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Spatial analyses of bottlenose dolphin–fisheries interactions reveal human avoidance off a productive lagoon in the western Gulf of Mexico

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  30 August 2011

Eduardo Morteo ,
Axayácatl Rocha-Olivares ,
Patricia Arceo-Briseño  and
Luis G. Abarca-Arenas
Eduardo Morteo
Affiliation:
Instituto de Ciencias Marinas y Pesquerías, Universidad Veracruzana, Calle Hidalgo #617, Col. Río Jamapa, CP 94290, Boca del Río, Veracruz, México Laboratorio Veracruzano de Mamíferos Marinos, Acuario de Veracruz, A.C., Boulevard Manuel Ávila Camacho S/N, Playón de Hornos, CP 91700, Veracruz, Veracruz, México
Axayácatl Rocha-Olivares*
Affiliation:
Departamento de Oceanografía Biológica, Centro de Investigación Científica y de Educación Superior de Ensenada, Carretera Ensenada-Tijuana No. 3918, CP 22860, Ensenada, Baja California, México
Patricia Arceo-Briseño
Affiliation:
Instituto de Ciencias Marinas y Pesquerías, Universidad Veracruzana, Calle Hidalgo #617, Col. Río Jamapa, CP 94290, Boca del Río, Veracruz, México
Luis G. Abarca-Arenas
Affiliation:
Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas, Universidad Veracruzana, Avenida Luis Castelazo Ayala s/n Col. Industrial Ánimas, CP 91190, Xalapa, Veracruz, México
*
Correspondence should be addressed to: A. Rocha-Olivares, Departamento de Oceanografía Biológica, Centro de Investigación Científica y de Educación Superior de Ensenada, Carretera Ensenada-Tijuana No. 3918, CP 22860, Ensenada, Baja California, México email: arocha@cicese.mx
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Abstract

Studying interactions between cetaceans and humans is fundamental to assess their ecological significance and the impact of human activities on marine wildlife. Delphinids have historically been associated with human maritime activities, and while evidence suggests that such interactions are becoming more frequent worldwide, these remain poorly studied. Areas of potential interaction and differences in dolphin affinity to interact with humans were used to test hypotheses about the spatial distribution and temporal variation in dolphin–fisheries interactions off the highly productive Alvarado lagoon, in the western Gulf of Mexico. Line-transect surveys yielded 928 dolphin, 980 vessel, and 320 fishing gear target records, the latter involving mostly the shrimp fishery. No temporal differences were found in daily relative abundance of dolphins ( = 8.1 h−1, SD = 9.7), vessels ( = 7.8 h−1, SD = 5.9) or fishing gear ( = 2.4 h−1, SD = 2.6) between two consecutive years. Non-random spatial distributions indicated higher target concentrations at the lagoon entrance; however, dolphins and fishers were found to evade each other, possibly to prevent competition; dolphins only interacted with gillnets (28.6% of vessels and 22.6% of fishing gear). We observed small areas of potentially intentional and random encounters outside the entrance of the lagoon and low or null potential for interactions elsewhere. Only 18.9% of dolphin schools (44.8% of the 172 photo-identified animals) interacted with fisheries mostly by chance. Resident individuals (N = 23) tended to avoid humans, likely in response to negative reinforcement caused by aggressions from fishers. Hence, the potential intentionality of a few individuals to interact with fisheries, show they bare higher risks while attempting to benefit from gillnetted prey. This research unveils the chronic and acute exposure of the dolphin community to artisanal fisheries within the area, having important reciprocal consequences on their distributions and activities.

Keywords

abundancedistributiondolphin–fisheries interactionscoastal bottlenose dolphinsTursiops truncatus
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom , Volume 92 , Issue 8: Marine Mammals , December 2012 , pp. 1893 - 1900
Copyright
Copyright © Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 2011

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