PROJECTS

Rough-toothed dolphins are found worldwide and inhabit all major oceans (e.g., Atlantic and Pacific) where NAVAIR and NAVSEA affiliated program offices test for military readiness. NAVAIR and NAVSEA seek information to better understand marine mammal responses to better inform Navy testing and training activities and long-term consequences for the populations. Rough-toothed dolphins (Steno bredanensis) are the most frequently encountered species off Kaua'i at PMRF and the resident population of rough-toothed dolphins off Kauai and Niihau is likely exposed to Navy activities consistently.

The purpose of this project is to conduct a pilot project to test the feasibility and efficacy of deploying high-resolution multi-sensor tags on rough-toothed dolphins at PMRF and determine how the collected data can be used to move toward a better understanding of how NA VAIR and NAVSEA testing activities affect cetacean species, which can inform other Navy testing and training activities. The goal is to provide information on body morphometric measurements, energy expenditure, foraging rates and health (body condition), and opportunistic responses to anthropogenic noise, which can ultimately be used for Population Consequences of Disturbance (PCoD) modelling. 

The proposed project will support the Navy's efforts to:

1. Supplement existing Navy-funded satellite telemetry work on rough-toothed dolphins.
2. Provide non-invasive data collection and confirmation of methodology for required analyses.
3. Generate data that provides critical information on vital rates and cetacean health to inform PCoD models.

The specific objectives to be met for this project are:

1. Deploy high-resolution multi-sensor archival tags (e.g., CATS, DTAG, or similar) on rough-toothed dolphins at PMRF for assessing energy expenditure and foraging rates.
2. Conduct photogrammetry of rough-toothed dolphins at PMRF to measure body morphometrics for body condition scoring.
3. Demonstrate what data and analyses can be conducted with these data with a view toward PCoD analysis.