Beddoe Jemima, Shimeta Jeff, Klaassen Marcel, Robb Kate
School of Science RMIT University Melbourne Victoria Australia.
Australian Marine Mammal Conservation Foundation Hampton East Victoria Australia.
Ecol Evol. 2024 Apr 4;14(4):e11221. doi: 10.1002/ece3.11221. eCollection 2024 Apr.
Bottlenose dolphin () populations, also described as the Burrunan dolphins, consist of a resident population of approximately 150 individuals in Port Phillip Bay (PPB), Victoria. Previous reports indicate distribution across a small southern region of PPB; however, little is known about their full distribution patterns across the entire PPB region. Here, we investigate the spatiotemporal distribution of the Burrunan dolphins across four zones representative of PPB benthic habitats and bathymetry to gain a better understanding of the potential drivers of the population's habitat use. Port Phillip Bay, Victoria, Australia. One hundred and twenty-nine boat-based surveys were undertaken between March 2015 and August 2021, encompassing 181 sightings. Generalised linear models (GLMs) were used to investigate annual, seasonal and zonal variation. We found no variation in sighting frequencies between years. Austral summer and winter had a significantly higher sighting frequency than autumn. We found that Burrunan dolphins utilise the entire bay, further extending the species range, and show a significantly higher number of sightings in the southern zone than in any other zones. Overlaying dolphin sightings with known oceanographic characteristics within PPB, we found bathymetry and benthic habitats were potential drivers for the Burrunan dolphins distribution and habitat use within the bay, with the dolphins significantly favouring the 5-10 and 10-15 m contour depths. These results show a more widespread distribution across the bay than previously documented. We recommend expansion of the current marine protected areas in the north and south of the bay. This study has increased our understanding of the vital habitat for the Burrunan dolphin populations. By providing evidence-based conservation recommendations, we hope to improve and contribute to future research, conservation management plans and effective marine protected areas across PPB for the resident Burrunan dolphin population.
宽吻海豚（也被称为伯伦南海豚）种群，在维多利亚州菲利普港湾（PPB）有大约150只的定居种群。先前的报告表明其分布在PPB南部的一个小区域；然而，对于它们在整个PPB区域的完整分布模式知之甚少。在此，我们调查了伯伦南海豚在代表PPB底栖生境和水深的四个区域的时空分布，以更好地了解该种群栖息地利用的潜在驱动因素。澳大利亚维多利亚州菲利普港湾。在2015年3月至2021年8月期间进行了129次乘船调查，共记录到181次目击。使用广义线性模型（GLMs）来研究年度、季节和区域变化。我们发现各年份之间的目击频率没有变化。澳大利亚的夏季和冬季的目击频率显著高于秋季。我们发现伯伦南海豚利用了整个海湾，进一步扩大了该物种的分布范围，并且在南部区域的目击数量显著高于其他任何区域。将海豚目击情况与PPB内已知的海洋学特征叠加，我们发现水深和底栖生境是伯伦南海豚在海湾内分布和栖息地利用的潜在驱动因素，海豚明显偏爱5 - 10米和10 - 15米的等高线深度。这些结果表明其在海湾的分布比之前记录的更为广泛。我们建议扩大海湾北部和南部现有的海洋保护区。这项研究增进了我们对伯伦南海豚种群重要栖息地的了解。通过提供基于证据的保护建议，我们希望改进并为未来关于PPB常驻伯伦南海豚种群的研究、保护管理计划和有效的海洋保护区做出贡献。
