PacMam Podcast

We discuss a little about the biology, behavior and fun facts about each species. Have fun and learn about marine mammals with PacMam!

www.pacmam.org

This week: Pygmy Sperm Whale

Presenters: Cindy Elliser, Katrina MacIver

Music by Josh Burns

Sources:

https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/species/pygmy-sperm-whale

https://us.whales.org/whales-dolphins/species-guide/pygmy-sperm-whale/

https://www.acsonline.org/pygmy-sperm-whalehttps://australian.museum/learn/animals/mammals/pygmy-sperm-whale/

https://www.aquariumofpacific.org/onlinelearningcenter/species/pygmy_sperm_whale

New Research

• Benites-Palomino et al 2019 New bulky faced pygmy sperm whale from the late Miocene of Peru https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/02724634.2019.1728538

• Song et al 2017: Influence of air-filled structures on wave propagation and beam formation https://pubs.aip.org/asa/jasa/article-abstract/142/4/2443/853827/The-influence-of-air-filled-structures-on-wave?redirectedFrom=fulltext

• Staudinger et al 2013 – Foraging ecology and niche overlap in pygmy and dwarf in US mid-Atlantic coast https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/mms.12064

• Brentano and Petry 2020 – Marine debris ingestion and human impacts in Brazil https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0025326X1930743X

• Erwin et al 2017 – High diversity and unique composition of gut microbiomes https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-017-07425-z

We are excited to get you a sneak peak into our next paper, first authored by our Research Assistant Ciera! She has spent over a year doing photo-ID of every seal photo we have between 2015-2019, creating our catalogue and analyzing the data. In this paper we look at the site fidelity and seasonality of harbor seals that use Burrows Pass. What are the results? Let's just say that individuality reigns! Join us as we discuss the variation in who returns, and when and how often, and what this means for our understanding of the in-water behavior of harbor seals.

Special shout out to our interns who have assisted with the project, helping to confirm seal identifications - thank you!

Globally there is currently one speices of Killer whale, Orcinus Orca. However they are divided into many different ecotypes based on their foraging, physical, behavioral and cultural differences. There has long been varying amounts of evidence that some of these ecotypes deserve status as at least a sub-species, if not fully separate species. However none have to date been recognized, mostly due to lack of a multitude of clear evidence. But that has changed with the Resident (fish eating) and Bigg's (aka transients, mammal eating) killer whales in the Eastern North Pacific. A new paper brings together multiple lines of evidence to propose that these two ecotypes are different from one another and every other orca population in the world. Enough to warrent them their own species status (suggested O. ater and O. rectipinnus). Join us to learn about the convincing evidence, the process still to come for the possible confirmation of this new designation, and what that means for conservation.

Paper is open access: https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/epdf/10.1098/rsos.231368

Information about how they choose the names: https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/feature-story/lost-skulls-and-latin-how-scientists-chose-names-newly-identified-killer-whale-species

Information with info graphics: https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/feature-story/new-research-reveals-full-diversity-killer-whales-two-species-come-view-pacific-coast

www.pacmam.org

This week: Heavisides (or Havisides) Dolphin

Presenters: Cindy Elliser, Katrina MacIver

Music by Josh Burns

Sources:

https://www.marinebio.org/species/heavisides-dolphins/cephalorhynchus-heavisidii/

https://us.whales.org/whales-dolphins/species-guide/heavisides-dolphin/

Marine Mammals of the World, Jefferson, Webber, Pitman, Gorter: https://www.sciencedirect.com/book/9780124095427/marine-mammals-of-the-world

https://animalia.bio/heavisides-dolphin

https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/4161/50352086#population

New Research:

Martin et al 2018– acoustic relaxing acoustic crypsis for increased communication

•https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rspb.2018.1178

Martin et al 2019 – to buzz or burst pulse, functional role of vocalizations •https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0003347219300089

Gopal et al 2019 – Genetics and geographic variation mtDNA

•https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/1749-4877.12380

Martin et al 2020 – First abundance estimates •https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmars.2020.555659/full

Gridley et al. 2020 Towed passive acoustic monitoring complements visual surveys

•https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.2989/1814232X.2020.1848925

Did you know that menopause is an "evolutionary oddity"? Humans are the only terristrial mammal with this trait, and then there are 5 different species of Odontocetes (the group of toothed whales, dolphins and porpoises) that have it as well. Why is it so rare, why did it evolve, what are the benefits, and costs? It is hard to figure out the why, when there aren't many species to compare. But looking at whales, who are very different (our last common ancestor with them is 90 million years ago) physically and ecologically, who show the same trait provides some unique insights into the why and how it evolved.

Paper is open access and available HERE

Check out This Podcast Will Kill You - Menapause episode HERE

Harbor seals eat a lot of different things, over 60 different prey species in fact. This includes salmon, which here in the Pacific Northwest puts seals in competition with humans and other species that rely on salmon as well. Salmon runs are greatly in decline, with many of them threatened or endangered. Seals are often seen as a major impediment to salmon recovery, even though they are not the reason the salmon are in decline in the first place. So researchers are looking for ways to lower their impact on salmon populations in non-lethal ways (vs. widespread culling which has been brought to the table). Acoustic deterrent devices have been used for many years as a way to scare seals away, but come with costs including hearing damage, impact to other species and habitat displacement. This paper talks about a new technology that is species specific and limits possible hearing damage and habitat displacment. It is an exciting example of how we can find ways to protect both the salmon and the seals at the same time. Learn about how this new technology works and the possible impacts it could have for both these species.

Paper is open access, access it HERE.

www.pacmam.org

Have you heard of Roberts Bank Terminal 2? Chances are you have not (unless you are from Canada). This is a very large new terminal that is planning to be built within the next 10 years. It sits on the mouth of the Fraser River, and will greatly impact the health of the Salish Sea, and the animals and people that call it home. However, little media attention has occurred on the US side of the border, even though it will affect US waters, and is only 1 mile away from the border. This highlights the role of media in raising awareness about an issue, and how the border still acts as a barrier to management in a transboundary ecosystem. For something that will affect both countries, and the many Indigenous First Nations and Tribes in US and Canada, it is a start reminder that we all need to know, and have a say, in what happens. Listen to learn more about the economic, policital, cultural and environmental concerns about this large scale project.