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  Elding 
Reykjavík Whale Watching

Hvalaskoðun Reykjavik

Tel: +(354) 555 3565
 Fax: +(354)554 7420

Mail us on:
nfo@elding.is

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Gay friendly
 

 

RESEARCH ON BOARD

Minke whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata) and white-beaked dolphin (Lagenorhynchus albirostris) feeding behaviour in Faxaflói, South-west Iceland

 

 

 

  

RESEARCH PROJECT AIMS TO:

- TO INVESTIGATE THE DISTRIBUTION OF MINKE WHALES AND WHITE-BEAKED DOLPHINS IN ASSOCIATION WITH UNDERLYING ENVIRONMENTAL VARIABLES SUCH AS:

1. BATHYMETRY: DEPTH, SLOPE AND ASPECT
2. SEDIMENT TYPE
3. WATER TEMPERATURE
4. PRIMARY PRODUCTIVITY

-  TO ANALYSE FEEDING BEHAVIOUR OF MINKE WHALES AND DATA COLLECTED ON ASSOCIATED SEABIRD SPECIES, SUCH AS:

1.FULMARS (Fulmarus glacialis)
2.KITTIWAKE (Rissa tridactyla)
3.GANNET (Sula bassana)
4.PUFFIN (Puffinus puffinus)
5. ARTIC TERN (Sterna artica)
5.AUK MEMBERS: RAZORBILLS AND GUILLEMOTS
6. SKUAS (artic and great)

-  THE IDEA IS TO USE THE BIRDS DATA TO DETERMINE THE NUMBER OF ENCOUNTER IN WHICH BIRDS WERE PRESENT, THE RELATIVE PROPORTION OF EACH BIRDS SPECIES BY MONTH AND THE ASSOCIATED BEHAVIOUR OF THE WHALES

- WE INVESTIGATE AS WELL THE TENDENCY OF WHALES TO SPECIALIZEIN PARTICULAR FEEDING TECHNIQUE: FEEDING WITH BIRDS OR AGGREGATING PREY USING LUNGING AND BUBBLE BLOWING (References: Robinson and Tetley, 2007; Tetley, 2004; Gill et al., 2000)

A) PRESENCE OF BIRDS (NUMBER, SPECIES AND BEHAVIOUR) WITHOUT WHALES AROUND. FISH FINDER PICTURES TO CONFIRM OR NOT THE PRESENCE OF FISH IN THE AREA

B) PRESENCE OF BIRDS (NUMBER, SPECIES AND BEHAVIOUR) WITH WHALES AROUND (NUMBER, BEHAVIOUR, DISTANCE FROM FLOCKS). FISH FINDER PICTURES TAKEN TO CHECK PRESENCE OF FISH

-  TO RECOGNIZE INDIVIDUAL MINKE WHALES, WHITE-BEKAED DOLPHINS, AND HUMPBACK WHALES WITH PHOTOGRAPHS, USING:

        NIKON D70 WITH 70-300 mm ZOOM LENSES
CANON DEOS 400 WITH 70-300 mm ZOOM LENSES
NIKON D40 WITH 55-200 mm ZOOM LENSES


- TO STUDY THE BREATHING PATTERNS AS AN INDICATOR OF TWO DISTINCT BEHAVIOURAL STATES:

WIDE RANGE BEHAVIOUR, TRAVELLING
NARROW RANGE BEHAVIOUR, FEEDING

Read more about the research project here

Here you can see Chiara's presentation of the project for the Festival of the Sea.