behavioural responses of dusky dolphin groups (lagenorhynchus obscurus) to tour vessels off kaikoura, new zealand昏暗的海豚的行为反应组(lagenorhynchus obscurus)参观舰艇凯库拉,新西兰.pdfVIP

Behavioural Responses of Dusky Dolphin Groups (Lagenorhynchus obscurus) to Tour Vessels off Kaikoura, New Zealand 1 1 ¨ 2 David Lundquist *, Neil J. Gemmell , Bernd Wursig 1 Department of Anatomy, University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand, 2 Department of Marine Biology, Texas AM University at Galveston, Galveston, Texas, United States of America Abstract Background: Commercial viewing and swimming with dusky dolphins (Lagenorhynchus obscurus) near Kaikoura, New Zealand began in the late 1980s and researchers have previously described changes in vocalisation, aerial behaviour, and group spacing in the presence of vessels. This study was conducted to assess the current effects that tourism has on the activity budget of dusky dolphins to provide wildlife managers with information for current decision-making and facilitate development of quantitative criteria for management of this industry in the future. Methodology/Principal Findings: First-order time discrete Markov chain models were used to assess changes in the behavioural state of dusky dolphin pods targeted by tour vessels. Log-linear analysis was conducted on behavioural state transitions to determine whether the likelihood of dolphins moving from one behavioural state to another changed based on natural and anthropogenic factors. The best-fitting model determined by Akaike Information Criteria values included season, time of day, and vessel presence within 300 m. Interactions with vessels reduced the proportion of time dolphins spent resting in spring and summer and increased time spent milling in all seasons except autumn. Dolphins spent more time socialising in spring and summer, when conception occurs and calves are born, and the proportion of time spent resting was highest in summe