Whale and Dolphin Conservation
Australia is a world leader in the protection and conservation of whales, both domestically and internationally. The Australian Government is committed to funding research projects to help gain a better understanding of these marine mammals. Australia is leading the world in non lethal research techniques, demonstrating that internationally recognised science can be undertaken without killing whales.
Since its inception in 1996, the Natural Heritage Trust has invested over $3.0 million in research and other activities to promote whale conservation.
The Australian Government is currently funding a number of research projects to find out more about whale populations and trends, migratory pathways and important habitat areas (calving, resting and feeding) for a number of species. Much of this work involves close collaboration with other Australian Government departments, state and territory governments, universities, museums, researchers and conservation groups.
All Australian whale research is conducted to ensure minimum disturbance to the animals. The methods used are among the most advanced in the world and prove that whales do not need to be killed for 'science'.
| Type of whale | Project description | Research method |
|---|---|---|
| blue whales | Distribution and abundance around Victoria and Western Australia | Aerial surveys and satellite tagging |
| southern right whale | Distribution, abundance and population increase rates | Aerial surveys |
| Ecology and life history at Head of the Bight, South Australia | ||
| humpback whales | West coast population survey | Aerial and land-based surveys |
| Genetic survey to determine the extent of mixing between east and west coast populations | Biopsy sampling | |
| minke whales | Estimating unseen minke whales by combining, observations of minke whales with statistical estimates. | Statistical modelling |
| dolphins | Development of models to predict relative population abundance and distribution of in-shore Indo-pacific, humpback and snub fin dolphins | Statistical modelling |
At present it is impossible to estimate the age structure of free-ranging populations where there is no pictorial history documented. New non-lethal methods are being pursued, which focuses on characteristic cell structures known as telomeres.
Telomeres are the DNA structure at the end of chromosomes. Research shows that telomeres get shorter over the life-span of animals indicating they may be useful in estimating the age of individuals in a non-invasive manner. Other work has implicated telomere change as having a role in the evolution of different life-spans of different species. Studies using the analysis of telomeres do not require animals to be killed and dissected in order to improve our scientific knowledge.
This conference brought together stakeholders interested in research, conservation and management of whales and dolphins in an effort to identify gaps in scientific knowledge and determine future research directions and priorities.