Braulik, G.

Downstream Research Group

Braulik, G. T., R. Barnett, V. Odon, V. Islas-Villanueva, A. R. Hoelzel, and J. A. Graves. 2015. “One Species or Two? Vicariance, Lineage Divergence and Low mtDNA Diversity in Geographically Isolated Populations of South Asian River Dolphin.” Journal of Mammalian Evolution 22 (1): 111–20.

Kenney, R.

University of Rhode Island

The objective of this study is to derive minimum values for SPUE cells where values are currently estimated at 0 based on limited survey effort. The minimum values will: (1) be based on the available data, (2) not be purely arbitrary, (3) better address the weaknesses pointed out above, and (4) provide a more accurate reflection of entanglement risks and conservation benefits of proposed management actions in waters off the Northeastern United States.

The final report is available from the Commission upon request.

Ainley, D.

H.T. Harvey & Associates

A workshop to identify and determine the research and monitoring required to resolve significant uncertainties concerning the effects of the Antarctic toothfish fishery and climate change on the Ross Sea Ecosystem.

Workshop report.

Hain, J.

Associated Scientists at Woods Hole

Right Whale News is an independent newsletter providing timely information; a forum to express viewpoints and encourage discussion; and a bulletin board of book reviews, publications, people, and events. It is published in February, May, August, and November; and may on occasion include additional special issues.

Brown, M.

New England Aquarium

Launch Whale Alert on the Android platform, in addition to the one now available on the Apple platform, to benefit right whale conservation by providing the shipping industry and other mariners with greater access to the management initiatives and regulations designed and implemented to reduce the risk of vessel strikes on right whales along the east coast of Canada and the United States. Broader and efficient access to the information should improve vessel operator awareness and compliance with vessel strike mitigation measures and reduce the risk of shipping companies being fined for non compliant transits in regulated management areas.

The final report is available from the Commission upon request.

Karamanlidis, A.

Hellenic Society for the Study and Protection of the Monk Seal

Promote the conservation of the critically endangered Mediterranean monk seal (Monachus monachus) in Greece through the intensive monitoring of a newly discovered seal colony at the island of Evia. Collect information on habitat availability and suitability, general biology of the species, and demographic parameters of the local monk seal population. Data will be used to propose concrete conservation and management actions to the Hellenic government for the protection of the species in the area. See links to publications:

1. Charrier et al., 2017
2. Mpougas et al., 2019

Karamanlidis, A.

Hellenic Society for the Study and Protection of the Monk Seal

Advance the understanding of the biology of the critically endangered Mediterranean monk seal (Monachus monachus) and promote its effective conservation in Greece through the study of its genome. Assess of the current genetic status of the largest monk seal population in the eastern Mediterranean Sea and create a genetic Register of individual monk seals in Greece. See link to publication.

Keith-Diagne, L.

Sea to Shore Alliance

Conduct African manatee population genetics analyses and define the geographic structure of those populations, both within specific waterways and countries, as well as in the larger range-wide context. Establish the evolutionary relationship of the African manatee to the other extant trichechid species through phylogenetic analyses.

Read, A.

Duke University

Support efforts to shift the negative perceptions of people about Hawaiian monk seals in the Main Hawaiian Islands and improve positive perception of coexistence with monk seals in the region. See link to publication.

Rojas-Bracho, L.

Oceanides Conservacion y Desarrollo Marino, A.C.

Review of a vaquita passive acoustic monitoring scheme sampling array and plan any adjustments needed to ensure that the array is providing the best possible information on the status of the population. Field work to test new mooring alternatives for acoustic detectors designed to sample year-round, and implement the array for the third sampling year. See link to the final report. 

Sanjurjo, E.

World Wildlife Fund Inc.

Create a stable supply of seafood captured with vaquita-safe fishing gear, maintain the momentum built to-date with participating fishermen and chefs in Northern Baja California, and expand the project to Southern California. Increase awareness of and support for vaquita-safe seafood in the Upper Gulf of California.

The final report is available from the Commission upon request.

Sutaria, D.

Sutaria, D.

Rapid vessel-based surveys to estimate cetacean occurrence and diversity relative to environmental factors off the northern Tamil Nadu coast, on the southeast coast of India. Build the capacity of local researchers for a long-term monitoring study in the region, in conjunction with a fisheries bycatch study.

The final report is available from the Commission upon request.

Hain, J.

Associated Scientists at Woods Hole

Right Whale News is an independent newsletter providing timely information; a forum to express viewpoints and encourage discussion; and a bulletin board of book reviews, publications, people, and events. It is published in February, May, August, and November; and may on occasion include additional special issues.

Harvey, J.

Society for Marine Mammalogy

Support for student travel – specifically international student travel – to the Society for Marine Mammalogy’s 20^th Biennial Conference on the Biology of Marine Mammals, to be convened in Dunedin, New Zealand from December 9 through December 13, 2013.

Himes-Boor, G

Montana State University

Support for the Dr. Daniel Goodman Memorial Symposium, an educational and networking opportunities for scientists, managers, and students. The symposium will produce a digital recording of the meeting for online dissemination and teaching purposes, as well as a published volume with contributions from each of the main speakers.

Symposium website.

Nawaz, R.

Worldwide Fund for Nature – Pakistan

Support for workshop to improve knowledge of humpback whales in the Arabian Sea and promote the conservation of this endangered population.

Workshop report.

Romano, T.

International Association for Aquatic Animal Medicine

Support for international aquatic animal health experts and managers to attend the 44^th IAAAM conference focusing on emerging global issues and trends in marine animal health, especially anthropogenic impacts. Support provided for international participants to attend post-conference training at The Marine Mammal Center, as well as the development and production of training materials for all attendees.

Engleby, L., Powell, J., and Spradlin, T.

National Marine Fisheries Service Southeast Regional Office

Consolidate and complete a thorough review of newly available scientific literature (post Samuels et al. 2000) focused on human interactions with marine mammals worldwide. Determine the status and changes related to dolphin-human interactions over a 15 year time period in Panama City, Florida by replicating and comparing results to Samuels and Bejder (1998 and 2000). See link to project report and link to publication.

Ivashchenko, Y.

Seastar Scientific

Clarify specific details of Soviet whaling reports to enable a more accurate interpretation of the data contained within the existing reports. See links to publications:

1.  Ivashchenko & Clapham, 2015
2.  Clapham & Ivashchenko, 2016
3. Ivashchenko, Y.V. & Clapham, P.J. 2017. Evaluation of the accuracy of reported noon positions from Soviet whaling factory ships. Journal of Cetacean Research and Management, 17:23-28. Available for download here.
4. Ivashchenko, Y.V., Clapham, P.J. & Brownell, R.L. Jr. 2017. New data on Soviet catches of blue (Balaenoptera musculus) and right whales (Eubalaena japonica) in the North Pacific. Journal of Cetacean Research and Management, 17:15-22. Available for download here.

Morin, P.

National Marine Fisheries Service Southwest Fisheries Science Center

Development of a new method of genetic analyses for marine mammal population genetics. This method will be tested on sperm whale samples from the CA/OR/WA and Hawai‘i stocks to evaluate both the range of efficiencies for sequencing different numbers of samples and loci, and the differences in power to detect population structure with increases in the number of genetic loci.

O’Sullivan, C.

University of Technology, Jamaica

Assessment of whether or not dolphins in the waters around Jamaica are interfering with fishing traps and, based on the evidence collected, determine possible mitigation measures. Data collected will be relayed to the relevant government agencies as well as the fishermen involved in the project in order to inform government policy in Jamaica and promote the conservation of marine mammal species in Jamaican waters.

The final report is available from the Commission upon request.

Rice, A.

Cornell University

Compare findings from an analysis of previously collected acoustic data with the current body of literature relative to identified gaps in survey effort at certain areas and times where right whales may be present. Analyze distribution of right whales over large geographic areas, as well as long term trends in seasonal variability at specific sites, during time periods when multiple recording deployments occurred simultaneously. Increase the current understanding of right whale seasonal distribution, which will facilitate the appropriate planning of management and mitigation efforts. See links to publication:

1. Davis et al., 2017
2. Charif et al., 2019

Richard, J.

University of Rhode Island

Develop minimally-invasive blow (exhale) sampling methodologies to assess reproductive condition and sex in unknown individuals using reproductive hormone concentrations in blow samples. Compare hormone levels in blow and blood in belugas, measure reproductive hormones, and sequence genetic markers from beluga blow samples. This project will contribute to beluga management by advancing the knowledge of their reproductive biology and by developing a minimally-invasive tool for studying beluga population dynamics. See link to publication.

Robbins, J.

Center for Coastal Studies

Establish the status of previously tagged Gulf of Maine humpback whales one year after modifications were made to the tags that were deployed in preparation for an evaluation of a new tag design in 2015. Improve understanding of the longer-term health, survival and fecundity of satellite-tagged whales.

The final report is available from the Commission upon request. To view an unpublished report submitted to the International Whaling Commission click here (Robbins et al., 2013; SC/65a/SH05).

Visser, F.

Leiden University & Kelp Marine Research

Investigate the foraging behavior and habitat use of Sowerby’s beaked whale around the Azores and relate the behavior of this species to published records of the natural diving behavior of Cuvier’s and Blainville’s beaked whales in the framework of the sensitivity of beaked whales to sound exposure.

The final report is available from the Commission upon request.

Walker, K.

University of British Columbia

Physiological and clinical assessment of wound healing in juvenile Steller sea lions following hot-iron branding using a combination of clinical and physiological measures.

Williams, R.

Oceans Initiative

Develop capacity for low-cost, small-boat surveys that can yield reliable abundance estimates and to bring line transect survey methods within reach of lower-income countries. Develop a toolkit (software and hardware resources) to facilitate rigorous surveys to fill in key data gaps, as well as YouTube videos explaining how to use the toolkit. Train biologists in Gabon/Congo on toolkit use to yield abundance estimates and to put bycatch rates into population-level context. By integrating training and capacity building (local and online) through study planning, data collection and analysis, each survey in a new region fills in data gaps and multiplies local capacity. Read this project’s latest publication here.

Angliss, R.

National Marine Mammal Laboratory

Support for a workshop directed at the use and applications of UAS to assessing marine and terrestrial wildlife species and their habitat. Researchers will be able to exchange information about UAS projects, analysis of UAS data, and access to airspace, as well as develop new partnerships. See the final workshop report here.

Di Giovanni, R.

Riverhead Foundation

Increase communication and collaboration through a two day conference and workshop focused on the ecological role of seals in multiple contexts, including predator/prey relationships, epidemiology, and indicators of ecological health or dysfunction. Improve a web-based citizen science reporting system and database management for marine mammal sightings. See final workshop report.

Martien, K.

National Marine Fisheries Service Southwest Fisheries Science Center

Meeting to review and summarize the utility of different lines of evidence for delineating stocks under the MMPA. Empirical examples of the application of each line of evidence to studies of marine mammal population structure will be presented in order to demonstrate their strengths and weaknesses and appropriate application to stock delineation. The products of the journal club and science meeting will also be used to inform a larger effort within the NMFS aimed at proposing a national policy for stock delineation under the MMPA. See the final meeting report.

Mattila, D.

International Committee on Marine Mammal Protected Areas

Support for international attendees from developing countries to attend the third International Conference on Marine Mammal Protected Areas, focused on the theme of `Important Marine Mammal Areas (IMMAs)– A Sense of Place, A Question of Size.’ A primary goal of the conference is to give attention to developing and refining criteria for the identification of IMMAs and to address the challenges and strategies of managing very large and very small marine mammal protected areas. Link to conference proceedings.

Miksis-Olds

Penn State

Support for student travel to SeaBASS 2014 (Marine BioAcoustics Summer School), SeaBASS 2014 provided training for graduate students in marine animal bioacoustics, allowing them to develop a strong foundation in both marine animal biology and acoustics, foster technical communication across disciplines, and develop professional relationships within the field.

Notarbartolo di Sciara, G.

IUCN Joint Marine Mammal Protected Area Task Force

Support for an IMMA workshop that will focus on the development of guidelines for the identification of IMMAs in different types of environments (e.g. data poor vs. data rich), as well as starting the process for putting IMMAs in practice and developing the method (the plan is to focus on the South Pacific / Indo-Pacific areas because of the likely availability of regional experts). Link to conference proceedings.

Parks, S.

Syracuse University

Harbor seals (Phoca vitulina) will be used as a model system to investigate the variation in, and the effects of noise on, the mating strategies of aquatically breeding pinnipeds. Results will increase our understanding of the mating systems of pinnipeds and highlight potential areas for management and conservation. Link to Leanna Matthews’ dissertation and see link to publication.

Braulik, G.

Wildlife Conservation Society

Provide an understanding of the movements between areas of Indian Ocean humpback dolphin, Sousa plumbea, concentration in East Africa to determine the most appropriate units for conservation and management. Improve regional collaboration of researchers involved in cetacean photo-ID and genetic sampling in Kenya and Tanzania.

Cerchio, S.

New England Aquarium

Examine cetacean presence and diversity in Northwest Madagascar, with a special focus on Omura’s whale, in order obtain critically needed baseline data to better inform monitoring and mitigation associated with oil and gas development activities in the area.

The final report is available from the Commission upon request.

De Guise, S.

University of Connecticut

Further the understanding of the 2013 –2015 Mid-Atlantic bottlenose dolphin Unusual Mortality Event (UME) morbillivirus epizootic and potential predisposing factors and impacts on the overall health of the population. Contribute an assessment of immune functions directly relevant to morbillivirus infection as an addition to NOAA’s planned bottlenose dolphin live capture and health assessment, to refine our understanding of host susceptibility and consequences of infection.

The final report is available from the Commission upon request.

Rone, B.

Marine Mammal Laboratory

Conduct visual and acoustic surveys for North Pacific right whales in the northwestern Gulf of Alaska to collect critical information on the occurrence, movements, and habitat use of right whales to help assess status, population structure, and risks from anthropogenic threats. Link to publication.

Berchok, C.

Marine Mammal Laboratory

Analyze existing acoustic data from the Bering Sea and two Aleutian Islands passes to assess the occurrence of North Pacific right whales in this region and potential overlap with threats such as fishery entanglement and ship strike. See links to publications:

1. Wright et al., 2018
2. Wright et al., 2019

Cremer, M.

Projeto Toninhas

Hold a workshop hosted by the Franciscana Consortium in São Francisco do Sul, Santa Catarina State, Brazil 5-9 October 2015. The workshop will provide an opportunity for stakeholders from Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay to work together and assist their governments in producing a solid, science-based IWC Conservation Management Plan proposal. See link to final workshop report.

Roberts, S. & Glickson, D.

National Academy of Sciences

Assemble an expert committee who will take an unbiased perspective in reviewing approaches and developing specific recommendations for identifying new approaches to assess cumulative effects of multiple anthropogenic stressors on marine mammal populations that, in turn, have direct and indirect effects on vital rates and population health. The committee will assess current methodologies used for evaluating cumulative effects, with a focus on anthropogenic sound, and identify new approaches that could improve these assessments. Link to NAS study

Harvey, J.

Society for Marine Mammalogy

Support for student travel – specifically international student travel – to the Society for Marine Mammalogy’s 21st Biennial Conference on the Biology of Marine Mammals, convened in San Francisco, California, USA, December 13-18, 2015.