In collaboration between Bayworld, the South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity (SAIAB) and South African Environmental Observation Network (SAEON), expert researcher, Dr Stephanie Plön has embarked on a three year project that investigates the distribution of cetaceans in Algoa Bay.
In collaboration between Bayworld, the South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity (SAIAB) and South African Environmental Observation Network (SAEON), expert researcher, Dr Stephanie Plön has embarked on a three year project that investigates the distribution of cetaceans in Algoa Bay.
The project consists of a survey of marine mammals such as dolphins and whales to determine which areas are important for them, such as feeding and breeding grounds. Her expertise in cetaceans fills a niche in SAIAB’s aquatic biodiversity research mandate.
Comparatively little is known about the ecology and biology of these animals. Dolphins are popular icons of the marine environment and people think they know about them through observation and training in captivity, but scientifically we know relatively little and Plön’s work is the first survey of its kind to be conducted in Algoa Bay. Bayworld has been home to captive dolphins for years and the collaboration between SAIAB, SAEON and Bayworld is a welcome development in marine research in Algoa Bay and the Eastern Cape.
Plön runs an annual course on cetaceans at Bayworld for post graduate students in Zoology from Rhodes University and NMMU. The course is an important aspect of the students’ marine biology studies.
One of the attendees was Poogendri Reddy, molecular laboratory assistant at SAIAB. Registered for Zoology Honours at Rhodes University, Poogy came to SAIAB through the Department of Science and Technology’s internship programme for young scientists. The students learned about cetacean research in Algoa Bay – not just the biology, but as much as could be covered about as many different aspects of cetacean research in two days. According to Poogy the dissection practical was a highlight – definitely not a common experience. Another little known fact is that dolphins sleep by shutting down one half of their brain at a time so they are still able to breathe and remain buoyant. Breathing for them is a controlled action, not a reflex as in humans. They need to sleep to recharge and oxygenate their brains, but also need to keep swimming and stay alert to danger.
Bayworld will be hosting the second of its series of lectures focusing on life in Algoa Bay on Wednesday, 28 October – Whales and dolphins of the Bay – 50 years of research at the PE Museum. This programme will include a variety of updates on whale and dolphin research currently underway off our shores.
“Due to the rapid development in Nelson Mandela Bay, this kind of information is vital. There has, however, never been such a survey done and we don’t know how all these developments will affect the animals or where potential areas of conflict between humans and animals are,” says Plön, “We are essentially establishing a baseline upon which to measure changes in the bay in the future.”
