[MARMAM] Internship opportunity in the Azores

[Nova Atlantis]

The Nova Atlantis Foundation is preparing its 24rd fieldwork season,
dedicated to studying the social ecology of the Risso´s dolphin around Pico
island. Next to the continuation of the Risso project we will conduct
cetacean monitoring surveys, focusing on the deep diving species such as
pilot whales and beaked whales. Pico island is an excellent area to learn
and gain experience at sea and to observe over 15 species of cetaceans
during the summer season. Special attention will be given to acoustics
research using a hydrophone array.



We are seeking interns for the period  June to Mid-August

Candidates should be available for at least 2 months.

Interns must be self-motivated, with the drive and determination to work
independently and responsibly, and with a true interest in marine
conservation and animal behaviour.



The internship includes:



- An intensive training on monitoring protocol, cetacean identification and
data processing

- Sea-surveys (using photo-ID, a drone and hydrophones) and land based data
collection

- Data processing

- Additional work e.g. boat cleaning and preparation, maintenance of
the research
station



The 2-month internship requires a payment to cover running field work
costs. Expenses for travelling to and from the fieldwork site,
accommodation and food are not included in this fee. The Nova Atlantis
Foundation offers accommodation in collaboration with a local family in
Santa Cruz das Ribeiras. Interns are free to find their own accommodation
in Ribeiras as well.



Fieldwork is highly weather dependent and requires consecutive long days of
work at sea and from land. On a typical field day, we split the team in a
land crew and a sea crew and work in shifts allowing all to rotate and gain
experience in several methodologies. We use rough weather days for data
entry or as a day off.



Application deadline is the 25rst of February 2023.

To apply, and for further information, please send a short letter (state
which period you prefer) and a short CV to: oceanwa...@gmail.com.
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[MARMAM] EDGEWISE ENVIRONMENTAL Canada-Marine Mammal Observer Course

[Johanna Bosch]

Johanna Bosch (Marketing Assistant) -
johanna.bo...@edgewiseenvironmental.com

*EDGEWISE ENVIRONMENTAL Canada-Marine Mammal Observer Course (BC) *

*LOCATION: *Vancouver, BC

*DATES: *Feb 7 - Feb 28, field component March 13

This course shall focus on mitigation processes of offshore and coastal
programs that may impact marine mammals and other megafauna. Offshore and
coastal activities covered include, but are not limited to, seismic
exploration, renewable energy, dredging, and pile driving. These activities
and associated mitigative actions shall be discussed in relation to the
“Species at Risk Act” and  “Statement of Canadian Practice with Respect to
the Mitigation of Seismic Sound in the Marine Environment”.


Our MMO course theory is delivered online (Feb 7 to Feb 28) and the vessel
practical (March 13) gives students a chance to practise their new field
skills.


*HOW TO APPLY:*


Interested individuals should apply by following this link:
https://www.edgewiseenvironmental.com/product/canada-marine-mammal-observer/


Have questions? Please reach out to us: cour...@edgewiseenvironmental.com


Visit our course calendar to learn more about the courses we offer:
https://www.edgewiseenvironmental.com/events/
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[MARMAM] New publication on alternative brominated flame retardants in harbor seals

[Michelle Berger]

Dear MARMAM community,

My co-authors and I are pleased to share our recent publication:

Berger, M.L.; Shaw, S.D.; Rolsky, C.; Harris, J.H.; Guo, Y.; Kannan, K.
Occurrence and tissue-specific partitioning of alternative brominated flame
retardants in northwest Atlantic harbor seal pups (*Phoca vitulina vitulina*).
Chemosphere 2023;318:137968.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2023.137968.

Brominated flame retardants such as polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs)
have been used for decades until evidence of negative health effects led to
bans in many countries. PBDEs have since been replaced by alternative
legacy compounds or newly developed chemicals. In this study, eight
alternative brominated flame retardants were analyzed in blubber and liver
of harbor seal pups (≤6 months) from the Northwest Atlantic collected
during 2001–2010 to elucidate concentrations, patterns, contamination
trends, potential maternal transfer, and tissue partitioning. All compounds
were detected in liver and blubber tissues with hexabromocyclododecane
(HBCD) isomers and 2-ethylhexyl 2,3,4,5-tetrabromobenzoate (TBB)
predominating. Overall, α-HBCD was the dominant HBCD isomer in both tissues
although the concentrations of γ-HBCD exceeded those of α-HBCD in seven
pups, indicating their mothers may have had alternative dietary patterns or
recent exposure to the commercial mixture. Although it was detected in less
than half of the samples, to our knowledge, this is the first study to
report tetrabromobisphenol A (TBBPA) concentrations in multiple tissues of
a top marine predator. For the brominated components of Firemaster® flame
retardants, TBB concentrations exceeded
bis-(2-ethylhexyl)-tetrabromophthalate (TBPH). This pattern may result from
recent exposure to commercial mixtures in which TBB exceeds TBPH 4:1 or
from differences in perinatal or lactational transfer efficiency of the two
compounds. Between the two tissues, lipid-normalized β-HBCD, γ-HBCD, TBB
and decabromodiphenyl ethane (DBDPE) concentrations were significantly
higher in liver than blubber. This indicates that the bioaccumulation of
these chemicals is not simply related to lipid dynamics but may be linked
to blood proteins. This study demonstrates that harbor seal pups from this
region are contaminated with alternative flame retardants passed to them
via placental or lactational transfer. Given the evidence for negative
health effects of these chemicals, this contamination adds additional
pressure on the first year survival of these young, developing animals.

The article is currently available at:
https://authors.elsevier.com/a/1gWQrAOMA1NFr
or please contact me directly for a PDF of the paper (
mber...@shawinstitute.org).

Take care,
Michelle

-- 
*Michelle Berger*
Associate Scientist
*Shaw Institute*
Blue Hill Research Center
55 Main St, P.O. Box 1652
Blue Hill, Maine
207 374 2135
www.shawinstitute.org
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[MARMAM] Request for Photos - Marine Mammals of the World, Third Edition

[Marc Webber]

Dear Marine Mammal Community,



We are seeking marine mammal images for the 3rd edition of *Marine Mammals
of the World: A Comprehensive Guide to Their Identification*. Authors Tom
Jefferson, Bob Pitman, and I, along with illustrator Uko Gorter, are
planning to launch the book at the SMM Biennial Conference in Perth,
Australia, in 2024.



We are looking for a wide variety of outstanding photographs of common and
rare species to expand our coverage. In addition to showing important field
characteristics, we also want images of unusually marked and colored
animals, known or suspected hybrids, and characteristic and interesting
behaviors. For this new edition, we also want to include drone and aerial
still images of as many species as possible. For rare or extralimital
species, we will also accept images of stranded or beached animals.



Image submission is open until August 2023 and should consist of
low-resolution files preferably linked to Google Drive or Dropbox, etc., or
sent as attachments (up to 20 mb) in an email to me at
marcwebbermmo...@gmail.com. Include relevant data (date, location, any
interesting details). Images selected will need to be sent as
high-resolution files.



Every photographer whose image appears in the book will receive a free
electronic copy of the book, along with a discount code to purchase a hard
copy from the publisher at a 30% discount. Thanks to all of you who
contribute – it's through the generosity and talent of our colleagues that
this book has become, we believe, the best available guide to marine
mammals.



Please contact me with any questions.



Marc Webber

Research Associate

The Marine Mammal Center
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[MARMAM] DOLPHIN RESEARCH INTERNSHIP IN PORTUGAL

[AIMM Internships]

*BACKGROUND: *The Marine Environment Research Association - AIMM, is a
non-profit, non-governmental organization focused on the research and
conservation of marine species, running an ongoing study of cetaceans in
southern Portugal (Algarve). This project aims to obtain baseline
information on species occurrence, behavior, and social structure of the
local cetacean populations in order to obtain scientific data to support
conservation measures and inform marine management policies.

The main species observed are Short-beaked common dolphins (Delphinus
delphis), Bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus), and Harbour porpoises
(Phocoena phocoena), although other species such as Minke whales
(Balaenoptera acutorostrata) and Fin whales (Balaenoptera physalus) can
also be sighted.

AIMM Interns are young, hard-working individuals who are willing to
contribute to the association and support on-going activities, while
experiencing fieldwork at sea, learning data collection and processing
methodologies, and being a part of AIMM's team of researchers and marine
biologists. All team members and participants share accommodation, house
tasks, knowledge and experience in an friendly and multicultural
environment.

Interns have the additional option to enrich their time with AIMM by
beginning or improving their SCUBA skills with a PADI-certified instructor,
hiking, kayaking, surf classes and others.



*WHERE:* Albufeira, Algarve, Portugal



*WHEN:* The field season lasts from 15tg April to 30th November 2023. The
minimum internship attendance is 7 days, preferably starting on a Monday.



*FIELDWORK: *The field trips are conducted in AIMM's research vessel,
Ketos. Fieldwork is dependent on weather conditions. The field days can be
intense, especially in the peak of summer, but are fulfilling and good fun.



The interns will be trained to:

- Conduct on-board surveys of marine species occurrence;

- Record effort tracks on a handheld GPS;

- Access and collect environmental data;

- Collect data on behavior, group size, species, etc.;

- Collect photos to photo-identification, acoustic recording, and
underwater videos;

- Measure water visibility with the Secchi disk methodology;

- Help to collect of drone footage from the marine mammals;

- Land base monitoring of marine mammals.



*DATA ANALYSIS: *This will be conducted on a daily basis and will entail
entering data into established databases and spreadsheets,
photo-identification processing, and preliminary data interpretation.



*INTERNSHIP FEES:* AIMM is a non-profit organization that relies on
donations from our volunteers, partners, and conservation-minded people
like you so that we may continue our important research and education
programs in the Algarve. This internship requires a monetary contribution
which is used to off-set the cost of accommodation and running a
non-profit.

For more information on internship fees for the 2023 season, please
contact: inte...@aimmportugal.org

*Included* in the fee is:

- Accommodation in the research house;

- Transportation to/from the marina;

- Meals (breakfast, lunch, and dinner);

- Fieldwork in the research vessel.



*Not included* in the fee is:

- Transportation to/from Albufeira;

- Meals in restaurants and snacks;

- Free time activities;

- Personal insurance (all participants should have health and/or travel
insurance);

- Personal expenses.



*INTERNS ARE EXPECTED TO:*

- Be above the age of 16;

- Have a mature attitude towards marine mammal research and environment;

- Be autonomous and flexible;

- Be able to live and work in an international team and mainly outdoors at
sea;

- Speak English;

- Participate for minimum 7 days.



*Preference will be given* to those who have:

- Relevant marine mammal field experience

- Working experience on research vessels

- Experience working from dolphin/whale watching platforms

- Experience in photo-identification

- Professional cameras that can be used for photo-ID

- Availability to stay for longer periods of time





*INTERNSHIP APPLICATION: *

You can apply on AIMM website here
*.*

*or *

Send us an e-mail to: inte...@aimmportugal.org, with the subject “*DOLPHIN
RESEARCH INTERNSHIP*” with your CV and motivation letter.

We will send you a confirmation email with the availability and all the
other details.

Applications will be accepted during all season. However, early application
is recommended due to limited vacancies.

The follow links are a shorts videos about the internship in Albufeira.

You get a different perspective and feedback from old participants about
it:





http://bit.ly/aimm-movie 

https://youtu.be/hTJJQPHBdI0

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4zTIEQEsftA





*Contacts*: inte...@aimmportugal.org | www.aimmportugal.org |
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