The Snubfin Dolphin Conservation Project (SDCP) has a strong focus on conducting effective, scientifically-valid research to contribute to conservation and management of inshore dolphins and associated megafauna (i.e. dugongs, sea snakes, sea turtles and other cetaceans).
Even the most basic questions are still unknown for many inshore dolphin species, particularly snubfin dolphins, such as:
- where they are found along the Australian coastline,
- how far they move along the coast, and
- how many dolphins occur in areas they inhabit.
- are snubfin and humpback dolphins in Papua New Guinea related to Australian snubfin and humpback dolphins?
It is also important to know:
- how many individuals are dying each year and
- the causes of any deaths.
Even the most basic questions are still unknown for many inshore dolphin species, particularly snubfin dolphins.
These questions need to be answered, at a minimum, for effective long-term monitoring programs and conservation and management policies to be developed and implemented.
The SDCP aims to undertake effective research on target snubfin dolphin populations in Northern Australia and Papua New Guinea to understand:
- population size,
- movements and
- mortality rates and causes.
The SDCP aims to undertake effective research on target inshore dolphin populations in Northern Australia and Papua New Guinea to understand population size, movements, and mortality rates and causes.
The SDCP will also undertake research projects on the snubfin dolphins’ close relative, the Irrawaddy dolphin, in select locations throughout Southeast Asia.
Of particular interest for the Southeast Asian studies is to establish the distribution limits for snubfin and Irrawaddy dolphins within the Indonesian Archipelago.
These questions need to be answered, at a minimum, for effective long-term monitoring programs and conservation and management policies to be developed.
