Hi everybody,
the following paper has been published on PLos
ONE and can be downloaded from the following web page:
http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0022878
All the best,
Simone Panigada
Monitoring Winter and Summer Abundance of
Cetaceans in the Pelagos Sanctuary (Northwestern
Mediterranean Sea) Through Aerial Surveys
Simone Panigada, Giancarlo Lauriano, Louise Burt,
Nino Pierantonio, Greg Donovan
Abstract
Systematic long-term monitoring of abundance is
essential to inform conservation measures and
evaluate their effectiveness. To instigate such
work in the Pelagos Sanctuary in the
Mediterranean, two aerial surveys were conducted
in winter and summer 2009. A total of 467 (131 in
winter, 336 in summer) sightings of 7 species was
made. Sample sizes were sufficient to estimate
abundance of fin whales in summer (148; 95% CI =
87254) and striped dolphins in winter (19,462;
95% CI = 12 93929 273) and in summer (38 488;
95% CI = 27 44753 968). Numbers of animals
within the Sanctuary are significantly higher in
summer, when human activities and thus potential
population level impacts are highest. Comparisons
with data from past shipboard surveys suggest an
appreciable decrease in fin whales within the
Sanctuary area and an appreciable increase in
striped dolphins. Aerial surveys proved to be
more efficient than ship surveys, allowing more
robust estimates, with smaller CIs and CVs. These
results provide essential baseline data for this
marine protected area and continued regular
surveys will allow the effectiveness of the MPA
in terms of cetacean conservation to be evaluated
and inform future management measures. The
collected data may also be crucial in assessing
whether ship strikes, one of the main causes of
death for fin whales in the Mediterranean, are
affecting the Mediterranean population.
___________________________
Simone Panigada, Ph.D.
Vice-President
[email protected]
Tethys Research Institute
Viale G.B. Gadio 2, 20121 Milano, Italy
tel. +39 0272001947 / 0272013943
fax +39 0286995011
[email protected]
<http://www.tethys.org/>
_______________________________________________
MARMAM mailing list
[email protected]
https://lists.uvic.ca/mailman/listinfo/marmam
