Species News

The extraordinary beauty and charisma of an all-white mature bull orca, cracking the wild and windy waters of the Russian Far East, is just the tip of the iceberg in terms of appreciating the extraordinary diversity of life here.

The wonders abound: More volcanoes than anywhere on Earth; six different species of salmon; marine bird life in the tens to hundreds of thousands of pairs; multiple species of seals and sea lions and healthy numbers of walruses and sea otters; some 15 species of whales, dolphins and porpoises, and a local population of orcas that has so far revealed three white orcas, including a rare all-white mature male, at least 16 years old. We’ve called him “Iceberg”.

© E Lazareva/FEROP

The explosion of life has allowed our small team of a dozen or so young Russian biologists to do a wide range of pioneer whale research in this area over the past decade — research sponsored by WDCS, the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society and co-funded by Humane Society International, Animal Welfare Institute, Rufford Foundation, among other groups. The orca work, under the banner of the Far East Russia Orca Project (FEROP) was begun in 1999 to learn more about and try to protect orca populations being targeted for aquarium captures. With the exception of two female orcas taken from one of our known pods in 2003, we have been successful. In 2009, we added the Russian Cetacean Habitat Project, with some overlap in team members, to include studies of other whales in the region and to aid efforts toward identifying and zoning critical habitat in the Commander Islands State Biosphere Reserve, the largest marine reserve in Russia. With Alexander M. Burdin from Russia and Hal Sato from Japan, I started the project and have stayed as it’s co-director with Dr. Burdin. I would like to summarize a few of the team’s accomplishments:

• We were the first researchers to photo-identify killer whales in Russian waters and today we have about 1500 individual orcas identified and catalogued, and counting.

• We have explored the social nature of Russian orcas with more than 20 pods in 3 clans in our main study area in Avacha Gulf alone. There are two ecotypes: fish eaters that concentrate on mackerel and salmon, and marine mammal eating transients that feed on minke whales, dolphins, porpoises, seals and sea lions. 95% of these are the fish-eating resident-type orcas.

• We have photo-IDed more than 850 humpback whales on their summer feeding grounds around the Commander and Karaginsky Islands, where some of the same whales return year after year, showing site-fidelity. We have made nearly 30 links to their winter breeding grounds in Japanese waters off Okinawa and the Ogasawara islands.

• We have started the first photo-ID catalogue for the rarely studied Baird’s beaked whale and have had resightings from year to year. This species is hunted by Japanese whalers in Japan’s waters so our study may well prove to have future conservation value.

• Meanwhile, a satellite project by some members of our team has gathered and studied the bones of the Steller’s sea cow which went extinct in 1768, to try to gain more clues into why it went extinct just 27 years after it was found and named by scientist George Wilhelm Steller.

• We have recorded thousands of hours of underwater vocalizations, mainly of orcas. A key part of FEROP research focuses on the nature of the unique dialects of orcas. Moscow State University biologist Dr. Olga Filatova who gained her PhD through FEROP in 2005, is currently first author on an international paper published in March in Animal Behaviour on the evolution of the vocal repertoires, comparing the dialects of orca communities, or populations of the species, across the North Pacific. “Different kinds of sounds are used for different purposes,” says Filatova, “ranging from close-range communication to long-range calls that may function more to keep a pod together.”

The acoustics part of our team around Filatova is now looking for scientific proof that the resident fish-eating orca pods, such as Iceberg’s pod, and the transient marine-mammal-eating orcas, are separate species. “The conclusions will have strong implications for the conservation of the species,” says Filatova. “if they can be shown to be two species, which some scientists think they probably are, then each one will require a separate conservation plan with potentially greater concern and benefits for both species.”

With regard to Iceberg’s pod, we have no genetic data but we are hoping to meet them again in summer 2012 and learn more about the phenomenon of white whales, why they occur, what it means and whether Iceberg is a true albino — perhaps we can catch a glimpse of a pink eye — or “just” one of the most beautiful orcas anyone has ever seen.

© Erich Hoyt 2012, WDCS Senior Research Fellow.

Learn more about the Project and watch the field work of FEROP in 2 parts.

FEROP Part 1:

FEROP Part 2:

Apologies for the gap between postings but we've been out in the field trying to undertake some research of our own on the cetaceans found around the coast of Scotland. But better late than never ... !

The freshwater regions of India are resident to two very different but equally elusive dolphins, the Irrawaddy dolphin (Orcaella brevirostris) and Ganges River dolphin (Platanista gangetica). Over the years, WDCS has been heavily involved in a number of projects focusing on their protection and conservation for the future.

The Chilika lagoon, in Orissa, north-east India, has been the focus of WDCS funded efforts towards conserving Irrawaddy dolphins in India. The lagoon itself is a designated RAMSAR site due to its rich diversity of life, notably its migratory birds and 250 species strong assemblage of fish. However it is the Irrawaddy dolphin that is the lagoon’s flagship species. The population found in the lagoon is thought to be geographically isolated and therefore immediately vulnerable to any threats to their population size, whether big or small. As with all other river dolphin species, impacts from fishing efforts are the major threat. WDCS funded researchers Dipani Sutaria and Coralie D’Lima have been focusing on both ecological research and studies into the human-dolphin interactions that impact on the dolphin population. The project is having success promoting ecotourism activities and surveying the Irrawaddy population fully in order to implement sufficient conservation practices. Local populations hold the dolphins in high regard and gaining their support and co-operation has not been difficult. However, deteriorating habitat quality and increased human disturbances are still serious issues and the population remains endangered.



Alongside the Chilika laggon project, WDCS has also been collaborating with an important project focused on the conservation of the Ganges River dolphin. WDCS is working with researchers at Bhagalpur University in Bihar, in attempts to further the protection of the dolphins in the only protected area they inhabit, the Vikramshila Gangetic Dolphin Sanctuary. It is a 60km stretch of the River Ganges which boasts a high diversity of animal life as well as a relatively high density of the river dolphins. The Ganges River dolphin faces significant threats to their future, on a scale perhaps higher than any other river dolphin.



The river supports vast numbers of economically impoverished people as well as large scale industry involving high levels of boat traffic. Competition with humans for resources, degrading habitat quality and extremely high levels of pollution are all serious threats. To make matters worse, the dolphins are targeted for their meat and oil. WDCS and the Vikramshila Biodiversity Research and Education Centre have been working to ensure the sanctuary is effective in its conservation measures and that they are supported by the proper legislation. A good level of baseline ecological information on the dolphins and their habitats has been collected alongside a variety of education and awareness programmes. The health of the river is essential to both dolphins and humans, as is the health of the dolphins to the river. As such, both dolphins and humans are on the same team and the challenge is to convey fact this to the local populations and authorities. WDCS continues to work towards ensuring that this is achieved.

Continuing with the theme of "river" dolphins, it's now time to learn more about the lesser known finless porpoise (Neophocaena phocaenoides).

The charming finless porpoise is very much a coastal species, predominantly found in salt water areas of the Indo-Pacific region. However, a small and endangered population of the porpoise inhabits the infamous Yangtze River and its tributaries. For this reason we have included the porpoise in the river dolphin series of blogs! Very little is known of the species, as is common with most of the cetaceans covered in this series of blogs, but the plight of the baiji (Yangtze river dolphin) from the Yangtze River has drawn obvious attention towards the oddly named “river pig”.

Much debate has occurred over recent years over the genetic distinction of a number of sub-species of finless porpoise. Many populations are geographically isolated and this has led to the rise of the currently recognised three sub-species. Of which, the Chinese population of freshwater dwelling porpoises is one – Neophocaena phocaenoides asiaeorientalis.

As with other species of porpoise, N. phocaenoides is not known to be overly acrobatic and shies away from boats and human disturbance. The tragedy of the Yangtze River population is that the levels of human disturbance and boat traffic in the region are so high that many individuals now readily approach boats. They have therefore become more vulnerable to the usual suspects of by-catch in fishing gear and direct boat collision. Unfortunately, their ‘cute’ looks and approachable behaviour have also led to the river population being exploited for the aquarium trade. In conjunction with all the same impacts that pushed the baiji to extinction in recent years, this represents some the most irresponsible of practices the aquarium trade takes part in worldwide.



However, the tragic loss of the baiji has spurned more rapid action in conserving the finless porpoise population of the Yangtze River. The Tian-e-Zhou Oxbow Nature Reserve, an area of wetland in the Yangtze basin near Shishou City, was originally intended for the baiji. More recently it has been adopted as a ‘safe haven’ for the finless porpoise in which 28 individuals live. This is an example Chinese conservationists wish to follow in the fight to conserve the river dwelling populations by using other sanctuaries and reserves that were previously set up for the baiji.

The Tian-e-Zhou population is by no means a strong population and with the only other ‘stronghold’ of finless porpoises in China (in Poyang Lake) coming under threat from dredging activities, their future looks bleak. Chinese conservationists have, however, insisted that the population can be saved if sufficient action is taken immediately. Sand dredging in Poyang Lake has provided a quick and sizeable cash injection into the area. Whilst the lake holds a quarter of all finless porpoises found in China, the boats are the primary cause of an extremely high porpoise death toll. If sufficient protection is put in place for the porpoises and the dredging activities are more strictly controlled, the future of the Poyang finless porpoises may well be restored.

As with many other species of cetacean, their future may rely on tourist revenue replacing the income streams created from the impacting practices, such as sand dredging and fishing. This in itself holds many obstacles but WDCS will be at the forefront of ensuring new cetacean watching programmes are conducted responsibly and to the benefit of the animals the world over.

Despite its appearance, the franciscana (Pontoporia blainvillei) cannot claim to be a true river dolphin. It typically inhabits shallow salt water areas and is distributed from the coastal waters of south-east Brazil, down to the central Argentinean region. Their long, slender beaks (at a whopping 15% of their body length, it is proportionally the longest of all cetaceans), broad flippers and rounded foreheads suggest a close relationship to all other river dolphins found in South America. However, they are classified as an entirely different family, the Pontoporiidae. One of the smaller species of cetaceans, they are characteristically inconspicuous and hard to spot in the wild due to their avoidance of boats and un-acrobatic tendencies. It is not often that cetaceans are referred to as prey species, but the franciscana has been known to be on the menu for orcas and a variety of shark species.

In keeping in common with the true river dolphins covered in this series of blogs, the future of the franciscana is under threat. Classified as ‘Vulnerable’ on the IUCN Red List, the overall population is decreasing rapidly, due mainly to by-catch in fishing gear. Franciscana populations are suffering additional pressure from reduced fish stocks as fishing fleets target many of the species they rely on for food. Further impacts on population size come also from ingesting foreign objects (predominantly from fishing gear), and chemical pollution. Some population estimates have been made and can appear relatively high. However, it is predicted that there has been at least a 30% reduction in population size over the past 3 generations (36 years) in a decline that has not slowed. The sheer scale of accidental by-catch is so high in most areas, that it is un-sustainable on its own merit. When combined with the other threats facing the franciscana, it is not hard to see the reasons for such a decline.



In response to this decline, a variety of organisations (both governmental and non-governmental) have compiled an action plan for the fraciscana dolphins residing in Brazilian waters. The Chico Mendes Institute for Biological Conservation drew up the final plans to halt the fall in population numbers over a 5 year period, finishing in 2015. The plan approaches the conservation of the franciscana on all fronts. Measures will be introduced to minimise the impacts of fishing and other practices on the dolphins and a large scale effort to understand the population structure will be implemented. Alongside this, the identity of the dolphins will be promoted throughout the regions of Brazil in which they occur and communication of their conservation will be improved. The hope is that political and international co-operation towards conserving the franciscana will significantly improve over the 5 years.

Last year WDCS answered an emergency call for help from river dolphin experts in Bolivia – Enzo Aliaga-Rossel and Mariana Escobar. They reported on a group of Bolivian river dolphins that had become hopelessly trapped in a section of river cut off from the main river during falling water levels and increasing sedimentation.

Bolivian river dolphins are special and vulnerable – they are the only cetaceans found in Bolivia which is a land-locked country in central South America. WDCS responded immediately to help.

The dolphins were trapped in an area where water levels would continue to fall and fish supplies would dwindle. After some careful research and consideration the only possible solution was to relocate the dolphins back into the main river. This was complicated and risky as it meant catching and moving the dolphins overland.

Our partners, Enzo and Maria went on to organize a team, which carried out an exceptional and pioneering rescue. 20 Bolivian dolphins were safely moved via boat and truck to the main river. The group included juveniles and even a newborn calf which was released with its mother. The dolphins were each treated with a great deal of respect and care. Their bodies were protected from harm using mattresses and also wet sheets to keep the sun of them and their temperature down.



Follow up monitoring in the area is now planned to ensure the long term success of the rescue.

River dolphins do spread out into the flooded forest and use lakes and smaller tributaries which are available to them in the high water season. As the water falls the dolphins naturally make their way back to the deeper main river channels. There is a genuine concern that incidents like this one in Bolivia could become more widespread in the Amazon if climate change impacts on the high and low water cycle. This time the dolphins were very fortunate that there was expertise and an incredible commitment to helping them from Enzo, Maria and WDCS.