With funding from Fisheries New Zealand and support from the Department of Conservation (DOC), we trialled attaching short-term (24 hours) suction-cup recording tags (DTAGs) to Hector’s dolphins in Te Koko-o-Kupe/Cloudy Bay.
We wanted to determine if DTAGs are a possible tool for monitoring this endangered species and could help answer research gaps identified by DOC’s Threat Management Plan and Research Strategy.
We found these suction-cup DTAGs had little to no impact on Hector’s dolphin behaviour.
We tagged 11 dolphins, and their tags stayed attached for 1.5 to 24 hours.
We gathered over 83 hours of data on this species, including the first ever three-dimensional recordings of Hector’s dolphin underwater, their night-time movements, and recordings of the different sounds they make and hear during a typical day.
Overall, such insights about these dolphins can influence how we manage them in relation to their various threats.
AEBR 327 Novel technologies to monitor Māui and Hector’s dolphins: DTAG feasibility trial
Type
Report - Aquatic Environment and Biodiversity (AEBR)
Published
Last updated
ISBN Online
978-1-991285-05-8
ISSN Online
1179-6480