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Dolphin-Watching Boats Affect Whistle Frequency Modulation in Bottlenose Dolphins
Frontiers in Marine Science ( IF 3.7 ) Pub Date : 2021-01-26 , DOI: 10.3389/fmars.2021.618420
Betzi Perez-Ortega , Rebecca Daw , Brennan Paradee , Emma Gimbrere , Laura J. May-Collado

Bottlenose dolphins’ whistles are key in social communication, conveying information about conspecifics and the environment. Therefore, their study can help to infer habitat use and identify areas of concern due to human activities. Here we studied the whistles of bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) in two sites of the archipelago of Bocas del Toro, Panama, that contrast in boat traffic. Almirante Bay is a site dominated by taxi-boats and Dolphin Bay is a major location for boat-based dolphin watching. Recordings were made using bottom-mounted hydrophones and from the research boat using an over-the-side hydrophone and a broadband recording system. A total recording effort time of 1,726 h was analyzed. Our results show significant differences in boat detection between sites, and a higher number of whistles detected per minute in the site with tour-boat traffic. Furthermore, whistle modulation accounted for most of the differences between sites, boat presence, and whistle types. Dolphin whistle modulation is thought to be a potential indicator of emotional states including danger, alertness, and stress. In this study, dolphin signature whistle modulation increased significantly with boat presence in both sites but changes in modulation were greater in Dolphin Bay where tour-boats directly and sometimes aggressively interact with the animals. These results support a potential association between whistle modulation and stress (or alertness). These findings indicate that if tour-boat captains behave more like taxi-boat captains by e.g., reducing the distance of approach and contact time during dolphin interactions, dolphin communication, and emotional state would be less disrupted. These measures are implemented in the national guidelines for whale-watching and are known to tour-boat operators. The key to protecting these dolphins is in finding ways to effectively enforce these operator guidelines.



中文翻译:

观海豚船影响宽吻海豚的口哨频率调制

宽吻海豚的哨声是社交交流中的关键,传达有关物种和环境的信息。因此,他们的研究可以帮助推断栖息地的使用并确定人类活动引起的关注领域。在这里,我们研究了宽吻海豚的哨声(s藜)位于巴拿马Bocas del Toro群岛的两个地点,这与船流量形成了鲜明的对比。海军上将湾(Almirante Bay)是一个以出租车为主的站点,而海豚湾(Dolphin Bay)是观看海豚的主要地点。使用底部安装的水听器进行录制,而研究船则使用侧面水听器和宽带录音系统进行录制。分析的总记录工作时间为1,726小时。我们的结果表明,站点之间的船检测存在显着差异,并且在具有游览船流量的站点中,每分钟检测到的哨声数量更高。此外,哨声调制是造成站点,船只存在和哨声类型之间的大部分差异的原因。海豚口哨调制被认为是情绪状态的潜在指标,包括危险,机敏和压力。在这项研究中,在两个站点中,海豚标志性哨声的调节都随着船的存在而显着增加,但在海豚湾中,调节的变化更大,那里的游船直接并有时与动物互动。这些结果支持口哨调制与压力(或警觉性)之间的潜在关联。这些发现表明,如果通过减少海豚互动,海豚交流和情绪状态下的进近距离和接触时间,游览船的船长的行为更像出租车船的船长,则干扰会更少。这些措施已在国家观鲸准则中实施,并为游船经营者所熟知。保护这些海豚的关键在于寻找有效执行这些操作指南的方法。

更新日期:2021-02-17
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