Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-lj6df Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-10T19:23:21.507Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Humpback whale sightings in southern waters of the Dominican Republic lead to proactive conservation measures

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  12 February 2009

A.R. Whaley ,
A.J. Wright ,
I. Bonnelly de Calventi  and
E.C.M. Parsons
A.R. Whaley
Affiliation:
Los Amigos de los Delfines, Fundación Dominicana de Estudios Marinos, Inc. (FUNDEMAR), Sócrates Nolasco, No. 6, Ensanche Naco, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic The University (of London) Marine Biological Station Millport, Isle of Cumbrae, ScotlandKA28 0EG
A.J. Wright*
Affiliation:
Leviathan Sciences, 3414 17th St N, Apt. 3, Arlington, Virginia, 22207, USA
I. Bonnelly de Calventi
Affiliation:
Los Amigos de los Delfines, Fundación Dominicana de Estudios Marinos, Inc. (FUNDEMAR), Sócrates Nolasco, No. 6, Ensanche Naco, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
E.C.M. Parsons
Affiliation:
Leviathan Sciences, 3414 17th St N, Apt. 3, Arlington, Virginia, 22207, USA The Department of Environmental Science and Policy, MSN 5F2, George Mason University, 4400 University Drive, Fairfax, VA 22030-4444, USA
*
Correspondence should be addressed to: A.J. Wright, Leviathan Sciences, 3414 17th St N, Apt.3, Arlington, Virginia, 22207, USA email: marinebrit@gmail.com
Get access

Abstract

The Amigos de los Delfines made four sightings of humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) during surveys for dolphins near the Parque Nacional del Este (Eastern National Park), on the south-eastern coast of the Dominican Republic in March 2005. A number of behaviours were documented, including breaching apparently in response to harassment by local tour boats. The northern waters of the country are well known breeding sites for humpback whales, which led to the creation of the Silver Bank Marine Mammal Sanctuary. The information obtained during these sightings has led to a number of management efforts to reduce the impacts of human activities on the whales beyond the borders of the Sanctuary.

Keywords

humpback whalesouthern Dominican Republicdistributionproactive conservationvessel disturbancewhalewatching management
Type
Research Article
Information
Marine Biodiversity Records , Volume 1 , January 2008 , e70
Copyright
Copyright © Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 2007

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

Connor, R.C., Smolker, R.A. and Richards, A.F. (1992) Two levels of alliance formation among male bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops sp.). Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 89, 987–990.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kuczaj, S.A. II and Yeater, D.B. (2007) Observations of rough-toothed dolphins (Steno bredanensis) off the coast of Utila, Honduras. Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 87, 141–148.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mattila, D.K., Clapham, P.J., Vásquez, O. and Bowman, R.S. (1994) Occurrence, population composition, and habitat use of humpback whales in Samana Bay, Dominican Republic. Canadian Journal of Zoology 72, 1898–1907.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mattila, D.K., Clapham, P.J., Katona, S.K. and Stone, G.S. (1989) Population composition of humpback whales, Megaptera novaeangliae, on Silver Bank in 1984. Canadian Journal of Zoology 67, 281–285.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Spitz, S.S., Herman, L.M., Pack, A.A. and Deakos, M.H. (2002) The relation of body size of male humpback whales to their social roles on the Hawaiian winter grounds. Canadian Journal of Zoology 80 1938–1947.Google Scholar
Stevick, P.T., Allen, J., Clapham, P.J., Friday, N., Katona, S.K., Larsen, F., Lien, J., Mattila, D.K., Palsbøll, P.J., Sigurjónsson, J., Smith, T.D., Øien, N. and Hammond, P.S. (2003) North Atlantic humpback whale abundance and rate of increase four decades after protection from whaling. Marine Ecology Progress Series 58, 263–273.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Tolley, K.A., Read, A.J., Wells, R.S., Urian, K.W., Scott, M.D., Irvine, A.B. and Hohn, A.A. (1995) Sexual dimorphism in wild bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) from Sarasota, Florida. Journal of Mammalogy 76, 1190–1198.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Whitt, A.D. and Read, A.J. (2006) Assessing compliance to guidelines by dolphin-watching operators in Clearwater, Florida, USA. Tourism in Marine Environments 3, 117–130.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Winn, H.E., Edel, R.K. and Taruski, A.G. (1975) Population estimate of the humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) in the West Indies by visual and acoustic techniques. Journal of the Fisheries Research Board of Canada 32, 499–506.CrossRefGoogle Scholar