Latest news with #bottlenosedolphins
BBC News
21-07-2025
- Science
- BBC News
Research to identify risk hotspots for Channel Island dolphins
Research to identify risks and threat hotspots for marine animals around the Channel Islands has been carried out by the University of students Becky Dudley and Beth Harvey said the study would look at human impacts and potential threats to marine populations including Harvey said disturbance from a rigid inflatable boat (RIB) to a pod of bottlenose dolphins was picked up by a hydrophone as part of the said: "[The boat] came through a group of bottlenose dolphins not realising the potential impact that they can have. There are guidelines if you do encounter bottlenose dolphins out there on boats." 'Best protect them' She added: "It's really important to stay at least 100m away from them because it's really important that those bottlenose dolphins can communicate with each other."The university said the whole south coast of England and Gulf of Saint Malo were part of an important marine mammal area (IMMA).Ms Dudley said her research involved looking at the ways bottlenose dolphin populations in coastal areas could be "better managed.""I think they can tell us so much about the health of our oceans," she said. She added: "Things that are affecting them, will affect the whole of the marine eco-system."They can really be used as a way to figure out how we as humans are affecting them and how we can best protect them."The students said identification of the Channel Islands as an IMMA gave "global recognition of how important these areas are to cetaceans and that recognition may well lead to more management measures."Ms Dudley added she hoped it would show "people what an amazing place the Channel Islands" was for marine mammals.
Sky News
25-05-2025
- Science
- Sky News
What do dolphins get up to beneath the waves? Their poo has the answers
Scientists are turning detective to work out what British dolphins are up to beneath the waves - by using forensic-style DNA techniques on their poo. Conservationists have been studying the 250 or so bottlenose dolphins living in Cardigan Bay, west Wales, over many decades. Up to now, they have only been able to observe the dolphins as they surface to breathe or play, identifying the animals from the unique marks on their dorsal fins to establish which animals were hanging out together and where. But now for the first time scientists are using DNA excreted by the dolphins in their poo to build a more complete picture of their lives. It allows them to identify the sex of individuals and how they are related to other animals. Signficantly, it also shows what the dolphins have been eating. Dr Sarah Perry, marine conservation manager at The Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales, said: "In order to be able to conserve them, we need to know why they're here and a big a missing part of that is, what they're feeding on. "Is that changing at different times of the year? Are certain species of fish more important to them early on in the year, in the spring, and the summer months, and then does that change over the autumn and winter months? "Are certain species important for younger animals? We don't know that, so that kind of information, we need to find out." Catching dolphin poo involves a large element of luck. The animals occasionally eject a cloud of waste material as they swim. But it quickly sinks, so the scientists' boat needs to be close enough for them to scoop it out of the sea with a fine-meshed net. A sample is then sent to a lab at the University of Aberystwyth, where DNA is extracted for analysis. Dolphins adapting to effects of climate change Results so far suggest the dolphins are having to adapt to a change in fish species as the water warms. Dr Niall McKeown, a marine biologist at the university, said: "We are seeing large amounts of sardine, sprat, and anchovy. "This is quite interesting because these are species that are known to have increased in abundance in Welsh waters in recent years in response, we believe, to climate change." Scientists unsure why dolphin numbers are falling But questions remain about the dolphins. The number in Cardigan Bay seems to be falling, but scientists are not sure whether that's a natural cycle or a response to other factors. Boat noise and disturbance from some fishing activities, such as scallop dredging, could impact the animals, which rely on sound to communicate.
