gemarsMamíferosAquáticos

Conservation and Biology

of franciscana dolphin in

Southern Brazil

(2003-2004)

Grupo de Estudos de Mamíferos Aquáticos do Rio Grande do Sul

Yaqu Pacha - Organization for the Conservation of South American Aquatic Mammals

Daniel Danilewicz

Ignacio B. Moreno

Larissa Oliveira

Maurício Tavares

Paulo Ott

Sue Bridi Nakashima

Conservation and Biology of the franciscana dolphin in southern Brazil

Report of the Project Activities

Elaborated by Grupo de Estudos de Mamíferos Aquáticos do Rio Grande do Sul & Centro de Estudos Costeiros,

Limnológicos e Marinhos da UFRGS

Financial support YAQU PACHA – Organization for the Conservation of South American Aquatic Mammals

Organized by Daniel Danilewicz

Ignacio Benites Moreno Larissa Oliveira

Maurício Tavares Sue Bridi Nakashima

Márcia Bozzetti

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GEMARS RESEARCH STAFF Daniel Danilewicz Schiavon, Biologist, MSc. Ignacio Benites Moreno, Biologist, MSc. Larissa Rosa de Oliveira, Biologist, Ph. D. Maurício Tavares, Biologist, Bachelor Márcio Borges Martins, Biologist, Ph. D. Paulo Henrique Ott, Biologist, Ph.D. Students and volunteers of GEMARS in the period 2003-2004 Cariane Campos Trigo, Biologist, MsC.

Guilherme Casaroto, geology student (UFRGS).

Juliana Ferreira, Biologist.

Larissa Schemes Heinzelmann, Biologist, MsC.

Luciana Marquardt, Physioterapist.

Marilise Longhi, biology student (ULBRA).

Márcia Bozzetti Moreira, Biologist, Master of Science in Biology

Pedro Fruet, biology student (UNISINOS).

Raquel Almeida, biology student (UNISINOS).

Rodrigo Mondin Machado, photographer.

Rodrigo Machado, biology student (UNISINOS).

Salvatore Siciliano, Biologist, Ph. D.

Sue Bridi Nakashima, Biologist, Bachelor in Biological Sciences

Vera Ribeiro, biology student (UFRGS).

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Introduction Franciscana Project in northern Rio Grande do Sul: past and present The Franciscana Project, a long-term project for the conservation of the franciscana dolphin

(Pontoporia blainvillei) in northern Rio Grande do Sul (southern Brazil), have been carried out by biologists of Grupo de Estudos de Mamíferos Aquáticos do Rio Grande do Sul (GEMARS) since 1991 and have been passing for various degrees of knowledge. When the biology students that funded GEMARS started to work with marine mammals in northern Rio Grande do Sul, two main questions were raised.

First, which marine mammal species occur in this region? This area of almost 300km of continuos

beaches was never before systematically surveyed for stranded marine mammals. As the result of the efforts conducted during the last decade to collect stranded animals, 40 species were recorded to inhabit the region. Some of them were first reports for Rio Grande do Sul, others were new even to the Brazilian coast.

Second, what is (or are) the most threatened species in the region? And why? Past research from

Uruguay and the southern coast of Rio Grande do Sul indicated that the franciscana dolphin could be the main species affected by the fisheries, but the two fisheries communities from the northern coast of Rio Grande do Sul (Tramandaí/Imbé and Torres) were never monitored. After the first beach surveys in the area, in 1991 and 1992, it became clear that franciscanas might really be dying in elevated numbers. It was then decided that the fishery monitoring was a priority for the understanding of the franciscana mortality in northern Rio Grande do Sul. Unlike most studies on marine mammal-fishery interaction, it was agreed that a proper assessment of the franciscana mortality would not be achieved only by interviews with fishermen. In this sense, a program of observation onboard the fishing vessels was initiated. This activity was only allowed by the vessel’s captains after a period of familiarity and mutual trust between fishermen and researchers, and it continues until the moment. The cooperation between biologists and fishermen resulted in the first descriptions of the fishery activities and estimates of mortality of franciscanas for the region (Moreno et al., 1997; Ott, 1998). Many times, in the absence of biologists onboard, fishermen collected the incidentally caught franciscanas and informed capture’s date and location. This procedure increased significantly the sample of fresh franciscana carcasses and allowed a number of studies on the biology and

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ecology of the species, such as food habits, genetics, reproduction and habitat use (Ott, 1994, Ott et al 2002; Danilewicz, 2003; Danilewicz et al. 2004).

Parallely, in many parts of the Atlantic coast of South America research on franciscana was also

increasing in number and quality. As a reflex, four Workshops for the Coordinated Research and

Conservation of the Franciscana Dolphin (Pontoporia blainvillei) in the Western Atlantic were carried out in 1992, 1994, 1997 and 2000. The last one had place in Porto Alegre and was organized by GEMARS and the Laboratory of Marine Mammals of Museu Oceanográfico de Rio Grande (LMM-MORG). In fact, the cooperation between researchers of these two Institutions of Rio Grande do Sul had been resulted in many projects and publications together and certainly was one important factor influencing the increase of knowledge on the franciscana in this region.

Although there were significant advances in many aspects of the biology, ecology and conservation

problems of franciscanas in Rio Grande do Sul, only the continuing and systematic monitoring of the mortality by the fishery will point out directions for responsible conservation measures to be taken. For the northern Rio Grande do Sul, this information has been properly collected for determined periods (1994-97 and 2003-04). The present report summarize the activities of the research staff of the Grupo de Estudos de Mamíferos Aquáticos do Rio Grande do Sul (GEMARS) from June 2003 to July 2004. During this period, the Franciscana Project had the fundamental financial support of Yaqu Pacha Organization and Brazilian Environment Ministry (FNMA). The activities here mentioned are the result of this support. It is important to note that much of the data collected during this period are currently under analysis and will certainly be further refined. One example is the chapter on fishery interaction, where the estimates on the annual mortality and catch per unit of effort are still being analysed and are not presented

The report is divided into four chapters. The first Chapter is a summary on the advances on the studies

on the fishery and franciscana by catch in northern Rio Grande do Sul in the last year. Chapter 2 presents the results of an effort to produce new abundance estimation for the franciscana population inhabiting the Rio Grande do Sul coast. In Chapter 3, the Environment Education Program implemented by GEMARS is described. Chapter 4 finalizes the report with the results of the beach surveys for marine mammals in northern Rio Grande do Sul.

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REFERENCES Danilewicz, D. 2003. Reproduction of female franciscana (Pontoporia blainvillei) in Rio Grande do Sul, southern Brazil.

LAJAM 2 (2): 67-78. 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 (4): 581-592.

Moreno, I. B., P. H. Ott, and D. Danilewicz. 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 second workshop for the research coordination and conservation of the franciscana (Pontoporia blainvillei) in the Southwestern Atlantic (M. C. Pinedo A. and Barreto, eds.), p. 31-41. Editora da FURG, Rio Grande, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.

Ott, P.H. 1994. Estudo da ecologia alimentar de Pontoporia blaivillei (Gervais & D´orbigny, 1844) (Cetacea,

Pontoporiidae) no litoral norte do Rio Grande do Sul, sul do Brasil. Bachelor Thesis. Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul. Porto Alegre, RS, Brasil. 69pp.

Ott, P.H. 1998. Análise das capturas acidentais da toninha, Pontoporia blaivillei, no litoral norte do Rio Grande do Sul,

sul do Brasil. MSc. Thesis. Porto Alegre. Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul. 120p. 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. LAJAM (special issue) 1: 55-64.

Franciscana bycatch and fishery characteristics (2003-04)1

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INTRODUCTION

Although the incidental catches of franciscanas have been reported continuously along the entire Brazilian coast,

certainly the region where the species is more impacted by the bycatch is the Rio Grande do Sul (Secchi, Ott & Danilewicz, 2000). The first information on the incidental catches of franciscanas in Rio Grande do Sul were published in the 1980’s (Pinedo, 1982; 1986; Praderi et al., 1989). However, this information was based only in the number of animals beached on the coast. According to Pinedo (1994), 1.085 franciscanas were found dead beached on the coast of Rio Grande do Sul between 1976 and 1987.

In the beginning of the 1990´s, researchers of GEMARS/CECLIMAR and LMM/MORG initiated studies on the

franciscana mortality in the northern and southern coast of Rio Grande do Sul, respectively. These studies collected data directly on the fishery communities, gathering information on the capture per unit of effort and annual mortality for the franciscana in the region. Combining data from both regions, the annual mortality of franciscanas in Rio Grande do Sul was estimated to be between 495 and 1.069 animals (Moreno et al., 1997; Ott, 1997; Kinas & Secchi, 1998, 1999; Secchi, 1999).

The present chapter reports the progress activities on the franciscana bycatches in northern Rio Grande do Sul, in the

period 2003-2004. Moreover, it presentes information on the fishery activities and on the interactions with other marine mammals and sea turtles.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

In order to evaluate the interactions between the fishery activities and the franciscana dolphins (Pontoporia blainvillei),

the commercial fleet of the Tramandaí/ Imbé (29°58´S; 050°07´W) and Torres/ Passo de Torres (29°19´S; 049°43´W) (Figure 1) was surveyed through onboard surveys and systematic interviews with the fishermen from June 2003 to July 2004.

Interviews The interviews were conducted every week in Tramandaí/ Imbé and every two weeks in Torres/ Passo de Torres.

These interviews were mainly conducted at the harbor, with some of them being carried out in the fishermen’s home. During the interviews, information about the vessels and fishery activities were collected such as fishing gears, target fish species and their value, incidental captures of small cetaceans, sightings of cetaceans and other marine mammals as well as information about social and economic aspects of the fishing communities. The majority of the interviews were informal

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dialogs (Figure 2). However, during the study, some fishermen were formally interviewed (figure 3), through the use of a standard spread sheet (Figure 4), in order to acquire specific and precise information about the vessels.

Onboard surveys Onboard surveys were carried out usually after previous contact between researchers and fishermen. The number of

observers during the onboard surveys varied from one to two, depending on the occasion. During the onboard survey, it was recorded data on target fish species, net features (total length, stretched mesh size, height, and time of permanence in the water), depth and distance from the coast of each fishery operation. When the observers were absent or the onboard surveys were impossible to be followed by the researcher, the masters of fishing vessels filled these data on a standard logbook in order to cooperate with our project (Figure 5).

Incidental captures When an incidental capture happened, the specimen was collected and brought to the harbor from fishermen and

frozen after that. In Tramandaí/ Imbé the animals are deposited in a freezer closer to the harbor at the SPH (Superintendência de Portos e Hidrovias do Rio Grande do Sul) or at the CECLIMAR/UFRGS (Centro de Estudos Costeiros, Limnológicos e Marinhos da Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul). In Torres/ Passo de Torres, the animals were conditioned in freezer at a fisherman house, which collaborates with the project. After that, the specimens were taken to CECLIMAR/UFRGS, where the autopsies were carried out (Figure 6). Each specimen had the sex determined, the standard length and weight recorded. The external measurements were taken according to the American Society of Mammalogists (Norris 1961) (Figure 7). In addition, the animals were photographed aiming at future studies of color pattern and/or shape (Figure 8). During the autopsies, the presence and position of net marks, scratches possibly caused by the teeth of other dolphins, were evaluated. The skull and the entire skeleton were collected as a “voucher” material. A series of biological samples and specimens information were collected according to the general condition of the carcass. The blubber was removed, weighted, and samples were collected for posterior analyses. The whole stomach and tissue samples for contaminant analyses (liver, kidney and blubber) were removed and frozen. In the laboratory, stomach contents were washed through a 1mm mesh sieve and preserved in 70% ethanol for posterior analyses. The gonads were collected and fixed in 10% formalin as well as tissues samples for posterior histopathology analyses. Parasites were preserved in 70% ethanol and samples for DNA in 96% ethanol or DMSO. All material collected was deposited in the scientific collection of the Grupo de Estudos de Mamíferos Aquáticos do Rio Grande do Sul (GEMARS), Porto Alegre - Brazil.

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RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

Interviews From June 2003 to July 2004, 79 interviews with the fishermen were conducted in the studied fishery communities, 35

in Tramandaí/Imbé (harbour) and 44 in Torres/Passo de Torres (harbour and fishermen’s house) (Figure 9 and 10). Generally, the interviews were colloquial talks that took place when the fishermen were repairing the fishing equipments (Figure 11 and 12). The acquaintance with the fishermen during the interviews created and reinforced the friendship between fishermen and researchers thus facilitating the work. This friendship collaborated for the development of other activities such as the garbage collection in the sea by some few fishermen (Figure 13) and the implementation of a standard logbook, where the fishing vessel’s master wrote down the referring data about the fishing operations when the researchers were absent. In this logbook were written down diverse information such as locality of fishing operations, depth, characteristics of the nets employed, as well as the occurrence of incidental captures of franciscana dolphins or other marine mammals. The implementation of the logbook revealed a difficult task, once the majority of the fishermen are illiterate or half-illiterate. In this way, it was necessary to adapt the logbook so that it became easier to fulfill. However, many fishermen forget to fill the logbook while they are fishing. In this sense, the systematic visits to the port had an important part; therefore every time that fishermen and researches met the fulfilling of the logbook was remembered.

Through the interviews it was possible to discover a series of information about the vessels and the fishing gears

used, as well as about the target fish species and comparing them with previous studies. According to Ott (1997), based on data collected in the first half of the 1990’s, in these communities fishing activity was typically coastal and there are about 30 wooden fishing vessels that operate normally within 15-20 miles from the coast, in depths varying from 10 to 40m; the size of the fishing vessels vary from 10 to 18m; bottom gillnets 0,6nm to 2,2nm long and 2,5m deep are most used; the stretched mesh sizes vary from 6 to 42cm. In this study, the fishing area spans from ~26°36’S to 30°22’S in waters ranging from 16-47m in depth. Nowadays, the commercial fleet operating from Tramandaí/Imbé is composed of three vessels, ~ 12m long, with six fishermen per vessel; 0,6-4,5nm total length of nets and stretched mesh sizes vary from 8-21cm. In Torres/Passo de Torres there are around 43 vessels, 10-17m long, with 3-9 fishermen per vessel; 0,3-12nm total length of nets and stretched mesh sizes vary from 8-21cm. Of these 46 vessels, 15 of them have collaborated with the project filling the logbook, reporting the incidental capture of a franciscana dolphin or bringing the animals captured to the port for the researchers. The characteristics of the vessels and its equipment of fish meet listed in Table 1.

Onboard surveys During this period, 11 onboard surveys (8 in Tramandaí/Imbé and 3 in Torres/Passo de Torres) were conducted with

duration of one day each, in order to follow in loco the incidental catches and the fishing (Table 2). No cetacean was

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observed to be captured during onboard surveys, but 15 specimens of the franciscana dolphin were carried to the harbour by fishermen when observers were not present (Table 3). Moreover, during one onboard survey an incidental capture of one marine turtle (Chelonia mydas) (Figure 14) was registered for two observers and a killer whale (Orcinus orca) with calf were sighting in the same occasion. Pinnipeds were sighted in other three occasions: the South American sea lion (Otaria byronia) was registered in three opportunities and the South American fur seal (Arctocephalus australis) just one time. Although these interactions between fishery activity and marine mammals in the Rio Grande do Sul State are common, the South American sea lions are considered by the fishermen serious competitors for the marine resources, because the sea lions often damage the fishing gears while they try to take the fishes entanglement at nets (Ott et al. 1996; Rosas 1989; IBAMA 2001). Each year this fact is making the relationship between fishermen and sea lions less supportable. According to Rosas et al. (1994), 30% of the sea lions encountered dead at the beaches between 1977-1986 showed evidences of interactions with the fishery operations. Although these interactions are frequent, there are no data about magnitude and economic damage occasioned by them (IBAMA 2001).

Incidental captures and fishery characteristics The franciscana dolphins incidentally caught do not have commercial value in the region and they are normally

discarded at sea by the fishermen. Thus, besides the 15 specimens carried to the harbour by the fishermen, the incidental catches of 35 franciscana dolphins were reported, totalizing 50 specimens captured from June 2003 to July 2004 (Figure 11). The majority of the franciscana dolphins were captured in bottom gillnets with stretched mesh sizes varying from 10 to 21cm, between 15 and 47m depth (Table 3 and 4). The specimens incidentally caught and carried to the harbour by fishermen were collected and analyzed to obtain biological information and characterization of the structure of the population affected by the fisheries. In this sense, stomach contents, tooth and gonads are being analyzed by researchers of Rio Grande city, Rio Grande do Sul State.

The fishery occurs throughout the year and was directed toward a variety of pelagic and demersal fishes (Table 5).

During the months of April and May occur the period between harvests. At this time, the fishermen remain in the port repairing the nets and often the fishing vessels of Tramandaí/Imbé go to Torres/Passo de Torres where they are fixed (Fig. 11). In June, the fishermen restart the fishery operations and the two fish species more captured in this season (winter) are Urophycis brasiliensis and Pomatomus saltatrix. The first species is captured in bottom gillnets (stretched mesh size= 10cm), while the second is captured in surface gillnets (stretched mesh size= 9cm). In the summer, the main target species are small sharks (Rhizoprionodon sp.; Sphyrna spp.) and rays (Rhinobatos sp.). The two species are captured in bottom gillnets (stretched mesh size= 20-21cm). During the 11 onboard surveys realized were captured approximately 2.400Kg of fishes (218,18kg per fishery operation). This quantity is not enough to cover the expenses of a fishery operation. In this way, the commercial fleet in Tramandaí/Imbé and Torres/ Passo de Torres, reflect the present condition of the fishing activity in Rio

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Grande do Sul State. According to Vooren et al. 1990; Reis 1993 and Vieira et al. 1996, in Rio Grande do Sul State, the fishing activity acts in overfishing since has much time. This fact is related to the absence of options, following its fishing tradition and under pressure of the market. The results of this bad management are serious damages of ecological, economic and social order, evidenced for the increase of the poverty and the hunger in the fishery communities.

REFERENCES

IBAMA 2001. Mamíferos aquáticos do Brasil: plano de ação, versão II. Brasília, 102p. Kinas, P.G. & Secchi, E.R. 1998. Modelling trucated data to estimate incidental kills of franciscana, Pontoporia blainvillei, by gillnets.

Reports of International Whaling Commission 48: 533-536. Kinas, P.G. & Secchi, E.R. 1999. Modelling trucated data to estimate incidental kills of franciscana, Pontoporia blainvillei, by gillnets. P.51

in Abstracts, ICES/ SCOR Symposium on Ecosystem Effects of Fishing. 16-19 March. Montpellier. Moreno, I.B., Ott, P.H. & Danilewickz, D.S. 1997. Análise preliminar do impacto da pesca artesanal costeira sobre Pontoporia blainvillei

no litoral norte do Rio Grande do Sul, sul do Brasil.Pp. 31-41. In: Pinedo, M.C. & Barreto, A.S. (Eds). II Encontro sobre a Coordenação de Pesquisa e Manejamento da Franciscana. Ed. FURG, Rio Grande.

Norris, K. S. 1961. Standardized methods for measuring and recording data on the smaller cetaceans. American Society of Mammalogy.

Journal of Mammalogy. 42: 471-476. Ott, P. H., I. B. Moreno, D. Danilewicz & L. R. Oliveira. 1996. Leões-marinhos (Otaria flavescens) e a pesca costeira no sul do Brasil:

uma análise preliminar das competições e conflitos, p. 62. In: Líb. Resúm. 7a Reun. Trab. Esp. Mamíf. Acuát. América del Sur y 1º Congres. Soc. Latinoameric. Esp. Mamíf. Acuát. (SOLAMAC), Viña del Mar, Chile, 121p.

Ott, P. H. 1997. Análise das capturas acidentais de Pontoporia blainvillei (Gervais & D’Orbigny, 1844) (Cetácea, Pontoporiidae) nas

comunidades pesqueiras do litoral norte do Rio Grande do Sul, Sul do Brasil. Master Thesis, Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brasil, xiii+103p.

Pinedo, M.C. 1982. Análise dos conteúdos estomacais de Pontoporia blainvillei (Gervais e D’Orbigny, 1844) e Tursiops truncatus

(Lahille, 1908) (Cetacea, Platanistidae e Delphinidae) na zona estuarial e costeira de Rio Grande, RS, Brasil. Master Thesis. Fundação Universidade de Rio Grande, Rio Grande, Brasil. 95p.

Pinedo, M.C. 1986. Mortalidade de Pontoporia blainvillei, Tursiops gephyreus, Otaria flavescens e Arctocephalus australis na costa do

Rio Grande do Sul, Brasil,1976-1983. In: Actas de I Reun. de Trab. de Exp. en Mamif. Acuát. de América del Sur, de 25 –29 de Junio de 1984. Buenos Aires, Resumenes. p.187-199.

Pinedo, M.C. 1994. Review of small cetaceans fishery interactions in southern Brazil with special reference to the franciscana,

Pontoporia blainvillei. Pp. 251-259. In: Perrin, W.F., Donovan, G.P. & Barlow, J. (Eds) Gillnets and cetaceans. International Whaling Commission (special issue 15), Cambridge.

Praderi, R., Pinedo, M.C. & Crespo, E.A. 1989. Conservation and management of Pontoporia blainvillei in Uruguay, Brazil and Argentina.

Pp. 52-56. In: Perrin, W.F., Brownell, R.L., Kaiya, Z. & Jiankang, L. (Eds). Biology and Conservation of the river dolphins. Occas pap. IUCN SSC3. Gland.

Reis, E.G., 1993. Classificação das atividades pesqueiras na costa do Rio Grande do Sul e qualidade das estatísticas de desembarque.

Atlântica, Rio Grande, 15: 107-114.

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Rosas, F. C. W. 1989. Aspectos da dinâmica populacional e interações com a pesca do leão-marinho-do-sul, Otaria flavescens (Shaw, 1800) (Pinnipedia, Otariidae) no litoral do Rio Grande do Sul, Brasil. Dissertação de Mestrado, não publicada, Fundação Universidade do Rio Grande, Rio Grande, Brasil, 88p.

Rosas, F. C. W., M. C. Pinedo, M. Marmontel & M. Haimovici. 1994. Seasonal movements of the South American sea lion (Otaria

flavescens, Shaw 1800) off the Rio Grande do Sul coast, Brazil. Mammalia 58 (1): 51-59. Secchi, E.R. 1999. Taxa de crescimento potencial intrínseco de um estoque de franciscanas Pontoporia blainvillei (Gervais & D’Orbigny,

1844) (Cetácea, Pontoporiidae) sob o impacto da pesca costeira de emalhe. Master Thesis. Fundação Universidade de Rio Grande, Rio Grande, Brasil. 152pp.

Vieira, J.P.; Vasconcellos, M.C.; Silva, R.E. & Fischer, L.G.F., 1996. A rejeição da pesca do camarão-rosa (Penaeus paulensis) no

estuário da Lagoa dos Patos, RS, Brasil. Atlântica, Rio Grande, 18: 123-142. Vooren, C.M.; Araújo, M.L.G. & Betito, R., 1990. Análise da estatística da pesca de elasmobrânquios demersais no porto de Rio Grande,

de 1973-1986. Ciência e Cultura, 42 (12): 1106-1114.

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Table 1. Fishing vessels and nets features of the commercial fleet of Tramandaí/Imbé and Torres/Passo de Torres. ( * ) = fishing vessels that cooperate with the project.

Name of the fishing vessel

Port Net features Vessel size (meters)

Vessel capacity (ton)

Crew size Length of nets or trawel (nm)

Navigation equipments

Daniel I * Tramandaí/Imbé gillnets 12 13 6 0,7 - 3,8 GPS, compass and fishfinder Gringo II Tramandaí/Imbé gillnets - - - - - Milênio * Tramandaí/Imbé gillnets 11,80 10 6 0,6 – 4,5 GPS, compass and fishfinder

Amarelinho Torres/Passo de Torres gillnets - - - - - Amarelinho II Torres/Passo de Torres gillnets - - - - -

Araguaia I Torres/Passo de Torres gillnets - - - - - Atlas Torres/Passo de Torres gillnets - - - - -

Boa Viagem IV * Torres/Passo de Torres gillnets 15,8 25 9 2 – 9 GPS and fishfinder Boa Viagem V * Torres/Passo de Torres trawel 13 10 - - GPS and fishfinder

Calipso I Torres/Passo de Torres gillnets - - - - - Calipso IV Torres/Passo de Torres gillnets - - - - -

Celi Caroline Torres/Passo de Torres gillnets - - - - - Cristo Rei * Torres/Passo de Torres gillnets 10 6 3 0,25 - 1 non Cruzeiro V Torres/Passo de Torres trawel - - - - - Dom Filipi * Torres/Passo de Torres gillnets and temporary trawel 11 5 6 0,3 – 4 GPS, compass and fishfinder

Espada Torres/Passo de Torres gillnets - - - - - Golfinho Torres/Passo de Torres gillnets - - - - - Gringo I * Torres/Passo de Torres gillnets - - - - - Henrique I Torres/Passo de Torres gillnets - - - - - Henrique V Torres/Passo de Torres gillnets - - - - - Janaína * Torres/Passo de Torres gillnets - - - - -

Grin Jerusálem go I Torres/Passo de Torres gillnets - - - - - João Luiz I * Torres/Passo de Torres gillnets - - - - - João Luiz III * Torres/Passo de Torres gillnets 13 21 - 2 – 8 GPS, compass, fishfinder and radar João Pedro * Torres/Passo de Torres gillnets - - - - -

Jonata I Torres/Passo de Torres gillnets - - - - - Josué Torres/Passo de Torres gillnets and temporary trawel - - - - -

Torres/Passo de Torres gillnets - - - - - Júlia I Moby Dick Torres/Passo de Torres gillnets - - - - -

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Table 1. Continuatio

Name of the fishing vessel

Harbour Net features Vessel size (meters)

Vessel capacity (ton)

Crew size Length of nets or trawel (nm)

Navigation equipments

Netuno * Torres/Passo de Torres gillnets and temporary trawel 10,25 7 6 1,2 – 5 GPS, compass and fishfinder Oceania Torres/Passo de Torres gillnets - - - - - Oceania II Torres/Passo de Torres gillnets 14 - - - GPS and fishfinder Polaco Torres/Passo de Torres gillnets - - - 1 – 5 - Rocha I Torres/Passo de Torres gillnets - - - - - Rocha II Torres/Passo de Torres gillnets - - - - - São Pedro I Torres/Passo de Torres gillnets - - - - - São Vicente Torres/Passo de Torres gillnets - - - - - Talita * Torres/Passo de Torres gillnets 15 13 8 1 – 7 GPS, compass and fishfinder Valente Torres/Passo de Torres gillnets and temporary trawel - - - - - Vilage I * Torres/Passo de Torres gillnets - - - - - Vitória I * Torres/Passo de Torres gillnets 16 20 - 1,5 - 9 GPS and fishfinder Vô Chico Torres/Passo de Torres gillnets - - - - - Vô Pedro I Torres/Passo de Torres gillnets - - - - - Vô Pedro II Torres/Passo de Torres gillnets 17 23 9 2 - 9 GPS, compass, fishfinder and radar Vô Pedro III Torres/Passo de Torres gillnets - - - - - Vó Vina Torres/Passo de Torres gillnets - - - - -

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Table 2. Data about onboard surveys realized during June of 2003 to July of 2004 in the vessels of Tramandaí/Imbé and Torres/Passo de Torres.

Harbour Date Name of vessel Depth (meters) Interactions with marine mammals Capture Sighthings Total fishes captured (Kg) Tramandaí/Imbé 10-jun-2003 Milênio 18 to 20 Otaria byronia - 1 Otaria byronia 500 Tramandaí/Imbé 18-jul-2003 Milênio 23 Otaria byronia - 1 Otaria byronia 500

Torres/ Passo Torres 08-jan-2004 Dom Filipi - - - - - Torres Passo Torres 09-jan-2004 Dom Filipi 21 - - - 20 Torres/ Passo Torres 16-jan-2004 Netuno 10 to 12 - 1 Chelonia mydas 2 Orcinus orca 35

Tramandaí/Imbé 20-fev-2004 Milênio 15 - - - - Tramandaí/Imbé 08-mar-2004 Daniel I - - - - 60 Tramandaí/Imbé 09-mar-2004 Milênio 17 - - - 10 Tramandaí/Imbé 09-mar-2004 Daniel I 16 to 20 - - - 60 Tramandaí/Imbé 17-jun-2004 Milênio 6 to 25 - - 1 Arctocephalus sp. and

1 Otaria byronia 423

Tramandaí/Imbé 21-jun-2004 Milênio 20 to 22 - - - 795

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Table 3. Data about franciscana dolphins incidentally caught and characteristics of the nets employed by fishing vessels of Tramandaí/Imbé and Torres/Passo de Torres. These specimens were carried to the port and collected for the researches of GEMARS. The specimen collected in June of 2004 was not yet autopsied.

Date Locality Latitude Longitude Total Length (cm) Sex Mass (Kg) Depth (meters)

Mesh size of nets (cm) Length of nets (nm) Name of fishing vessel

27 JUL 2003 - 29 17,2 49 32,2 118 M 21 - 10 1 Dom Filipi 14 AUG 2003 Torres 29 23,533 49 32,539 138 F 28,8 26 - 30 10 6 João Luiz III 27 AUG 2003 Cidreira 30 06,99 50 07,35 111,5 F 19,4 21 - 25 10 - Daniel I 02 OCT 2003 Tramandaí 30 05 50 08 123 F 23 16 - 20 10 2,7 Milênio 7 OCT 2003 Cidreira - - 136 M 24,2 - - - Vitória I 23 OCT 2003 - 29 46,88 49 58,21 123,9 F 20 - - - Gringo I 11 NOV 2003 - 29 29,79 49 48,05 128 M 22,7 - - - Talita I 2 DEC 2003 - 29 27,22 49 46,86 122 M 21,3 - - - Talita I 11 MAR 2004 Cidreira - - 142 F 32,6 - - - Milênio

MAR 2004 - - - 144,6 F 32,9 - - - Vitória I MAR 2004 - - - 130,4 M 22,6 - - - Vitória I MAR 2004 - - - 91,9 F 9 - - - Vitória I MAR 2004 - - - 92,5 M 10 - - - Vitória I - - 30 05,89 50 01,71 + 136 M 29,1 26 - 1,5 Talita I JUN 2004 - - - - - - 15 - 22 10 2,8 Milênio

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Table 4. Data about franciscana dolphins incidentally caught for fishing vessels of Tramandaí/Imbé and Torres/Passo de Torres but descarted offshore.

Number of franciscanas

captured Date Locality Latitude Longitude Depth (meters)

Mesh size of nets

(cm) Length of nets (nm)

Name of fishing vessel

1 12 JUN 2003 Rincão 28 53,461 49 15,159 26 - 30 10 2 Janaína 1 13 JUN 2003 Cidreira 30 06,07 50 08,21 21 - 25 10 2,7 Milênio 1 15 JUN 2003 Tramandaí 30 03,55 49 49,13 36 - 40 10 6 Talita I 1 15 JUN 2003 Arroio do Sal 29 34,24 49 39,18 31 - 35 10 4 Vilage I 1 20 JUN 2003 Arroio do Ssilva 29 06,64 49 30,08 16 - 20 10 4 Vilage I 1 23 JUN 2003 Cidreira 30 09,01 50 07,69 16 - 20 10 6 Talita L 1 03 JUL 2003 Capão da Canoa 29 47,16 49 43,97 31 - 35 10 4 Vilage I 1 03 JUL 2003 Capão da Canoa - Tramandaí 29 47,94 49 50,77 26 - 30 10 6 Talita I 1 08 JUL 2003 Tramandaí - - - - 21 - 25 10 2,7 Milênio 1 18 JUL 2003 Torres 29 28,22 49 26,48 + 40 10 4 Vilage I 1 20 JUL 2003 Arroio do Sal 29 36,99 49 43,52 26 - 30 10 4 Vilage I 1 23 JUL 2003 Camboriú 27 04,143 48 23,294 37 - 42 13 9,25 Boa Viagem IV 1 25 JUL 2003 Torres 29 17,20 49 32,20 - 10 1 Dom Filipi 1 25 JUL 2003 Torres 29 24,90 49 36,65 - 10 1 Dom Filipi 1 02 AUG 2003 Cidreira 30 05 50 08 21 - 25 10 2,7 Milênio 1 03 AUG 2003 Cidreira 29 05 50 06 21 - 25 10 2,7 Milênio 1 04 AUG 2003 Cidreira 30 02 51 05 21 - 25 10 2,7 Milênio 1 15 AUG 2003 Cidreira 30 06,99 50 07,35 21 - 25 10 4 Daniel I 1 13 AUG 2003 Torres 29 24,551 49 32,357 26 - 30 10 6 João Luiz III 1 13 AUG 2003 Rondinha 29 40,9 49 35,8 39 13 4 João Pedro I 1 21 AUG 2003 Campo Bom - Lage 28 49,00 49 01 36 - 40 13 11 João Pedro I 1 01 SEP 2003 São Francisco 26 36 48 11 47 13 11 João Pedro I 1 04 SEP 2003 Capão da Canoa 29 37,58 49 54,62 16 - 20 10 6 Talita I 1 28 SEP 2003 Tramandaí 30 07 49 57 31 - 35 13 11,5 João Pedro I 2 29 SEP 2003 Torres 29 24,61 49 37,30 29 13 10 Boa Viagem IV 2 30 SEP 2003 Arroio do Sal 29 31,746 49 35,850 31 13 10 Boa Viagem IV 1 01 OCT 2003 Capão da Canoa 29 46,621 49 50,412 28 13 9 Boa Viagem IV 1 01 OCT 2003 Capão da Canoa 29 42,39 49 48,60 26 - 30 13 6 Talita I 1 02 OCT 2003 Tramandaí 30 03,486 50 03,059 29 13 9 Boa Viagem IV 1 19 OCT 2003 Mostardas 30 22 50 56 16 - 20 13 12 João Pedro I 1 07 FEB 2004 - 29 43,05 49 52,91 - - - Talita I 2 10 FEB 2004 - 29 41,81 49 59,25 20 - - Talita I

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Table 5. List of the fish species captured during onboard surveys realized from June 2003 to July 2004 by the commercial fleet of Tramandaí/Imbé and Torres/Passo de Torres.

Class/Family Scientific name Common name Osteichthyes Ariidae Netuma barba Bagre Netuma planifrons Bagre Bothidae Paralichthys spp. Linguado Carangidae Parona signata Palometa Oliglopites spp. Guajuvira Trachinotus marginatus Pampo Trachinotus sp. Filipe Brevoortia pectinata Savelha Gadidae Urophycis brasiliensis Brota Pomatomidae Pomatomus saltatrix Anchova Scianidae Cynoscion guatucupa Pescada Cynoscion jamaicensis Pescada Macrodon ancylodon Pescadinha-amarela Menticirrhus litoralis Papa-terra Menticirrhus americanus Papa-terra Micropogonias furnieiri* Corvina Umbrina canosai Castanha Miracéu Chondrichthyes Carcharhinidadae Rhizoprionodon sp. Chumbinho Odontaspididae Odontaspis taurus Mangona Rhinobatidae Rhinobatos sp. Viola Sphyrnidae Sphyrna spp. Cambeva

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Figure 1. Map with indication of the fishery communities of the Torres/Passo de Torres and Tramandaí/Imbé.

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Figure 2. Researchers (left) talking with fisherman (right) in the harbour.

Figure 3. Researcher (right) interviewing fisherman (left) in the harbour.

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FICHA INDIVIDUAL DE EMBARCAÇÃO Boa Viagem IV - Passo de Torres

Mestre: Nego Diula Dono: Filipe (Torres pesca) Entrevistado: Sócio Data: No. IBAMA: No. Capitania: Características embarcação: Nomes anteriores: - Tamanho: 15,8 Armazenagem (toneladas): 25 Motor: Scania 180hp Equipamentos pesca: GPS, sonda Equipamentos comunicação: Rádio VHF e Px Autonomia: 12 média: 8 Litros de combustível: Consumo: No. de pescadores: 9 Petrechos de pesca: Comprimento (mn) altura (m) Redes 2002 Rede Anchova: 1,8 15-17 Rede Brota/pescada: 9 3 Rede corvina: 7,5 3 Rede cação boiada: 2 14 Rede cação boiada: 2 14 Espinhel: 7 1500 anzóis Foto:

Figure 4. Example of the standard spread sheet utilized in order to catalog specific information about the vessels.

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Grupo de Estudos de Mamíferos Aquáticos do Rio Grande do Sul

CADERNO DE BORDO – LITORAL NORTE DO RS Data da rede: Tipo de rede: ( ) Corvina ( ) Cação boiada ( ) Feiticeira ( ) Brota ( ) Cação de fundo ( ) Espinhel ( ) Pescada ( ) Anchova ( ) Outros ( ) Viola ( ) Papa-terra

Comprimento da rede: Tamanho da malha: Altura da rede: Local da pesca:

Posição no GPS: Início da rede Latitude (________________ S)

Longitude (________________ W)

Final da rede Latitude (________________ S)

Longitude (________________ W)

Profundidade: ( ) 5 – 10 m ( ) 26 – 30 m ( ) 11 – 15 m ( ) 31 – 35 m ( ) 16 – 20 m ( ) 36 – 40 m

( ) 21 – 25 m ( ) mais de 40 m Número de toninhas capturadas: ( ) nenhuma

( ) 1 ( ) 2 ( ) 3

Número de tartarugas capturadas: ( ) nenhuma ( ) 1 ( ) 2 ( ) 3 Total pescado em quilos:

Principais espécies de peixe capturadas:

Figure 5. Logbook sheet filled by vessels captains of the communities of Tramandaí/Imbé and Torres/Passo de Torres during fishery operations.

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Figure 6. Local where realized the autopsies of the franciscana dolphins incidentally

Figure 7. Researcher taking external measurements according to the AmericanSociety Mammalogists (Norris, 1961) in an incidentally caught franciscana dolphin.

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Figure 8. Photographs taken during the autopsy of an incidentally caught franciscana dolphin.

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Figure 9. Researcher (left) talking with fisherman’s family in the fisherman’s house.

Figure 10. Fisherman’s family watches digital photographs of the community in the television.

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Figure 11. Interview during repair of the nets.

Figure 12. Interview during repair of the boat.

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Figure 13. Fisherman with the garbage collected at the sea during fishery operation.

Figure 14. Fisherman (left) and researcher (right) talking about a marine turtle (Chelonia mydas) incidental caught during onboard survey.

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Franciscana abundance estimation 2

29

INTRODUCTION

The franciscana, Pontoporia blainvillei, has been experiencing an intense by-catch in gillnets in the coastal waters of Rio Grande do Sul coast, southern Brazil, for at least three decades (Praderi et al., 1989; Ott et al., 2002). The annual mortality of franciscanas in this region was estimated to be ranging from several hundreds up to around a thousand individuals (Ott et al., 2002; Secchi et al., 2003). The estimated mortality rates outnumber the potential rate of population increase, and the bycatcyh is much probably causing a population decline (Secchi, 1999; Kinas 2002). Therefore, the population inhabiting the coast of Rio Grande do Sul and Uruguay (Franciscana Management Area III, see Secchi et al., 2003) has been recently classified as Vulnerable by the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (Secchi & Wang, 2003). The Brazilian National Red List of Threatened Species categorized the franciscana as Endangered (IBAMA, 2002) and the Regional Red List of Rio Grande do Sul categorized it as Vulnerable (Danilewicz & Oliveira, 2003).

One of the highest research priorities for the franciscana is to estimate the species abundance. A first step on this direction was done in 1996 by Secchi et al. (2001). In this work, a small fraction of the franciscana distribution range (>1%) was surveyed with a single-engine airplane. The results pointed out a density of 0,657 franciscanas/km2 for a 435 km2 area. More recently, important advances on franciscana abundance estimation were made in Argentina using both vessel and aircraft as survey platfoms (Bordino et

al., ump.; Crespo et al., ump.). In order to produce a new abundance estimation of franciscanas in Rio Grande do Sul, we conducted an aerial survey in February 2004. In this chapter, we present the results of this survey.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

Study area and field methodology The survey was conducted along almost the entire coast of Rio Grande do Sul, from Torres (29o19'S,

49o43'W) to 31 km north to the border with Uruguay (33o17’S 052o46’W) (figure 1). The survey design followed a zig-zag pattern and transect lengths ranged from 22 to 26 kms (mean = 24 kms). Survey mean offshore limit was 27,9 kms (minimum of 22,2 and maximum 35,2 kms) and the overall area surveyed comprised 13771 km2. This area is about 31 times larger than the previous abundance study for Rio Grande do Sul.

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Surveys were undertaken only on sea conditions of Beaufort 3 or less. The research team had to remain mobilized in the field during ten days waiting for the proper weather conditions. The study area could be fully covered during two days of work (19 and 24 February).

A high-wing twin-engine Aerocommander was used as the survey platform (figure 2). The aircraft flew

at a constant altitude of 152,4m (500ft) and at about 165 km/h. In addition to the two pilots, a team of four researchers was present in the flights. The researchers rotated from left-side observer to the data recorder position, to right-side observer, and then to rest position. Rotations were carried out in the end of each transect, which lasted from six to ten minutes (mode = eight minutes). This aircraft was modified by replacing the flat rear windows with bubble windows to allow the rear observers to see directly underneath the plane.

Information on weather condition (glare, Beafort state, visibility) were collected by each observer in

the beginning of a transect or every time a change was noted. Visibility was scored on a scale of 1 (excellent) to 4 (very bad). Glare was noted as the percent of the observer search view that was impossibilitated by the sunglare. Communication among observer and data recorder was done through the airplane internal communication system. When a franciscana sighting occurred, the observer alerted the recorder to mark the time and the position on GPS (figure 3). Then the species, group size, and verticle angle taken by an inclinometer were immediately reported to the recorder.

Due to a previous accident during aerial surveys for franciscanas with part of the research team in

the region, it was decided to maintain permanent communication with the airplane by radio with a mobile station. The station was in a vehicle that followed the airplane by beach for most of the surveyed area. In case of any incident, this precaution would make the proper rescue measures to be taken faster and with more precision.

Data analysis The uncorrected density (g0=1) of franciscanas Dun was estimated by the standard line-transect

estimator (Buckland et al., 1993, 2001) Dun = [(n Es) / (2L EWS)],

where n was the number of sightings, E(s) the expected group size, L the total distance searched, ESW the effective search width. This first step of the analysis was done using the program DISTANCE 4.0.

31

Nevertheless, for marine mammal aerial surveys for abundance estimation, g0 is always lower than 1, and the corrected density Dcor = Dun x g0-1.

The probability to detect a franciscana cluster in the transect line (g0) is affected by both availability

bias (animals are submerged and can not be sighted) and perception bias (observer fail to detected an animal in the surface due to observer inexperience, fatigue, or adverse survey conditions such as glare or rough sea state) (Marsh & Sinclair, 1989). So, g0 = availability bias times perception bias. Availability bias may be estimated using the formulae provided by Barlow et al. (1988) and applied by the two former aerial survey studies for franciscanas:

Pr (being visible) = (s + t) / (s + d) where: s is the average time of franciscana being at the surface; d is the average time of franciscana

being submerged; and t is the time window during which the franciscana is within the visual range of an observer. Values of s (1.2 sec) and d (21.7 sec) were obtained from a study on ecology and behavior of franciscanas in Argentina by Bordino et al. (1999). The time window that a franciscana is at the surface to be detected by the observer was calculated by collecting this value from the aircraft for floating bodies at various distances. The values of time were then regressed against distance, and the resulting linear regression (y=0,0292x + 5,7723; R2=0,93) presented a time window of 5,77 seconds for an object in the transect line. In this manner, availability bias was calculated as 0,304. Since there was no independent observer in this study, a value of perception bias could not be calculated, and g0 = 0,304.

Three key functions (Uniform, half-normal, hazard rate) were tested with no adjustment term, and

with cosine, simple polynomial, and hermite polynomial adjustment terms. The best model to fit the data was selected through the analysis of the Akaike’s Information Criterion (AIC). To minimize the negative effect of sunglare on observer sightability, periods during the transect that had more than 80% of sunglare in the observer search view were discarded from the analysis.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

During the 48 transects and a total effort of 1256,8km, 31 franciscanas were observed in 25 groups. Twelve off-effort sightings made by the data recorder, between the end of one transect and the beginning of

32

the next one, or during displacements. Group size ranged from 1 to 5 individuals (figure 4). Mean on-effort and off-effort group size was 1,36 and 2, respectively.

Due to the few observations close to the trackline, data had to be left-truncated at 74m and the strip

width was specified as w = 254m. This procedure decrease the number of observations to 21. The model with the lowest AIC (56,14; Chi-p=0,87) was an uniform function with one cosine adjustment term (figure 5).

There was no significant relationship between group size and perpendicular distance (linear

regression; p.=0.66, r2=0,01). In order to improve our estimation of group size, we added to the analysys data on off-effort sightings. Since these records were made by the data recorder or between two transects, the observer probably had more time to visualize and estimate franciscana group size. Therefore, mean cluster size used in the analysis is 1.55.

The corrected abundance for the total surveyed area in Rio Grande do Sul is 7,044 franciscanas (CV

= 33,3% ; 95% CI = 3,828-13,000), giving a density of 0,51 franciscanas per km2. The distribution of franciscanas in relation to the distance from the shore is presented in figure 6. Sightings were distributed from the shoreline to 19.6 km offshore. About 60% of the sightings were located in waters less than 5nm offshore.

The overall abundance estimate of franciscanas in Rio Grande do Sul presented here is biased

downward. Because of the lack of a perception bias estimate, both this study and the one conducted by Crespo and colleagues assumed that all observers detected all franciscanas that were available in the transect line. This is clearly not true. Perception bias occur even in surveys working with very good sightability (very clear and calm water, conspicous species), such as hector dolphins, belugas and large whales. Unfortunately, the franciscana’s small size, noncompiscuos color pattern, and small group size are factors that contribute for an increase in this species perception bias.

Improvement of aerial-survey techniques is a high priority in franciscana populations research.

Studies attempting to estimate perception bias for franciscanas urges to be initiated and must be viewed as a priority before planning new aerial surveys. Since perception bias was probably the main factor influencing the franciscana abundance estimation in this study and in Argentina, development of correction procedures for this parameter must be initiated. The use of novel technology should be tested. This may include an attempt to use of videocamera in the airplane belly focused in the trackline, as well as to work with independent observers, in order to obtain an independent estimate of g(0),,

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Table 1. Detail of transects carried out and franciscana sightings from this study.

Date No. Transects Hours surveyed

Transect length (kms)

Groups observed

19/Feb (morning) 20 4:03 hs 557,5 8 19/Feb (afternoon) 8 1:28 hs 188,0 3 24/Feb (morning) 20 3:49 hs 511,3 14 Total 48 9:20 hs 1256,8 25

Table 2. Summary on parameter estimation and their confidence interval for franciscana abudance estimation in Rio Grande do Sul. Estimate % CV 95% Confidence Interval ESW 83 24,8 49,7 138,7 f (0) 0,012 24,8 0,072 0,02 Encouter rate 0,016 26,56 0,01 0,028 Dun (g0=1) 0,16 0,064 0,274 Nun 2305 37,6 1115 4759 D (g0=0,305) 0,51 0,260 0,929 N 7028 3580 12793

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Figure 1. Map of the study area with the transects conducted during the aerial survey. Figure 2. Twin-engine airplane Aerocommander utilized as survey platform for franciscanas in Rio Grande do Sul.

35

Figure 3. Data recorder taking standard data for franciscana abundance survey.

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

1 2 3 4 5

Group size

Rel

ativ

e fre

quen

ce

Figure 4. Relative frequence of franciscana group size sighted in Rio Grande do Sul.

36

0,0

5,0

10,0

15,0

20,0

25,0

30,0

35,0

40,0

45,0

50,0

0 a 5 5 a 10 10 a 15 15 a 20

Distance from the shore (km)

perc

ent o

f fra

ncis

cana

sig

htin

g

Figure 6. Relationship between distance from the shore and percent of franciscana sightings.

0,0

0,1

0,2

0,3

0,4

0,5

0,6

0,7

0,8

0,9

1,0

0 50 100 150 200 250 300

Perpendicular distance in meters

Figure 5. Detection probability function of franciscanas sightings.

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REFERENCES

Bordino, P., Albareda, D. and Fidalgo,G. (Umpublished) Abundance estimation of Franciscana dolphin Pontoporia

blainvillei from boat surveys in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Crespo, E.A., Pedraza, S.N., Grandi, M.F., Dans, S.L. And Garaffo, G. (Umpublished) Abundance Of Franciscana

Dolphins, Pontoporia Blainvillei, In The Argentine Coast , From Aerial Surveys J. Cetacean Res. Manage. Danilewicz, D. and Oliveira, L. 2003. Cetáceos. Pages 535-545 In: Fontana, C., Reis, R., Bencke, G. (Eds.) Livro

Vermelho da Fauna do Rio Grande do Sul Ameaçada de Extinção. Editora da PUCRS. 632 pp. Porto Alegre. IBAMA. 2002. Lista Nacional das Espécies da Fauna Brasileira Ameaçadas de Extinção. Avaiable from

http://www.mma.gov.br/port/sbf/fauna/index.cfm Kinas, P.G. 2002. The impact of incidental kills by gillnets on the franciscana dolphin (Pontoporia blainvillei) in southern

Brazil. Journal of Marine Science. Ott, P. H., E. R. Secchi, I. B. Moreno, I.B., D. Danilewicz, E. A. Crespo, P. Bordino, R. Ramos, A, P. Di Beneditto, C.

Bertozzi, R. Bastida, R. Zanelatto, J. Perez, and P. G. Kinas. 2002. Report of the working group of fishery interactions. LAJAM (special issue) 1:55-64.

Praderi, R., Pinedo, M. C. and Crespo, E. A. (1989) Conservation and management of Pontoporia blainvillei in

Uruguay, Brazil and Argentina. Pages 52-55 in Perrin, W. F., Brownell, R. L., Zhou, K. and Liu, J. (Eds.) Biology and Conservation of the River Dolphins. Occas. Pap. IUCN SSC 3.

Secchi, E.R. 1999. Taxa de crescimento potencial intrínseco de um estoque de franciscanas, Pontoporia blainvillei

(Gervais & D'Orbigny, 1846) (Cetacea, Pontoporiidae) sob o impacto da pesca costeira de emalhe. Master Thesis. Fundação Universidade Federal do Rio Grande. Rio Grande, RS. 152pp.

Secchi, E.R., Ott, P.H., Crespo, E.A., Kinas, P.G., Pedraza, S.N., and Bordino, P. 2001. A first estimate of franciscana

(Pontoporia blainvillei) abundance off southern Brazil. J. Cetacean Res. Manage., 3, 95-100. Secchi, E.R., Ott, P.H. and Danilewicz, D. 2003. Effects of fishing bycatch and the conservation status of the

franciscana dolphin, Pontoporia blainvillei. Pages 174-191 in Gales N., Hindell, M. and Kirkwood, R. (Eds) Marine Mammals: Fisheries, Tourism and Management Issues. SCIRO Publishing. Collingwood. Australia.

Secchi, E.R. and J.Y. Wang 2003. Pontoporia blainvillei (Rio Grande do Sul/Uruguay subpopulation). In: 2003 IUCN

Red List of Threatened Species. <www.redlist.org>. Downloaded on 02 April 2004.

Environmental education 3

39

INTRODUCTION

Environmental education fosters the development of ecological knowledge, awareness of issues and how to

solve them, and motivation to work toward environmental quality. A major goal is to build within learners and intention to act, which is seen as the most dependable precursor to environmentally responsible behavior (Fortner, 1991). According to theory and practice, environmental education topics that are appropriate to the curriculum can be infused in the existing curriculum if they are acceptable to teachers. New curriculum restructure in science and geography may offer some opportunities for aquatic resource education. The best environmental education is interdisciplinary, uses strong science, is implemented using active, cooperative learning, and is extended through service learning or field activities. Getting aquatic resource education into schools through environmental education can be accomplished by meeting teachers' needs for topics, having appropriate curriculum material, and delivering them through a strong program of teacher education (Fortner, 1985).

Since the 1970’s, when the Brazilian Government establish the Secretaria Especial do Meio Ambiente –

SEMA – it was stimulated the development of environmental education and an increase in the number of professionals involved in this area. In 1987, the Education and Culture Ministry (Ministerio da Educação e Cultura – MEC) approved the inclusion of the environmental education in the traditional classroom curricula. However, this kind of discipline was only implemented in few schools and most of the teachers did not receive regular support to be able to teach environmental education and present to their students the local environmental problems.

In the northern Rio Grande do Sul coast, there is an important reference center in environmental educational ,

the Centro de Estudos Costeiros, Limnológicos e Marinhos (CECLIMAR) of Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul. This center is located in the city of Imbé and has been supporting the local schools since 1978, providing museums exhibitions, short term courses and other important resources for environmental education. Each year the CECLIMAR has been receiveing more than 30,000 visitors. Since 1992 the GEMARS have developed with CECLIMAR several educational activities using marine mammals as symbols for marine ecosystem protection. This chapter presents the results of the activities related to the environmental education conducted by GEMARS staff during the 2003-2004 period.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

Activities such as like lectures, exhibitions, art workshops and short term courses, with different focuses and for different target-public were elaborated to the accomplishment of the program of Environmental Education of

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GEMARS. The aim of this program are: explain and inform the coastal community, mainly the childrem that live in the region, about the critical situation of franciscana dolphin (Pontoporia blainvillei) and its conservation threatness. In this sense our program of Environmental Education was intensified in two cities of northern coast of Rio Grande do Sul which have important fishermen communities in their region. The activities were developed in the cities of Tramandaí/Imbé and Torres/Passo de Torres.

Lectures The lectures were presented using PowerPoint ® and slides, in order to avoid lost of quality due to logistic

and estrutucral problems at CECLIMAR and some visited schools. All lectures presented what is the coastal ecosystem, its peculiar characteristics, typical fauna and flora besides the human use. Afterwards, it was presented the negative consequences of the coastal habitats degradation and some used mitigatory actions. At the end of the lecture was presented all GEMARS´ actions for the conservation of aquatic mammals in the northern coast of Rio Grande do Sul since 1991.

Exhibitions Since 2002, GEMARS members prepared a pemanent exhibition at Natural History Museum of CECLIMAR.

This exhibition consisted in a several audiovisual materials about biology, research and conservation of aquatic mammals and sea turtles in Rio Grande do Sul coast. Biological materials such as skulls, bucal bristles, fetuses of marine mammals besides carapace and plastron of marine turttles are presented in this exhibition. Videos and panels are also presented in the exhibition. At the same place at Natural History Museum of CECLIMAR, children and pre-adolescents visitors are invited to accomplish recreation activities, such as reading books about marine mammals, playing games (bingo) watching videos and discussing the biology and the natural history of the local species in order to motivate the learning about aquatic mammals, throught out discussions on, questioning about videos, , play (hunting-words and models) and artistic manifestations (paintings and free drawings).

Art workshops In the art workshops, materials were made available as clay, papers of different colors and sizes, colored

pencil and pens, wax chalk, paints and brushes for the children free activity. Initially, a simple explanation was accomplished about the origin, adaptations and diversity of the aquatic mammals, enlightened with books and biological materials. The role of the person responsible for the activity was just to coordinate the distribution of the material and to guide it use, avoiding the waste and/or any accident. The material created by the students was used to substitute those exposed in the permanent exhibition of GEMARS, in the Museum of Natural Science of the Center of Coastal, Limnological and Marine Studies (Ceclimar), in Imbé.

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Short term courses The courses were elaborated with eight hours of duration, in two consecutive days during the summer

vacations, in the Summer Program of Ceclimar. Besides the slides, other audio-visual materials were used, as biological material (skulls of cetaceans and pinipeds and buccal bristles of whales), sub-aquatics sounds of cetaceans (dolphins and whales), drawings to color and game of hunt-words.

Contents

The items approached in the activities and the methodology of presentation were defined according the age group and the public's previous knowledge of the subject. Depending on the available time, stagings were accomplished with the children about the possible animal behavior in certain stress situations. The project "Conservation and Biology of the fransciscana dolphin Pontoporia blainvillei" was approached from way to touch the children and adolescents for the gravity of the accidental captures in our coast, at the same time that to eulogize the participation and cooperation of the fishermen in the project. At the end, all are invite to unite themselves in the fight for a better environment, being emphasized that any change of behavior, for minor that seems, in the whole makes a great difference.

RESULTS

Between 2003, June and 2004, July, 25 lectures were accomplished, 1 workshop, 1 course and 3 education/recreation activities in a temporary exhibition.

The lectures reached a total public of 1.366 students, between 4 and 25 years old. The workshop, offered

during the summer vacations in CECLIMAR, received 11 students from 5 to 13 years. Besides this, GEMARS accomplished more 2 courses to university, with a total of 106 graduation students in biology or veterinary, with duration of one week (23h), which approached the biology and conservation of cetaceans in a more scientific level. A temporary exhibition was accomplished, with duration of one month, in the organized stand for Ceclimar in an annual free market (Anchovy’s Party III) that happens at September in the north coast to motivate the consumption of fish of the harvest. In this exhibition, the public visitor was of approximately 100 people a day, but activities were accomplished with the children visitors in 3 days of larger movement of the exhibition (weekends), reaching 130 children and adolescents, from 2 to 15 years.

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In the period of March to July of 2004 activities of production of didactic material were prioritized for use in the lectures, as puppets theater (puppets and sceneries), drawings for painting, adolescents course and training course of human resources for the environmental education, towards biology, veterinary or similar areas students.

FINAL CONSIDERATIONS

GEMARS possesses a project to stimulate the involvement of the coastal communities' children and adolescents to identify the local environmental problems, learning how to classify and to quantify the impact, to determine the existence and the social actors involved in the environmental conflict, to propose suggestions of mitigation of the impacts and to organize claim campaigns against the responsible. This project suggests the organization of students' groups with common interests in the improvement of the local environmental quality, project that GEMARS intends to convenant with some interested schools in the coastal communities starting from 2005. To continuity of the environmental education program and execution of these new ones proposed, it becomes essential the renewal of the present project.

REFERENCES

Fortner, R.W. 1985. Relative effectiveness of classroom and documentary film presentations on marine mammals. Journal of Research in Science Teaching 21(2): 115-126.

Fortner, R.W. 1991. The scope of research in marine and aquatic education, 1975-90. Environmental

Communicator, July-August, 4-5.

Table 1. Data about environmental education activities realized in Rio Grande do Sul north coast, between 2003, June and 2004, July.

Activity Total number Total public Average Public Total time

Lectures 25 1366 54.64 21h20 Temporary exhibitions 1 130 43.33 13h30 Art workshops 1 11 11 4h Courses 1 117 39 31h

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Figure 1. Lecture about coastal ecosystems and aquatic mammals to public high school students from the northern Rio Grande do Sul coast.

Figure 2. Lecture about coastal ecosystems and aquatic mammals realized to public schools’ students of Torres.

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Figure 3. Lecture about coastal ecosystems and aquatic mammals realized to public and poor schools students of Imbé.

Figure 4. Lecture about coastal ecosystems and aquatic mammals conducted to public and poor schools students of Imbé.

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Figure 5. Stagings and interpretation during environmental education activities carried out in CECLIMAR.

Figure 6. Lecture about coastal ecosystems and aquatic mammals carried out towards public school students.

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Figure 7. Lecture about coastal ecosystems and aquatic mammals realized to little scouts during the environmental education activities.

Figure 8 – Activities of free drawing, painting and sculpture with clay done during the summer to fisherman’ communities children and north coast vacationer, in CECLIMAR.

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Figure 9. Drawing sent by child after environmental education activities of GEMARS, in Imbé.

Figure 10. Drawing sent by child after environmental education activities of GEMARS, in Imbé.

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Figure 11. Painting done by a child during environmental education activities in the “Anchovy’s Party III”, in Imbé.

Figure 12. Painting realized by child during environmental education activities in the “Anchovy’s Party III”, in Imbé.

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Annex 1. Table for registration of the scholar groups.

EDUCAÇÃO AMBIENTAL

REGISTRO DE ATIVIDADES Nº:

Data: Horário: Duração: Evento: Local: Tema: Promoção: Ministrante: Auxiliar(es): Imagens: fotos: ______________________________ digital papel vídeos: _____________________________ Material utilizado: Descrição das atividades: DADOS CADASTRAIS

Instituição: Rede: municipal estadual federal particular Outra: ______________ Cidade: Telefone: ( ) Série/Grau: _________/___ Idades: Nº Alunos: Nº Acompanhantes: Prof. Responsável: Retorno: Observações:

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Pontoporia blainvillei TONINHA

Anne

x 2. D

rawi

ng to

paint

ing on

envir

onme

ntal e

duca

tion a

ctivit

ies.

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Annex 3. Model to children to set up in environmental education activities; Tursiops truncatus.

Maquete: BOTO

Realização:

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Annex 4. Model to children to set up in environmental education activities; Orcinus orca

OLHO DIREITO

OLHO ESQUERDO

BOCA

SELA

NADADEIRA DORSAL

NADADEIRA CAUDAL

NADADEIRA PEITORAIS

Maquete: ORCA

Realização:

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Annex 5 and 6. Examples of games “bingo” to play with children in environmental education activities.

BINGO Cartela Nº 1

DUNAS MARIA-FARINHA BUGIO BRASIL E MALVINAS

LINHA DE MARÉ TONINHA COR DA BARRIGA BOTO

DOZE HORAS LAGOA RESTINGA DESMATAMENTO

PLATAFORMA CONTINENTAL ILHA DOS LOBOS ESGOTO

DOMÉSTICO BANHADO

BINGO Cartela Nº 2

DOZE HORAS FALTA DE ÁGUA BARRA VENTO

LINHA DE MARÉ TONINHA DUNAS PLATAFORMA CONTINENTAL

LIXO FALÉSIAS RESTINGA BOTO

MARIA-FARINHA ILHA DOS LOBOS LEÃO-MARINHO BANHADO

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Annex 7. Maze to little children, evidencing the marine life.

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poio:

1. Golfinho ameaçado de extinção no Atlântico Sul (7 letras); 2. Principal causa da morte de pequenos cetáceos (16 letras); 3. Instrumento utilizado pelos pescadores, responsável pela alta

mortalidade de toninhas (4 letras); 4. Baleia comum no litoral do Rio Grande do Sul e Santa Catarina,

presente na lista de espécies ameaçadas (12 letras); 5. Maior animal do mundo (10 letras); 6. Tartaruga que ocorre em todo litoral brasileiro e possui um bico

córneo, grande e muito forte (17 letras); 7. Maior tartaruga marinha e a única que não possui um casco de

placas (16 letras); 8. Principal responsável pela crise pesqueira (10 letras); 9. Instrumento utilizado pelos pesquisadores para observar cetáceos

ao longe (8 letras); 10. Instrumento utilizado pelos pesquisadores para projetar um dardo

de coleta de pele de baleias (8 letras); 11. Principal alimento das grandes baleias na Antártica (5 letras); 12. Órgão responsável pelo direcionamento das ondas sonoras

produzidas pelos cetáceos na ecolocalização (5 letras); 13. Nome dado aos membros adaptados ao mergulho em cetáceos

(10 letras); 14. Baleia da família dos golfinhos, ocorrente no mundo todo e

conhecida por se alimentar de outros mamíferos marinhos (4 letras); 15. Baleia caçada no Japão, comum no litoral brasileiro (5 letras); 16. Pinípede freqüentemente avistado na Ilha dos Lobos em Torres,

RS, principalmente durante o inverno (11 letras); 17. Trabalho necessário para evitar a redução ou extinção das

populações de animais marinhos (11 letras); 18. Ave marinha, não voadora, freqüentemente encontrada no litoral

do Rio Grande do Sul (7 letras); 19. Instrumento utilizado para caçar baleias (5 letras); 20. Trabalho indispensável para o conhecimento das espécies, dos

impactos e, conseqüentemente, para a elaboração de planos de conservação (8 letras);

Principal alimento da tartaruga de couro (8 letras).

T O N I N H A C P X I T A R T S E L A B A S O P L L M D A C T A G W C O E A S A R Y L U F B S L R F K R I L L R R T P L T A E S I B C A P E S T D E O M I N K E A R M V G A H J A P C A H C L T D E A I R E S P Z L E A O M A R I N H O E D C A U V U D R E H C A I J U B A T L N I K F G R C E M I B E P I N G U I M P O C E R A P Q E D A C F F K P A E R B W Q A T A D E G T V A R Z Ç O D C C M A T J A L N E F U A U Z X E A G U A V I V A F R G C C R Q C N U S K U L Y B C B A P P U Y A O J N S R L N A D A D E I R A S D T Ç L U J O E T E W G B M T Ç Q E S A T P J I R I P P B C H J E R Ç U B M I N R A T K O S R E D E R T I P A D D T U H A C R O T S A R J U D Q N A L A V Z Q T J Ç E S K B I B I N O C U L O C I E S U M C V T A L W O W U L Y T E R D Q B E R P T U N C O N S E R V A Ç A O O Y B P X E I P N

RESPOSTAS: 1. toninha; 2. captura acidental; 3. rede; 4. baleia franca; 5. baleia azul; 6. tartaruga cabeçuda; 7. tartaruga de couro; 8. sobrepesca; 9. binóculo; 10. balestra; 11. krill; 12. melon; 13. nadadeiras; 14. orca; 15. minke; 16. leão-marinho; 17. conservação; 18. pingüim; 19. arpão; 20. pesquisa; 21. água-viva.

Annex 8. Hunt-words to adolescents learning about the marine life.

Records of marine mammals and sea turtles 4

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INTRODUCTION The knowledge about marine mammals in Brazilian waters has been growing significantly in these last

years. Besides this improvement, much information on the biology and conservation threats of these species in Brazil

relays poorly studied. The mayor conservation problem of this group is related to incidental mortality of marine mammals and sea turtles in fishery gillnets along the coastal waters of Brazil, as well as theirs interactions with

coastal fishery activity (Perrin et al., 1994; Ott et al., 1996). The GEMARS and CECLIMAR/UFRGS, are developing since 1991, a project to produce information about general biology and patterns of distribution of marine mammals in northern Rio Grande do Sul State coast.

The study area is in Subtropical Convergence zone and presents an influence of two currents: the Brazilian

Current, transporting tropical water (temperature > 20oC, salinity > 36.00%) during the summer period, and the cold and low salinity Malvinas Current transporting subantarctic waters (temperature 4 to 15oC, salinity 33.70 to 34.15%) as well as continental waters of the La Plata River and the Lagoa dos Patos Lagoon, during the winter months (Seeliger et al., 1997). The seasonality of the currents and the geographic localization make the northern Rio Grande do Sul state coast one of the most important areas to biological richness of marine mammals in the Brazilian coast. In this chapter, we present a complete report of all marine mammals and sea turtles found stranded in northern Rio Grande do Sul State coast between June 2003 and July 2004.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

Beach surveys Systematic beach surveys were conducted in the northern Rio Grande do Sul State coast, southern Brazil,

along 271 km of sandy beaches from Torres (29º19’S; 49º42’W) to National Park of Lagoa do Peixe (31º21’S; 51º02W) (Figure 1). The surveyed area encompasses the whole northern coast of Rio Grande do Sul and the northern portion of the Mostardas’ Peninsula. The beaches were surveyed using a vehicle at speed of 40km/h with two to six observers (Figure 2).

In the field, each specimen had the sex determined, the standard length recorded and, whenever possible, the

external measurements and photos were taken according to the American Society of Mammalogists (Norris 1961) (Figure 3 and 4). At least the skull was collected as a “voucher” material. A series of samples and information were collected according to the general condition of the carcass. Whole stomachs and tissue samples for contaminants analyses were removed and frozen. In the laboratory, stomach contents were washed through a 1mm mesh sieve and preserved in 70% ethanol. The gonads were collected and fixed in 10% formalin as well tissues samples for

58

histopathology analyses. Parasites specimens were preserved in 70% ethanol and samples for DNA in 96% ethanol or DMSO.

The rarest species had whole carcass collected. The ribs were counted in the field for both left and right sides.

The first caudal vertebra was defined as the first vertebrae with a chevron immediately posterior to its caudal epiphysis and labeled in the field. The block of approximately 10 last caudal vertebrae was removed from the carcass and stored in water to avoid missing. Vertebral counts and cranial measurements and meristics followed Perrin (1975). All material collected was deposited in the scientific collection of the Grupo de Estudos de Mamíferos Aquáticos do Rio Grande do Sul (GEMARS), Porto Alegre, Brazil.

Alive animals and community phone callings The Centro de Estudos Costeiros, Limnológicos e Marinhos of UFRGS is a reference center in marine coastal

environmental research in northern Rio Grande do Sul state coast. In this sense, CECLIMAR receives many phone callings in order to rescue alive or collect dead animals stranded on the beach. When a small marine mammal (dolphin, porpoise or fur seal) or a sea turtle was reported stranded on the beach, a technician crew from CECLIMAR goes to the area to evaluate the situation of the animal. If the animal was dead it is removed to CECLIMAR where the GEMARS researchers will study their biology using the same procedure to stranded animals found on the beach. If the marine mammal or sea turtle is a large animal or is stranded far away from CECLIMAR installations, GEMARS researchers collect the information directly in the stranding beach.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Beach surveys Between June 2003 and July 2004, 13 beach surveys were done in the Northern Rio Grande do Sul state

coast, between the National Park of Lagoa do Peixe and Torres. In this period a total of 1.455 km (average= 111.92m/ each trip) were recovered. Two hundred and seventy nine specimens of marine mammals and sea turtles were collected. All specimens were deposited in the scientific collection of GEMARS, representing 13 cetaceans, three pinnipeds and four sea turtles species. Cetaceans were responsible for 25.7%.The family Pontoporiidae was the most frequent, 89.5% of the recorded species (n=60) followed by the family Delphinidae (n=3; 4.5%). The Odontoceti Sub-order was responsible for 94.0% of the total of the cetaceans and the rest were represented by Balaenopteridae (n=3; 4.5%) and Balaenidae (n=1; 1.5%) families. Among the pinnipeds, a total of 98 specimens were collected (58.9% of the total number of marine mammals). Most of the records were otariid seals (n=98; 100% of the pinnipeds). Sea turtles were represented by four species of two families: Cheloniidae (96%) (Caretta caretta

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n=67, 68.4%; Chelonia mydas n=26, 26.5%; Lepidochelys olivacea n=1, 1%), and Dermochelyidae (4%) (Dermochelys coriacea n=4, 4.1%). The stranded rate was 4.6 cetaceans/100Km (4.3 dontoceti/100km and 0.3 misticeti/100km), 6.6 pinnipeds/100Km and 6.7 turtles/100km. Regarding all marine mammals species recorded, the obtained rate was 17.9 animals founded to each 100Km of recovered beaches (Table 1).

The great marine mammal diversity in Rio Grande do Sul state coast is related to the high productivity in the

region and to the different water currents which allow the presence of species from tropical, subtropical and temperate environments. For many of the recorded species in this region the Rio Grande do Sul coast represents their southern or northern limit of distribution, and for this reason being recorded just eventually and/or seasonality (Ott & Danilewicz, 1996; Pinedo et al., 2002).

Besides the great diversity of marine mammals in the region, two species were responsible for 85.3% (n=139)

of all records (n=163) (beach surveys, strand alive and callings) in this period: Pontoporia blainvillei (n=60) (Figure 5) and Arctocephalus australis (n=79) (Figure 6). The major occurrence of these species in our coast probably is due to distinct factors associated to distribution, abundance and mainly to interactions with the fishery activities. In this sense, P. blainvillei is remarkable the most frequent species found stranded in the region due to its coastal distribution. This fact is also related to high levels of incidental captures of this species in gillnets. The franciscana dolphin does not have commercial value; in this sense fishermen removed the dead animals from the nets and release them in the ocean. Afterwards these animals were taken to the beach by winds and marine currents. The specimens of South American fur seal (Arctocephalus australis) breed at the Uruguayan coast and leave their breeding colonies during the austral winter months. In this period, most of them reach our coast, mainly the young ones. The mortality of this species is very high in the first year, and many animals die in Rio Grande do Sul State coast due bad nutrition conditions and respiratory diseases (Pinedo, 1990). The occurrence of pinnipeds in the Rio Grande do Sul coast is related to post breeding movements from their reproductive colonies in cold and temperate waters in Uruguay and Argentina (Pinedo, 1990).

There are seven species of sea turtles worlwide, grouped in two families: the Cheloniidae and the

Dermochelyidae (Pritchard 1984). These species do large migrations all over the world (Lutz, 1996). Researchers still cannot fully explain this fantastic ability to migrate with such precision. It is known that the reproductive cycle of turtles can repeat in intervals of one, two, three, or more years, the exact number depending on the species and environmental conditions, particularly the distance between feeding and nesting grounds. Five species can be found in the waters along the whole coasts of Brazil (Lema, 1990; Nakashima et al., 2000). But in this period (from June 2003 to July 2004) four of them were reported in this area, Caretta caretta (Loggerhead sea turtle), Chelonia mydas (Green sea turtle), Dermochelys coriacea (Leatherback sea turtle) and Lepidochelys olivacea (Olive Ridley sea

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turtle). Only juveniles and sub-adults specimens inhabit the northern of Rio Grande do Sul State coast (Figure 7 and 8). This area is a feeding and development ground for these species. Eretmochelys imbricata, or commonly called Hawksbill sea turtle, was the only specie that not reported in this period.

Live animals and callings Between 2003 and 2004, local habitants, local city halls employees, military guard and tourists reported the

presence of dead and eventually live animals (Figure 9) to the CECLIMAR. In this period, a total of eight specimens were collected to the GEMARS collection. The franscicana dolphin was the most frequent species in records (n=4; 26.7%) followed by the South American fur seal (Arctocephalus australis) (n=3; 20%) and the Long-Finned pilot whale (Globicephala melas) (n=2; 13.3%). Other three species of marine mammals were recorded with just one specimen each, Atlantic-Spotted-dolphin (Stenella frontalis), Arnoux’s Beaked whale (Berardius arnuxii), Fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus) and just two species of sea turtles, Caretta caretta (n=3; 20%) and Chelonia mydas (n=3; 20%) stranded alive on the coast. One specimen of Chelonia mydas had a tag identification of TAMAR’s Project (Figure 10) and brought to us more information about growth and migration habits.

REFERENCES Lema, T. & Ferreira, M.T.S. 1990. Contribuição ao conhecimento dos Testudines do Rio Grande do Sul (Brasil) - Lista

sistemática comentada (Reptilia). Acta biol. leopoldensia, v. 12, n. 1, p. 125-164. Lutz, P.L. & Musick, J.A. 1996. The biology of sea turtles. CRC Marine Science Series, New York, USA. 432pp. Nakashima, S.B., Dutra, L.F., Silva, F.H., Trigo, C.C., Borges-Martins, M., Moreno, I.B. & Danilewicz, D. 2001. Padrões de

ocorrência de tartarugas marinhas no litoral norte do Rio Grande do Sul. In: V Congresso de Ecologia do Brasil. Resumos..., Porto Alegre.

Norris, K. S. 1961. Standardized methods for measuring and recording data on the smaller cetaceans. American Society of

Mammalogy. Journal of Mammalogy. 42: 471-476. Ott, P. H & Danilewicz, D.S. 1996. Southward extension range of Steno bredanensis in the Southwest Atlantic and new record

of Stenella coeruleoalba for Brazilian waters. Aquatic Mammals, 22(3): 185-189. Ott, P. H, Moreno, I.B., Danilewicz, D.S. &. Oliveira, L.R 1996. Leões-marinhos (Otaria flavescens) e a pesca costeira no sul do

Brasil: Uma análise preliminar das Competições e conflitos. In: Anais da 7a Reunión de Trabajo de Especialistas en Mamíferos Acuáticos de América del Sur, 22-25 de outubro. Viña del Mar, Chile. pg. 62.

Pinedo, M.C. 1990. Ocorrência de pinípedes na costa brasileira. Garcia Orta Sér. Zool., Lisboa, 15(2): 37-48. Pinedo, M.C., Barreto, A.S., Lammardo, M.P., Andrade, A.L.V. and Geracitano, L. 2002. Northernmost records of the spectacled

porpoise, Layard's beaked whale, Commerson's dolphin, and Peale's dolphin in the southwestern Atlantic Ocean. Aquatic Mammals 28(1): 32-37.

Perrin, W. F. 1975. Variation of spotted and spinner porpoise (Genus Stenella) in the Eastern Tropical Pacific and Hawaii.

Bulletin of the Scrips Institution of Oceanography 21: 1-206.

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Perrin, W.F., Donavan, G.P. and Barlow, J. 1994. Introduction, in: W.F. Perrin; G.P. Donavan and J. Barlow, (eds). Gillnets and Cetaceans. Rep. Int. Whal. Commn. (Special Issue 15).

Pritchard, P.C.H. & Trebbau, P. 1984. The Turtles of Venezuela. Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles, 414 p., 48

ilustr., 16 mapas. Seeliger, U; Odebrecht, C. & Castello, J. P. 1997. Subtropical Convergence Enviroments - The Coast and Sea in the

Southwestern Atlantic. Germany. Ed Springer. 308 pp.

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Table 1., Marine mammals and sea turtles found stranded at northern Rio Grande do Sul State coast, between June 2003 and July 2004 (beach surveys, alive and calling).

Taxa Number of collected animals

% of strandings

Rate of findings (animals/100km)

CETACEANS - Odontoceti Delphinidae Tursiops truncatus 2 0,72% 0,14 Stenella coeruleoalba 1 0,36% 0,07 Stenella frontalis 1 0,36% 0,07 Globicephala melas 2 0,72% 0,14

∑ 6 2,16% 0,41 Pontoporiidae Pontoporia blainvillei 64 22,9% 4,39

∑ 64 22,9% 4,39 Ziphiidae Berardius arnuxii 1 0,36% 0,07

∑ 1 0,36% 0,07 - Mysticeti Balaenidae Eubalaena australis 1 0,36% 0,07 Balaenopteridae Balaenoptera acutorostrata 2 0,72% 0,14 Balaenoptera edeni 1 0,36% 0,07 Balaenoptera physallus 1 0,36% 0,07

∑ 5 1,8% 0,34 PINNIPEDS - Otariidae Arctocephalus australis 82 29,4% 5,63 Arctocephalus tropicalis 8 2,9% 0,55 Otaria flavescens 9 3,2% 0,62

∑ 99 35,5% 6,80 SEA TURTLES - Cheloniidae Caretta caretta 70 25,0% 4,81 Chelonia mydas 29 10,4% 1,99 Lepidochelys olivacea 1 0,3% 0,07

∑ 100 35,8% 6,87 - Dermochelyidae Dermochelys coriacea 4 1,4% 0,27

∑ 4 1,4% 0,27 TOTAL 279 100% 19,17

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Figure 1. Map with indication of the study area where were conducted systematics beach surveys between June 2003 and July 2004.

Figure 2. Northern Rio Grande do Sul State coast and the utilitarian vehicle used to collect stranded marine mammals and sea turtles.

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Figure 3. Collecting measurement data from a stranded cetacean found at northern Rio Grande do Sul State coast.

Figure 4. Collecting biological data from dead pinnipeds found at northern Rio Grande do Sul State coast.

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Figure 5. Franciscana dolphin (Pontoporia blainvillei) found stranded during a beach survey in Rio Grande do Sul coast.

Figure 6. Fur seal (Arctocephalus australis) found stranded during a beach survey in Rio Grande do Sul coast.

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Figure 7. Marine turtle (Chelonia mydas) found stranded during a beach survey in Rio Grande do Sul coast.

Figure 8. Sea turtle (Caretta caretta) found stranded during a beach survey in Rio Grande do Sul coast.

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Figure 9. Fur seal sighted during a beach survey in Rio Grande do Sul coast.

Figure 10. Marine turtle (Chelonia mydas), with a tag identification of TAMAR’s Project, found stranded in Rio Grande do Sul coast.