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Conservation Status of Tropical Inshore Dolphins

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Conservation Status of Tropical Inshore Dolphins Conservation Status of Tropical Inshore Dolphins Simon J Allen A15 – Conservation Status of Tropical Inshore Dolphins June 2021 Milestone 4 – Research Plan v6 (2020) Enquiries should be addressed to: Dr. Simon J. Allen [email protected] Preferred Citation Allen, Simon J. (2021). Conservation Status of Tropical Inshore Dolphins. Final Report to the National Environmental Science Program, Marine Biodiversity Hub. University of Western Australia. Copyright This report is licensed by the University of Tasmania for use under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 Australia Licence. For licence conditions, see https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Acknowledgement This work was undertaken for the Marine Biodiversity Hub, a collaborative partnership supported through funding from the Australian Government’s National Environmental Science Program (NESP). NESP Marine Biodiversity Hub partners include the University of Tasmania; CSIRO, Geoscience Australia, Australian Institute of Marine Science, Museums Victoria, Charles Darwin University, the University of Western Australia, Integrated Marine Observing System, NSW Office of Environment and Heritage, NSW Department of Primary Industries. Important Disclaimer The NESP Marine Biodiversity Hub advises that the information contained in this publication comprises general statements based on scientific research. The reader is advised and needs to be aware that such information may be incomplete or unable to be used in any specific situation. No reliance or actions must therefore be made on that information without seeking prior expert professional, scientific and technical advice. To the extent permitted by law, the NESP Marine Biodiversity Hub (including its host organisation, employees, partners and consultants) excludes all liability to any person for any consequences, including but not limited to all losses, damages, costs, expenses and any other compensation, arising directly or indirectly from using this publication (in part or in whole) and any information or material contained in it. Contents EXECUTIVE SUMMARY .............................................................................................. 1 1. BACKGROUND .................................................................................................. 2 1.1 Aims .......................................................................................................................... 2 2. SPECIES INFORMATION ................................................................................... 3 2.1 Australian humpback dolphin .................................................................................... 3 2.1.1 Taxonomic status .................................................................................................. 3 2.1.2 Australian distribution ............................................................................................ 4 2.1.3 Abundance and trends .......................................................................................... 4 2.1.4 Habitat use ............................................................................................................ 5 2.1.5 Social structure ..................................................................................................... 6 2.1.6 Population structure .............................................................................................. 7 2.1.7 Life history characteristics ..................................................................................... 7 2.1.8 Behaviour .............................................................................................................. 7 2.2 Australian snubfin dolphin ......................................................................................... 8 2.2.1 Taxonomic status .................................................................................................. 8 2.2.2 Australian distribution ............................................................................................ 8 2.2.3 Abundance and trends .......................................................................................... 9 2.2.4 Habitat use ............................................................................................................ 9 2.2.5 Social structure ................................................................................................... 10 2.2.6 Population structure ............................................................................................ 11 2.2.7 Life history characteristics ................................................................................... 11 2.2.8 Behaviour ............................................................................................................ 12 2.3 Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphin ............................................................................... 12 2.3.1 Taxonomic status ................................................................................................ 12 2.3.2 Australian distribution .......................................................................................... 13 2.3.3 Abundance and trends ........................................................................................ 13 2.3.4 Habitat use .......................................................................................................... 14 2.3.5 Social structure ................................................................................................... 15 2.3.6 Population structure ............................................................................................ 16 2.3.7 Life history characteristics ................................................................................... 16 2.3.8 Behaviour ............................................................................................................ 17 2.4 Spinner dolphin ....................................................................................................... 18 2.4.1 Taxonomic status ................................................................................................ 18 2.4.2 Australian distribution .......................................................................................... 18 2.4.3 Abundance, trends and behaviour ...................................................................... 19 3. THREATS ......................................................................................................... 21 3.1 Habitat loss and degradation through coastal development ................................... 22 3.2 Disturbance from increasing shipping and boating activity ..................................... 23 3.3 Underwater noise .................................................................................................... 23 3.4 Wildlife tourism ........................................................................................................ 23 3.5 Depletion of food resources .................................................................................... 24 3.6 Catchment run-off (including contaminants) ........................................................... 25 3.7 Bycatch in fishing gear and shark nets ................................................................... 26 3.8 Climate change and extreme weather events ........................................................ 27 4. CONSERVATION STATUS .............................................................................. 28 4.1 Background ................................................................................................................. 28 4.2 International and national listings ................................................................................ 29 4.3 Criteria for listing under the EPBC Act ........................................................................ 29 4.4 Tropical inshore dolphin cultural importance .............................................................. 31 4.5 Summary of research and conservation objectives and actions ................................. 32 REFERENCES ........................................................................................................... 34 List of Figures Figure 1: An Australian humpback dolphin in tropical inshore waters. ................................................... 3 Figure 2: Humpback dolphin distribution (from IUCN Red List; Parra et al., 2017). ............................... 4 Figure 3: A group of humpback dolphins travels by the industrialised coastline of Port Hedland, WA. 6 Figure 4: (i) Adult male humpback dolphin allies, showing characteristic loss of dorsal fin pigment (Brown et al., 2016), and (ii) an adult male carrying a large marine sponge toward a female. ....... 7 Figure 5: An Australian snubfin dolphin in tropical inshore waters.......................................................... 8 Figure 6: Snubfin dolphin distribution (from IUCN Red List; Parra, Cagnazzi and Beasley, 2018). ....... 8 Figure 7: A trio of snubfin dolphins associating in Cygnet Bay, WA. .................................................... 10 Figure 8: (i) Snubfin-humpback dolphin hybrid; (ii) snubfin dolphins foraging in Roebuck Bay, WA. ... 11 Figure 9: An Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphin in tropical inshore waters. ............................................... 12 Figure 10: Bottlenose dolphin distribution (from Braulik et al., 2019).* ................................................. 13 Figure 11: Three second-order male alliances with female consorts in Shark Bay, WA. ....................
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