI level stipend and UK level tuition fees. ***Closing Date*** Thursday 5th January 2023 ***For more information or to apply, please see the full advert*** https://www.findaphd.com/phds/project/sustainability-of-seal-tourism-in-the… All the best, Sarah Dr Sarah Marley Lecturer in Ecology | Scotland's Rural College (SRUC) | Aberdeen Campus Programme Leader | MSc Wildlife and Conservation Management | Scotland's Rural College (SRUC) Associate Editor | Methods in Ecology and Evolution Pronouns | she/her Email: sarah.marley(a)sruc.ac.uk<mailto:sarah.marley@sruc.ac.uk> | Publications: Google Scholar<https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=QgtunTYAAAAJ&hl=en> | Web: www.sarahmarley.com Recent Papers: Residency estimation for whale shark aggregations<https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmars.2022.775691/full> Benefits of guide training for sustainable dolphin-watching<https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11852-022-00876-1> Shipping patterns in the North East Atlantic<https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0025326X22003630> Likely year-round presence of beaked whales in the Bay of Biscay<https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10750-022-04822-y> Increasing seal numbers in the Solent<https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ece3.8167> Regional assessment of conservation status of snubfin dolphins<https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmars.2020.614852/full> Moving towards sustainable cetacean-based tourism<https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0308597X19305767?dgc…> Effects of ship noise on marine mammals<https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmars.2019.00606/full> [SRUC College logo RGB cropped.jpg] SRUC: Leading the way in Agricultural and Rural Research, Education and Consultancy Please don't print this e-mail unless you really need to. This e-mail message is confidential to the intended recipient at the email address to which it has been addressed. If the message has been received by you in error, it may not be disclosed to or used by anyone other than the intended addressee, nor may it be copied in any way. If it is not intended for you please inform us, immediately, then delete it from your system. If the content is not about the business of the organisation then the message is not from us nor is it sanctioned by us. Anything in this e-mail or its attachments which does not relate to SRUC's or SAC Commercial Limited's official business is neither given nor endorsed by SRUC or SAC Commercial Limited. SRUC A Charitable company limited by guarantee, Scottish Charity Number: SC003712. Registered in Scotland, Company Number: SC103046 - Registered Office: Peter Wilson Building, King's Buildings, West Mains Road, Edinburgh EH9 3JG SAC Commercial Limited, an SRUC company Registered in Scotland, Company Number: SC148684 - Registered Office: Peter Wilson Building, King's Buildings, West Mains Road, Edinburgh EH9 3JG

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New publication: humpback calling, whale-watching impacts & the Covid pandemic
by Amelie Laute 04 Dec '22

04 Dec '22

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Postdoctoral fellowship in network ecology, Georgetown University, Washington, DC, USA
by Shark Bay Dolphin Research Project 04 Dec '22

04 Dec '22

Dear Colleagues, We invite candidates to apply for the Earth Commons Postdoctoral Fellowship in collaboration with the research groups of Shweta Bansal, Janet Mann, and Lisa Singh. To read more about this position, see here: https://apply.interfolio.com/116657. Successful applicants will develop statistical network models using highly-resolved social data from two long-term bottlenose dolphin studies to understand the impact of anthropogenic stressors and reverse zoonotic disease risk. The ideal candidate has a Ph.D. in ecology, or a related field with previous experience in statistical or dynamical modeling of networks preferred. Georgetown University is a vibrant scientific community, and the successful applicant will be afforded many opportunities for professional development. Washington D.C. offers a rich cultural and intellectual life in the heart of the U.S. domestic and international policy scene. Georgetown University is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Fellowship applicants must submit a CV, cover letter, and brief abstract at the link above by December 22nd. Following the initial review, a small number of applications will be invited to submit a full proposal in early Spring. Applicants should reach out to Shweta Bansal ( shweta.bansal(a)georgetown.edu) or Janet Mann (mannj2(a)georgetown.edu) to discuss project ideas before submission.

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New publication: Acoustic identification and classification of four dolphin species in the Brazilian marine area affected by the largest tailings dam failure disaster.
by Thiago Amorim 04 Dec '22

04 Dec '22

Dear MARMAM community, On behalf of my co-authors I am pleased to announce the following publication in JASA: Amorim, T.O.S., Castro, F.R., Ferreira, G.A., Neri, F.M., Duque, B.R., Mura, J.P., Andriolo, A. (2022). "Acoustic identification and classification of four dolphin species in the Brazilian marine area affected by the largest tailings dam failure disaster", The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America (Vol.152, Issue 6). You can find the article here: https://doi.org/10.1121/10.0016358 Abstract Passive acoustic monitoring (PAM) is an increasingly used technique to access the occurrence, distribution, and abundance of cetaceans that may be visually unavailable most of the time. The largest tailings dam failure disaster occurred on 5 November 2015, when the Fundão dam collapsed, releasing over 50 million cubic meters of tailings into the Doce River basin; 14 days later, the tailings plume reached the Atlantic Ocean. PAM was implemented in the concerned area and cetacean species were acoustically identified. Whistles and clicks of visual and acoustic matches were used to predict and classify exclusive acoustic records through random forest models. The identified species were Guiana, rough-toothed, and bottlenose dolphins. Additionally, the franciscana, the most threatened cetacean in the western South Atlantic Ocean, was also acoustically identified. The whistle classifier had 86.9% accuracy with final frequency, duration, and maximum frequency ranked as the most important parameters. The clicks classifier had 86.7% accuracy with peak frequency and 3 dB bandwidth as the most important parameters for classifying species. Considering the potential effect of the increase in turbidity on sound transmission, such as attenuation, the presented classifier should be continuously improved with novel data collected from long-term acoustic monitoring. Please feel free to email me at amorim(a)aqualie.org for a pdf copy. Kind regards, Thiago Amorim ***** Programa de Pós Graduação em Biodiversidade e Conservação da Natureza - Universidade Federal de Juiz de Fora. Laboratório de Bioacústica e Ecologia Comportamental - LABEC Instituto Aqualie http://www.aqualie.org.br

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