Supported Projects
Since 2008 ASCOBANS Parties have enabled the Secretariat to support some research and conservation projects from savings made on the previous year’s budget and from a grant kindly made available by the United Nations Environment Programme.
Ongoing Projects
Effects of contaminants on reproduction, Phase II
Sinéad Murphy / University of St. Andrews
Activities to be carried out under the funding agreement include:
- Analysis of histological slides processed during Phase I of suspected abnormalities in D. delphis ovaries
- Detailed analysis of all additional available P. phocoena ovarian material with corresponding contaminant data. Laboratory analysis includes gross examination of gonads, sectioning of ovaries, counting all corpora scars, and where required histological analysis of corpora scars
- Assessment of reproductive abnormalities in all P. Phocoena ovaries. Laboratory work will include gross and histopathological analysis of ovarian material
- Where data gaps exist, analysis of teeth samples from P. Phocoena for age determination
- Statistical analysis will be undertaken incorporating age, reproductive, contaminant, nutritional and health status data. This is order to assess the indirect effects of contaminants on reproductive activity in female P. phocoena. Further additional analysis will assess the prevalence of abnormalities in female D. delphis and P. phocoena.
Feasibility study on the creation of a web-accessed strandings database covering Agreement Party and Range States within the ASCOBANS region
Rob Deaville / Zoological Society of London
Under the funding agreement, a meeting with potential collaborating partner networks and other stakeholders will be held to:
- Establish common areas of data held by each network
- Establish current methods of data archive and dissemination
- Agree a defined list of fields for a potential centralised database
- Agree a process and outline timetable for the production of the potential centralised database
Understanding harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) and fisheries interactions in the north-west Iberian Peninsula
Fiona Read / University of Aberdeen
Activities to be carried out under the funding agreement include:
- Age determination by counting growth layer groups in the dentine. Age data will be used to construct life tables and thus estimate mortality rate.
- Stomach content analysis and comparison with fishery catch data to determine the potential for competition between cetaceans and fisheries e.g. catch composition, minimum landing size and geographical overlap.
- Determination of individual reproductive status and history, which together with age data will be used to construct maturity ogives (to establish age and size at sexual maturity), and determine the pregnancy rate and the annual reproductive cycle.
- Statistical analysis of trends in life history parameters to detect any strong trends in life history parameters over time, permitting inferences about population status. Comparison with equivalent data for other populations (notably for Scotland) for better interpretation of results.
Distribution and relative abundance of harbour porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) over Dogger Bank and surrounding waters, Southern North Sea
Marine Conservation Research International
Activities to be carried out under the funding agreement include:
- Offer training course in planning, set-up, data collection and analysis to nominated participants in vessel-based survey
- Coordinate vessel surveys with aerial survey efforts where logistically possible
- Data analysis and preparation of reports
Pollutant exposure in coastal top predators: assessing current levels of exposure and toxic effects
Paul Jepson / Zoological Society of London
Activities to be carried out under the funding agreement include:
- Determine and analyse existing pollutant exposure data for PCBs and organochlorine pesticide levels within the ASCOBANS range.
- Compare the levels of PCBs in bottlenose dolphins and killer whales with levels of PCBs in healthy and diseased harbour porpoises in UK waters (Jepson et al 2005; Hall et al 2006) and to a proposed threshold of toxicity for total PCBs of 17mg/kg lipid weight (Kannan et al 2000). PCB levels will also be compared with those associated with reproductive impairment in bottlenose dolphin studies in the US (e.g. Schwacke et al 2002).
- Using data from UK-stranded harbour porpoises, generate the first dose-response curve for risk assessments of lethal effects of PCBs (i.e. infectious disease mortality) in exposed populations using empirical cetacean data.
- Undertake a risk assessment for the toxic effects of PCB exposure in bottlenose dolphins and killer whales in European water within the ASCOBANS range.
Finalized Projects
Inventories of harbour porpoise Phocaena phocaena phocaena presence in Russian territorial waters of the Baltic Sea
Biologists for Nature Conservation
The final project report is available here.
Review of Trend Analyses in the ASCOBANS Area
Peter Evans / Sea Watch Foundation
The final project report is available
here.
Please also check this
document for more details.
Risk Assessment of Potential Conflicts between Shipping and Cetaceans in the ASCOBANS Region and Analysis of New Data Sets for Risk Assessment of Potential Conflicts between Shipping and Cetaceans in the ASCOBANS Region
Peter Evans / Sea Watch Foundation
The final project report is available here.
Interim Coordination of the ASCOBANS North Sea Harbour Porpoise Conservation Plan
Russell Leaper & Vassili Papastavrou
The final project report is available
here.
The report of the first stage of the project is available
here.
Historic and present harbour porpoise populations in the Baltic region – geometric morphometrics analysis
Anders Galatius Jørgensen / University of Aarhus
The final project report is available here.
Development of a co-ordinated reporting system and HELCOM/ASCOBANS database on Baltic Sea harbour porpoise sightings, by-catches and strandings
HELCOM Secretariat
The final project report is available here.
Genetic structure of white-sided dolphin (Lagenorhynchus acutus) in the Eastern North Atlantic
Eulalia Banguera Hinestroza / University of Durham
The final project report is available here.
Effects of Contaminants on Reproduction in Small Cetaceans
Sinéad Murphy / University of St. Andrews
The final project report is available here.
Other Related Projects
Static Acoustic Monitoring of the Baltic Sea Harbour Porpoise (SAMBAH)
This international project involving all EU countries around the Baltic
Sea aims to increase the knowledge about the Baltic Sea harbour porpoise,
estimating densities and total abundance. The project will also produce
distribution maps of harbour porpoises and identify possible hotspots,
habitat preferences and areas of higher risk of conflict with anthropogenic
activities.
During 2010, a leaflet has been developed in all project languages (Swedish,
Finnish, Estonian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Polish, German and Danish) and
in English. The printing of the leaflet and stickers were funded by ASCOBANS
in support of the project.
More information on the project can be accessed
here.
