Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-t7fkt Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-26T03:12:59.184Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Habitat use patterns of franciscana dolphins (Pontoporia blainvillei) off southern Brazil in relation to water depth

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  15 May 2009

Daniel Danilewicz ,
Eduardo R. Secchi ,
Paulo H. Ott ,
Ignacio B. Moreno ,
Manuela Bassoi  and
Márcio Borges-Martins
Daniel Danilewicz*
Affiliation:
Grupo de Estudos de Mamíferos Aquáticos do Rio Grande do Sul (GEMARS), Rua Felipe Neri, 382/203, Porto Alegre 90440-150, Brazil Grupo de Ecologia e Conservação de Megafauna Marinha-EcoMega
Eduardo R. Secchi
Affiliation:
Laboratory of Marine Mammals, Museu Oceanográfico ‘Prof. Eliézer C. Rios’, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande, Cx P 379, CEP 96200, Rio Grande, Brazil Grupo de Ecologia e Conservação de Megafauna Marinha-EcoMega
Paulo H. Ott
Affiliation:
Grupo de Estudos de Mamíferos Aquáticos do Rio Grande do Sul (GEMARS), Rua Felipe Neri, 382/203, Porto Alegre 90440-150, Brazil Universidade Estadual do Rio Grande do Sul (UERGS), Cidreira, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil Grupo de Ecologia e Conservação de Megafauna Marinha-EcoMega
Ignacio B. Moreno
Affiliation:
Grupo de Estudos de Mamíferos Aquáticos do Rio Grande do Sul (GEMARS), Rua Felipe Neri, 382/203, Porto Alegre 90440-150, Brazil
Manuela Bassoi
Affiliation:
Laboratory of Marine Mammals, Museu Oceanográfico ‘Prof. Eliézer C. Rios’, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande, Cx P 379, CEP 96200, Rio Grande, Brazil National Oceanography Centre, Southampton, European Way, SO14 3ZH, Southampton, UK Grupo de Ecologia e Conservação de Megafauna Marinha-EcoMega
Márcio Borges-Martins
Affiliation:
Grupo de Estudos de Mamíferos Aquáticos do Rio Grande do Sul (GEMARS), Rua Felipe Neri, 382/203, Porto Alegre 90440-150, Brazil Departamento de Zoologia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil
*
Correspondence should be addressed to: D. Danilewicz, Grupo de Estudos de Mamíferos Aquáticos do Rio, Grande do Sul (GEMARS), Rua Felipe Neri, 382/203, Porto Alegre 90440-150, Brazil email: [email protected]
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

The patterns of habitat use by the franciscana dolphins (Pontoporia blainvillei) along its distribution are poorly known. This study investigates the patterns of habitat use with respect to depth for 181 individuals of different age, size, gender and reproductive condition off Rio Grande do Sul, southern Brazil. The results reveal that franciscanas are very homogeneously distributed according to depth. Individuals from all lengths utilize nearly the entire range of depths of the surveyed area. Larger or older animals do not use deeper waters than younger animals, indicating that body size and age are not limiting factors for franciscanas that occupy deeper or offshore waters. Gestation seems to not cause a change in the distribution of females. Although the sex-ratio of the overall data did not vary from 1:1 in different depth intervals, a small-scale comparison between the northern and southern coast demonstrated the existence of some kind of sexual segregation. Franciscana by-catch in Rio Grande do Sul is not sustainable and it is agreed that management procedures are needed. Nevertheless, the available data on species distribution do not allow the designing of a protected area in order to minimize the by-catches of a particular sex/reproductive class.

Keywords

habitat usePontoporia blainvilleisouthern Brazilwater depthincidental catchessex-ratio
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom , Volume 89 , Special Issue 5: Cetaceans , August 2009 , pp. 943 - 949
Copyright
Copyright © Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 2009

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

American Society of Mammalogy (1961) Standardized methods for measuring and recording data on the smaller cetaceans. Journal of Mammalogy 42, 471–476.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bassoi, M. (1997) Feeding of franciscana, Pontoporia blainvillei (Gervais and D'Orbigny, 1844), accidentally caught in coastal gillneting in southern Brazil. Bs dissertation. Universidade do Rio Grande, Rio Grande, Brazil.Google Scholar
Bordino, P. (2002) Movement patterns of franciscana dolphin (Pontoporia blainvillei) in Bahia Anegada, Buenos Aires, Argentina. Latin American Journal of Aquatic Mammals 1, 71–76.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bordino, P., Thompson, G. and Iñiguez, M. (1999) Ecology and behaviour of the franciscana (Pontoporia blainvillei) in Bahía Anegada, Argentina. Journal of Cetacean Research and Management 1, 213–222.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bowyer, R.T. (2004) Sexual segregation in ruminants: definitions, hypotheses, and implications for conservation and management. Journal of Mammalogy 85, 1039–1052.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Brownell, R.L. Jr (1984) Review of reproduction in platanistid dolphins. Report of the International Whaling Commission 6, 149–158.Google Scholar
Corcuera, J., Monzon, F., Crespo, E.A., Aguilar, A. and Raga, J.A. (1994) Interactions between marine mammals and the coastal fisheries of Necochea and Claromecó (Buenos Aires Province, Argentina). Report of the International Whaling Commission 15, 283–290.Google Scholar
Cremer, M.J. and Simões-Lopes, P.C. (2005) The occurrence of Pontoporia blainvillei (Gervais & d'Orbigny) (Cetacea, Pontoporiidae) in an estuarine area in southern Brazil. Revista Brasileira de Zoologia 22, 717–723.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Crespo, E.A., Harris, G. and González, R. (1998) Group size and distribution range of the franciscana, Pontoporia blainvillei. Marine Mammal Science 14, 845–849.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Danilewicz, D. (2003) Reproduction of female franciscana (Pontoporia blainvillei) in Rio Grande do Sul, southern Brazil. Latin American Journal of Aquatic Mammals 2, 67–78.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Danilewicz, D., Claver, J.A., Pérez Carrera, A.L., Secchi, E.R. and Fontoura, N.F. (2004) Reproductive biology of male franciscanas (Pontoporia blainvillei) (Mammalia: Cetacea) from Rio Grande do Sul, southern Brazil. Fishery Bulletin 102, 581–592.Google Scholar
Emlem, S.T. and Oring, L.W. (1977) Ecology, sexual selection, and the evolution of mating systems. Science 197, 215–223.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Heithaus, M.R. (2001) Predator–prey and competitive interactions between sharks (Order Selachii) and dolphins (Suborder Odontoceti): a review. Journal of Zoology 253, 53–68.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Heithaus, M.R. and Dill, L.M. (2002) Food availability and tiger shark predation risk influence bottlenose dolphin habitat use. Ecology 83, 480–491.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hohn, A., Chivers, S.J. and Barlow, J. (1985) Reproductive maturity and seasonality of male spotted dolphins, Stenella attenuata, in the eastern tropical Pacific. Marine Mammal Science 1, 273–293.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
IUCN (2008) IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: A Global Species Assessment. Gland, Switzerland and Cambridge, UK: IUCN. Pontoporia blainvillei. Available from http://www.iucnredlist.org/search/details.php/41761/all (accessed September 2008).Google Scholar
Kinas, P.G. (2002) The impact of incidental kills by gillnets on the franciscana dolphin (Pontoporia blainvillei) in southern Brazil. Journal of Marine Science 70, 409–421.Google Scholar
Mann, J., Connor, R.C., Barre, L.M. and Heithaus, M.R. (2000) Female reproductive success in bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops sp.): life history, habitat, provisioning, and group size effects. Behavioral Ecology 11, 210–219.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Moreno, I.B., Ott, P.H. and Danilewicz, D. (1997) Análise preliminar do impacto da pesca artesanal costeira sobre Pontoporia blainvillei no litoral norte do Rio Grande do Sul, sul do Brasil. In Proceedings of the 2nd Workshop for the Coordination of Research and Conservation of Franciscana in the Southwestern Atlantic, Buenos Aires, Argentina, 1997, pp 31–41.Google Scholar
Norris, K.S. and Dohl, T.P. (1980) Behavior of the Hawaiian spinner dolphin, Stenella longirostris. Fishery Bulletin 77, 821–849.Google Scholar
Ott, P.H. (1994) Estudo da ecologia alimentar de Pontoporia blainvillei (Gervais; D'Orbigny 1844) (Cetacea, Pontoporiidae) no litoral norte do Rio Grande do Sul, Sul do Brasil. BSc dissertation. Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil.Google Scholar
Ott, P.H. (1998) Análise das capturas acidentais da toninha, Pontoporia blaivillei, no litoral norte do Rio Grande do Sul, sul do Brasil. MSc dissertation. Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil.Google Scholar
Ott, P.H. and Danilewicz, D. (1998) Presence of franciscana dolphins (Pontoporia blainvillei) in the stomach of a killer whale (Orcinus orca) stranded in southern Brazil. Mammalia 62, 605–609.Google Scholar
Ott, P.H., Secchi, E.R., Moreno, I.B., Danilewicz, D., Crespo, E.A., Bordino, P., Ramos, R., Di Beneditto, A.P., Bertozzi, C., Bastida, R., Zanelatto, R., Perez, J. and Kinas, P.G. (2002) Report of the working group of fishery interactions. Latin American Journal of Aquatic Mammals 1, 55–64.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Perrin, W.F. and Donovan, G.P. (1984) Report of the workshop. Report of the International Whaling Commission 6, 1–24.Google Scholar
Pinedo, M.C. (1994) Impact of incidental fishery mortality on the age structure of Pontoporia blainvillei in southern Brazil and Uruguay. Report of the International Whaling Commission 15, 261–264.Google Scholar
Pinedo, M.C. and Hohn, A. (2000) Growth layer patterns in teeth from the franciscana, Pontoporia blainvillei: developing a model for precision in age estimation. Marine Mammal Science 16, 1–27.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Pinedo, M.C., Praderi, R. and Brownell, R.L. Jr (1989) Review of the biology and status of the franciscana, Pontoporia blainvillei. In Perrin, W.F., Brownell, R.L. Jr., Kaya, Z. and Jiankang, L. (eds) Biology and conservation of river dolphins. Occasional Papers of the IUCN Species Survival Commission, pp. 46–51.Google Scholar
Praderi, R. (1985) Relaciones entre Pontoporia blainvillei (Mammalia: Cetacea) e tiburones Selachii) de aguas Uruguaias. Comunicaciones de Zoologia del Museo de Historia Natural de Montevideo 11, 1–19.Google Scholar
Praderi, R. (1986) Comentarios sobre la distribución de Pontoporia blainvillei en aguas del Rio de La Plata. In Proceedings of the 1st Reunión de Trabajo de Expecialistas en Mamiferos Acuaticos de América del Sur, Buenos Aires, Argentina, 1984, pp. 206–214.Google Scholar
Praderi, R., Pinedo, M.C. and Crespo, E.A. (1989) Conservation and management of Pontoporia blainvillei in Uruguay, Brazil and Argentina. In Perrin, W.F., Brownell, R.L. Jr., Kaya, Z. and Jiankang, L. (eds) Biology and conservation of river dolphins. Occasional Papers of the IUCN Species Survival Commission, pp. 52–56.Google Scholar
Rodriguez, D., Rivero, L. and Bastida, R. (2002) Feeding ecology of the franciscana (Pontoporia blainvillei) in marine and estuarine waters of Argentina. Latin American Journal of Aquatic Mammals 1, 77–94.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rosas, F.C.W., Monteiro-Filho, E.L.A. and Oliveira, M.R. (2002) Incidental catches of franciscana (Pontoporia blainvillei) on the southern coast of São Paulo state and the coast of Paraná state, Brazil. Latin American Journal of Aquatic Mammals 1, 161–167.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Santos, M.C.O. and Netto, D.F. (2005) Killer whale (Orcinus orca) predation on a franciscana dolphin (Pontoporia blainvillei) in Brazilian waters. Latin American Journal of Aquatic Mammals 4, 69–72.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Secchi, E.R., Zerbini, A.N., Bassoi, M., Dalla Rosa, L., Moller, L.M. and Rocha-Campos, C.C. (1997a) Mortality of franciscanas, Pontoporia blainvillei, in coastal gillnetting in southern Brazil. Report of the International Whaling Commission 47, 653–658.Google Scholar
Secchi, E.R., Dalla Rosa, L., Bassoi, M. and Barcellos, L. (1997b) Uma alternativa para minimizar o impacto da pesca costeira de emalhe sobre a população de toninhas, Pontoporia blainvillei (Cetacea, Pontoporiidae), no sul do Brazil. In Proceedings of the 7th Congresso Latino-Americano sobre Ciências do Mar, Santos, SP, 1997. Associação Latino-Americana dos Profissionais de Ciências do Mar, pp. 428–429.Google Scholar
Secchi, E.R., Ott, P.H. and Danilewicz, D. (2003a) Effects of fishing by-catch and the conservation status of the franciscana dolphin, Pontoporia blainvillei. In Gales, N., Hindell, M. and Kirkwood, R. (eds) Marine mammals: fisheries, tourism and management issues. Collingwood, Australia: CSIRO Publishing, pp. 174–191.Google Scholar
Secchi, E.R., Danilewicz, D. and Ott, P.H. (2003b) Applying the phylogeographic concept to identify Franciscana dolphin stocks: implications to meet management objectives. Journal of Cetacean Research and Management 5, 61–68.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Secchi, E.R., Kinas, P.G. and Muelbert, M. (2004) Incidental catches of franciscana in coastal gillnet fisheries in the Franciscana Management Area III: period 1999–2000. Latin American Journal of Aquatic Mammals 3, 61–68.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Secchi, E.R. (2006) Modelling the population dynamics and viability analysis of franciscana (Pontoporia blainvillei) and Hector's dolphins (Cephalorynchus hectori) under the effects of bycatch in fisheries, parameter uncertainty and stochasticity. Doctoral thesis, University of Otago. Dunedin, New Zealand.Google Scholar
Siciliano, S., Di Beneditto, A.P. and Ramos, R.M.A. (2002) A toninha, Pontoporia blainvillei (Gervais & d'Orbigny, 1844) (Mammalia, Cetacea, Pontoporiidae), nos estados do Rio de Janeiro e Espírito Santo, costa sudeste do Brasil: caracterizações dos habitats e fatores de isolamento das populações. Boletim do Museu Nacional.(Zoologia) 476, 1–15.Google Scholar
Wells, R.S., Scott, M.D. and Irvine, A.B. (1987) The social structure of free-ranging bottlenose dolphins. In Enoways, H.H. (ed.) Current mammalogy. Volume 1. New York: Plenum Press, pp. 247–305.CrossRefGoogle Scholar