These Drones Help Identify Pregnant Dolphins!

A team of marine biology researchers from Aberdeen, Scotland put drones to good use, using them to spot pregnant bottlenose dolphins to better monitor their progress and identify environmental factors that affect the reproduction of the protected species.

“Determining the pregnancy status of a species like the bottlenose dolphin is crucial as it can provide information on reproductive failure, which can further be linked to other parameters, like age of the female and environmental conditions,” says Séverine Methion, a research scientist at the Bottlenose Dolphin Research Institute.

Scientists have been studying the small cetacean in the Moray Firth Special Area of Conversation in the North Sea for more than 30 years using aerial photography of dorsal fins, markings, and length and width to identify individuals and follow their progress. With that previous technique, pregnancy would be confirmed after the fact when calves would swim next to their mothers, and failed pregnancies and calf deaths were seldom recorded. This time around, while photos were taken by the drones, two lasers scanned the dolphin bodies. The data revealed that out of the 64 bottlenose dolphins, 14 were pregnant based on their body width-length ratios. Following the success of this study, other photo identification surveys and drone surveys are planned for later this year since regular studies will help the bottlenose dolphin population to thrive.