Dolphin Spotting on the Dunbar Castle II....

Last week was an eventful week for the Sea Watch Volunteers! On Tuesday, we had our very first line transect survey of the season on the Dunbar Castle II. Despite some choppy seas and rainy weather we had a very successful survey. We gathered lots of useful data and in total sighted 13 dolphins, including 3 calves which caused a photographing frenzy! Two of the dolphins spotted included Bond and Chris, both of whom are old friends of Sea Watch and members of the Adopt a Dolphin scheme.

Later in the week Hanna, a former member of the Sea Watch Foundation, gave a very interesting talk on the C-CATS Project, in which she is now involved. C-CATS or the Cardigan bay Cetacean Acoustic Tracking Study is a unique approach to acoustic monitoring that will be the first of it's kind to be conducted. Hanna is part of an interdisciplinary team of research scientists working in collaboration with the German Oceanographic museum and the University of Wales, Bangor, to conduct a unique acoustic cetacean monitoring project utilising both passive acoustic monitoring systems and a mobile hydrophone array to track cetacean movements through the water column. This project will be conducted in the waters off target rock, New Quay over the next few months. 

For more information on the C-CATS project or to follow the C-CAT blog, check out: http://www.ccats-ccats.blogspot.co.uk/ 

Sea Watch Team

The Beginning, Sea Watch 2012…

The start of the season is upon us, and the new Sea Watch volunteers are in training!

           

Luckily (for this time of year!) the weather has been good so far, with minimal rain meaning Cardigan Bay is looking rather beautiful in the spring sunshine. Training has been underway; learning how the office works, about surveying techniques, and of course the all important land watches, where Sea Watch volunteers perch on the harbour wall scanning the bay for marine mammals, in particular the bottlenose dolphin. My first land watch, I have to say was a little chilly and sadly unsuccessful in spotting any marine mammals. However, second time round the volunteers spotted 4 bottlenose dolphins, including one calf! The volunteers held out in the last 5 minutes of the watch, despite the rain to ensure the data was viable. Fingers crossed they appear on my next land watch!

           

So what’s planned for the rest of the season I hear you ask….? Well hopefully this summer will see some sunshine and bring lots of dolphins to Cardigan Bay! Sea Watch volunteers will be hanging around on New Quay’s sea wall marine mammal watching and answering any questions you might have, as well as participating in boat surveys collecting bottlenose dolphin data. This years National Whale and Dolphin Watch Campaign will be the 27-29^th July, as part of this, Sea Watch will be providing lots of information, games and activities on the New Quay pier!

Sea Watch Team

Reluctant Goodbyes

When the phrase “6 weeks” was mentioned the time seemed to stretch before us, but as all good things must come to an end it has crept upon us and soon our goodbyes must be said. Those first few days seemed a very daunting prospect to the five new volunteers due to the sheer number of tasks ahead. However, we couldn’t have asked for a better start as during our first week the weather was fantastically calm so our first few days consisted of learning the ropes on two boat trips as well as office training. Being thrown in at the deep end did have its advantages though – the sightings of bottlenose dolphins and harbour porpoises were absolutely worth the hours spent surveying Cardigan Bay. To be honest, that original excitement of a cetacean sighting hasn’t decreased one iota!

 

After the exciting first week, it settled down into regular routines of important office-based tasks (sightings, data recording and entry, photo ID matching, and public awareness responsibilities), land-watches and boat-based surveys when the weather was calm. With all of these jobs to keep us busy it really is no wonder that the time has gone so swiftly. The age-old saying “Time flies when you’re having fun” is definitely true in this case.

With the end of season tasks beginning in earnest one can’t help feeling that the normally cheeky office atmosphere has gradually developed an edge of sadness. However, the office is still as busy as ever as all of the jobs are being completed and the office is undergoing a frenzied cleaning operation which will leave it sparkling for the next group of lucky Sea Watch volunteers. 

 

The last 6 weeks working as a research volunteer have been one of the best experiences for all of us. Favourite parts include the friendly and helpful atmosphere in the office, learning all about the work Sea Watch undertakes and becoming part of it, spending time with the other volunteers and of course spotting the cetaceans (especially the calves and newborns) on survey. 

If these experiences sound like something that you would be interested in then please visit our research volunteer page to find out more details!

By Ollie (volunteer)

Boats, behave! A review of the Marine Code of Conduct

Sea Watch seeks to educate and inform the public about various aspects of marine mammal conservation in the UK. Read on for an explanation of one of these topics, the Marine Code of Conduct.

 

Because of the magnificent wildlife that is found within the UK waters, an increasing number of wildlife boat tours are being offered and the public is taking advantage of these opportunities. This may not seem like a big problem, for why shouldn’t we go and watch the wildlife that is on our door step? However, boats can cause disturbances to marine mammals in addition to other threats they face, like water pollution and accidental capture in fishing nets.

Injures that are caused by boats can be fatal to marine mammals. Boats can cause trauma to marine mammals by accidentally bumping into them, causing head injuries, which can lead to internal bleeding. Any boat that is powered by a propeller can cause serious injuries to marine mammals by causing deep cuts that are unlikely to heal, like the one seen in the photo below.

Over the years there has been an increase in the number of marine mammal strandings on beaches in the UK and one of the main reasons for the strandings is trauma, usually caused by boats.

Noise from boats can also cause stress to the animals as well as disturb the frequencies that they use to carry out daily activities. Dolphins, porpoises, and whales use sound for locating and communicating with one other as well as for finding food and detecting predators. When the noise of a propeller blade interrupts this frequency then it can cause stress to the animals, especially pregnant mothers or those with young calves.

So, is there a way to stop harm or disturbance to marine mammals? Fortunately there is a Marine Code of Conduct in place, which is there to inform people about the safest and best way to watch or interact with marine wildlife and hopefully help minimise any disturbances.

Some of the rules included in the code are:

• If you sight dolphins at a distance, continue forward at a steady speed, slowing to 6 knots or less when they are within 1km
• Do not approach or steer directly towards dolphins; let them approach you
• If you see dolphins, do not make sudden changes in speed or course
• Do not attempt to touch, feed or swim with them
• Take extra care to avoid disturbing animals with young
• Avoid any unnecessary noise near the animals
• Do not stay longer than 15 minutes within 300m of the animals

For more information please see the Marine Code of Conduct page on our website. The code of conduct applies to all vessels including motorboats, yachts and even kayaks and canoes.

Signs like this help educate the public and boat operators about the code of conduct. 

If you go on a wildlife boat tour, you can look out for the WiSe Scheme sticker to make sure that your tour is sticking to the code. This means that the crew on the boat are aware of the code and have been given training in how best to interact with the marine wildlife.

There is no reason why boats and dolphins should not be able to co-exist if care is taken to observe the code of conduct.

By Abby (volunteer)

Sunfish!

Thursday 15th September we began our second line transect survey of the last period. The Dunbar Castle II left New Quay harbour bright and early at 8.30 a.m. On our way to the first transect point, a sunfish was spotted floating just beneath the surface, its fin protruding from the waves.

Sunfish (Mola mola) are found in both tropical and temperate waters and are usually seen just below the water's surface basking in the sun. They can reach up to approximately 4 meters vertically and 3 meters across, and are the heaviest of all the bony fish.

Once on the transect line, the independent observers took their places in addition to the primary observers and the search began.

Three pairs of harbour porpoises were sighted during the morning and 9 grey seals throughout the day, inquisitively watching us pass them by.

Bottlenose dolphins however were not observed until much later in the afternoon, with the first encounter taking place at 3.38 p.m. Three adults, three juveniles and one calf were recorded, and photos were taken for ID purposes. It wasn't until we started to return home after completing the transect survey that we had our second encounter of three adult bottlenose dolphins at 6.34 p.m., within sight of the New Quay harbour.

An eventful weekend for the annual Cetacean Survey Training Course in New Quay

This past weekend, Sea Watch Foundation held its annual training course, where members of the public could attend lectures and gain fieldwork experience in cetacean research. Lectures covered topics such as the marine mammals found in UK waters, how data is collected, and the importance of the Sea Watch sightings network for understanding the distribution, behaviour and habitat use of cetaceans as well as implementing and maintaining Special Areas of Conservation.

Trainees joined us first thing on Saturday morning, ready for the weekend ahead. After initial introductions, the trainees were launched into the amazing world of marine mammals, learning how to identify them from their fin type, body size and other features. Survey methods that Sea Watch uses were also covered, as well as the use of underwater acoustic monitoring. 

Land watches from Birds' Rock and boat trips in Cardigan Bay were also conducted on both Saturday and Sunday so that the trainees could put into practice the techniques that were learnt during the lectures. Observers took turns filling out the effort and sightings recording forms, which provide valuable data.

The weather had been pretty dire over the weekend, but we were fortunate to still see dolphins on the land watches as well as the boat surveys, despite the poor sea state.

There was a mix of apprehension due to the weather conditions and excitement at the prospect of what we might see on the second boat trip of the weekend. The trainees and Sea Watch volunteers and staff boarded our survey vessel and prepared the equipment and observers for our search. Upon leaving New Quay harbour the conditions were really not favourable; the swell reached over one metre and the sea state left much to be desired. 

However, approximately fifteen minutes into the survey the observers spotted a group of seven bottlenose dolphins, one of which was a newborn calf. Thirty metres off the bow a commotion ensued and a small body was seen being flung into the air amongst some of the adult dolphins. Initially it was thought to be a porpoise that was being attacked, but after multiple observations it was confirmed to be the newborn calf. Looking back through photos of the incident and comparing them to individuals in our photo ID catalogue, Sea Watch staff concluded that the dolphin responsible for the calf’s aerial activity was quite possibly its own mother. 

The reasoning for this behaviour is not clear, but Peter Evans, Sea Watch director, suspected it was a form of scolding, perhaps to ensure the infant did not come too close to either a hostile male dolphin or to the survey vessel. Another possible explanation is that the behaviour was just playful. The calf luckily was seen swimming very closely alongside its mother from that point onwards, suggesting that the calf was not injured badly. The spectacular event was also witnessed by a volunteer and guest conducting a landwatch from the cliff tops of New Quay and from the harbour wall.  It was an occurrence rarely seen and one that will certainly be remembered by all of the trainees and Sea Watch staff.

You can read more about the encounter here in our news piece.

Overall, the training weekend was a busy, information-packed experience, but was thoroughly enjoyed by all those who attended.

By Kate (volunteer)

Bad weather and long days at the office for new Sea Watch volunteers!

The Sea Watch team in New Quay recently welcomed five new volunteers for our last period of the research season. Read on to find out what they've been up to so far!

In the first week as the newbies at Sea Watch, the volunteers experienced a week of fantastic calm weather resulting in two boat trips and a number of bottlenose dolphin and harbour porpoise sightings. Thrown in at the deep end, the five newbies participated in a 12 hour long line transect survey of the northern SAC from Aberystwyth. The day was a steep learning curve with observation and effort recordings as well as a large number of sightings and ample photo ID opportunities.

The fantastic weather resulted in excellent sightings from both land- and boat-based surveys, however, this week has started with heavy rain, strong winds and a dull atmosphere here at Sea Watch Cymru!

So what do the Sea Watch volunteers do when we can't actually observe the marine mammals in question? Office work!!

After a week of exciting sightings and boat trips we are now faced with the dreaded paperwork side of marine mammal research… And it's not so bad! After receiving training on sightings, data recording and entry, and photo ID matching, as well as a string of public and scientific correspondences, the volunteers have set up camp in the office and are cracking on with a variety of computer based entries – which is all an intricate part of Sea Watch's work providing up to date public and scientific data on the semi-permanent bottlenose dolphin residents of Cardigan Bay.

  

Surely a little bad weather doesn’t stop a true scientist collecting data; it’s only a little light rain and wind, right?! Unfortunately in the field of marine mammal research observation conditions are of utmost importance dictating sightings opportunities and affecting accurate interpretation of numbers and individuals.

While undertaking observation efforts, we record a variety of factors including sea state (Beaufort scale and swell presence), precipitation and visibility; the more favorable these conditions are the more likely a sightings opportunity will arise.

 

 

Sea state measures the condition of sea surface activity in respect to wind waves and swells. Here at Cardigan Bay ideal observation states range from 0 (glassy and calm) to 4 (longer waves and many white caps). After 4, observation of surfacing marine mammals is hindered to the point of unidentifiable fins and confusion with white cap occurrences.

See the difference between observing dolphins in excellent sea state...

 

...and in not-so-good sea state!

 
Swell is determined by small swell height (<1m) to larger swells (>2m) with increasing height detrimentally affecting the identification of marine mammals. Visibility also affects sightings opportunity as visibility of only 1-5 km may result in the identification of close range marine mammals but not individuals out of range, resulting in inaccuracies in data collection.

Public awareness is another one of the main activities undertaken by the volunteers; raising awareness of the cetaceans occurring in the area as well as other marine mammals gets the public involved and promotes the conservation efforts of Sea Watch. This is a great opportunity to promote our work as well as get kids and grown-ups alike involved in raising funds and enjoying the work Sea Watch does.

Sadly with the onset of cold wind and rain we see the departure of our target audiences from the pier in search of dolphins to the warm dry pubs of New Quay in search of a hot cocoa!

So with poor weather conditions, even raising awareness of Sea Watches activities takes a back seat alongside the practical observations. And looking outside at the miserable view…office work seems like a bit of treat right now!!

By Siobhan (volunteer)