Hostname: page-component-8448b6f56d-cfpbc Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-04-19T06:41:57.463Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Cetaceans observed in the coastal waters of Namibe Province, Angola, during summer and winter 2008

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  15 March 2010

Caroline R Weir
Caroline R Weir*
Affiliation:
Ketos Ecology, 4 Compton Road, West Charleton, Kingsbridge, Devon TQ7 2BP, UK Department of Zoology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Aberdeen, Tillydrone Avenue, Aberdeen, AB24 2TZ, UK
*
Correspondence should be addressed to: C.R. Weir, Ketos Ecology, 44 Lord Hay's Grove Old Aberdeen, Aberdeen AB24 1WS, UK email: Caroline.Weir@ketosecology.co.uk
Get access

Abstract

Little marine mammal research has been carried out along the West African coastline, and the cetacean fauna is consequently poorly documented. Namibe Province in southern Angola was the site of several historical whaling stations, but current knowledge of the occurrence of large whales and odontocete species is lacking. A dedicated cetacean study was carried out off Flamingos, Namibe Province during the austral summer and winter of 2008. A total of 1161.2 km (96.5 hours) of boat-based search effort, 531.8 km (49.2 hours) of vehicle-based search effort and 46.6 hours of fixed-site survey effort was collected, during which 148 cetacean sightings were recorded. The 143 positively-identified sightings comprised Atlantic humpback dolphin Sousa teuszii (N = 71), bottlenose dolphin Tursiops truncatus (N = 24), Bryde's whale Balaenoptera cf. brydei (N = 37) and humpback whale Megaptera novaeangliae (N = 11). The Atlantic humpback dolphin occurred similarly in both summer and winter and occupied a strictly nearshore habitat usually within 300 m of the coast. Both the absolute number of sightings and the sighting rate of bottlenose dolphins were higher during the winter than the summer. Bryde's whale was present only during the summer survey. While present during both survey periods, humpback whales were more numerous during the winter. The dataset increases knowledge of the cetaceans occurring off southern Angola. However, further survey work is required to clarify the distribution, ecology and potential threats to cetacean species in the region.

Keywords

AngolaNamibe provinceAtlantic humpback dolphinbottlenose dolphinBryde's whalehumpback whaleoccurrencedistribution
Type
Research Article
Information
Marine Biodiversity Records , Volume 3 , June 2010 , e27
Copyright
Copyright © Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 2010

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

Barco, S.G., Swingle, W.M., McLellan, W.A., Harris, R.N. and Pabst, D.A. (1999) Local abundance and distribution of bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) in the nearshore waters of Virginia Beach, Virginia. Marine Mammal Science 15, 394–408.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Barros, N.B. and Cockcroft, V.G. (1991) Prey of humpback dolphins (Sousa plumbea) stranded in eastern Cape Province, South Africa. Aquatic Mammals 17, 134–136.Google Scholar
Bearzi, M. (2005) Aspects of the ecology and behaviour of bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) in Santa Monica Bay, California. Journal of Cetacean Research and Management 7, 75–83.Google Scholar
Best, P.B. (1994) A review of the catch statistics for modern whaling in Southern Africa, 1908–1930. Reports of the International Whaling Commission 44, 467–485.Google Scholar
Best, P.B. (1996) Evidence of migration by Bryde's whales from the offshore population in the southeast Atlantic. Reports of the International Whaling Commission 46, 315–322.Google Scholar
Best, P.B. (2001) Distribution and population separation of Bryde's whale Balaenoptera edeni off southern Africa. Marine Ecology Progress Series 220, 277–289.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Best, P.B. (2007) Whales and dolphins of the Southern African Subregion. Cape Town: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Best, P.B. and Ross, G.J.B. (1986) Catches of right whales from shore-based establishments in southern Africa, 1792–1975. Reports of the International Whaling Commission 10, 275–289.Google Scholar
Best, P.B., Reeb, D., Morais, M. and Baird, A. (1999) A preliminary investigation of humpback whales off northern Angola. Paper SC/51/CAWS33 presented to the IWC Scientific Committee, May 1999, 12 pp.Google Scholar
Hammond, P.S., Berggren, P., Benke, H., Borchers, D.L., Buckland, S.T., Collet, A., Heide-Jørgensen, M.P., Heimlich, S., Hiby, A.R., Leopold, M.F. and Øien, N. (2002) Abundance of harbour porpoise and other cetaceans in the North Sea and adjacent waters. Journal of Applied Ecology 39, 361–376.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hardman-Mountford, N.J., Richardson, A.J., Agenbag, J.J., Hagen, E., Nykjaer, L., Shillington, F.A. and Villacastin, C. (2003) Ocean climate of the South East Atlantic observed from satellite data and wind models. Progress in Oceanography 59, 181–221.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Harmer, S.F. (1928) History of whaling. Proceedings of the Linnaean Society, London 140, 51–95.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Heithaus, M.R. and Dill, L.M. (2002) Food availability and tiger shark predation risk influence bottlenose dolphin habitat use. Ecology 83, 480–491.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
IUCN (2009) IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2009.1. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Accessed 16 August 2009..+Accessed+16+August+2009.>Google Scholar
Jefferson, T.A., Curry, B.E., Leatherwood, S. and Powell, J.A. (1997) Dolphins and porpoises of West Africa: a review of records (Cetacea: Delphinidae, Phocoenidae). Mammalia 61, 87–108.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mann, J. (1999) Behavioral sampling methods for cetaceans: a review and critique. Marine Mammal Science 15, 102–122.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mikhalev, J.A., Savusin, V.P., Kishiyan, N.A. and Ivashin, M.V. (1981) To the problem of the feeding of sperm whales from the Southern Hemisphere. Reports of the International Whaling Commission 31, 737–745.Google Scholar
Mouzinho de Figueiredo, J. (1958) Pescarias de baleia nas provincias africanas portuguesas. V Congresso Nacional de Pesca, 9 pp.Google Scholar
Palka, D. (1996) Effects of Beaufort Sea State on the sightability of harbour porpoises in the Gulf of Maine. Report of the International Whaling Commission 46, 575–582.Google Scholar
Picanço, C., Carvalho, I. and Brito, C. (2009) Occurrence and distribution of cetaceans in São Tomé and Príncipe tropical archipelago and their relation to environmental variables. Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 89, 1071–1076.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rosenbaum, H.C. and Collins, T. (2006) The ecology, population characteristics and conservation efforts for humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) on their wintering grounds in the coastal waters of Gabon. Bulletin of the Biological Society of Washington 12, 425–433.Google Scholar
Shane, S.H. (1980) Occurrence, movements, and distribution of bottlenose dolphin, Tursiops truncatus, in southern Texas. Fishery Bulletin 78, 593–601.Google Scholar
Shane, S.H. (1990) Comparison of bottlenose dolphin behavior in Texas and Florida, with a critique of methods for studying dolphin behavior. In Leatherwood, S. and Reeves, R.R. (eds.) The bottlenose dolphin. San Diego, CA: Academic Press, pp. 541–558.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Townsend, C.H. (1935) The distribution of certain whales as shown by logbook records of American whaleships. Zoologica, NY 19, 1–50 + 6 maps.Google Scholar
Van Waerebeek, K., Tchibozo, S., Montcho, J., Nobime, G., Sohou, Z., Sehouhoue, P. and Dossou, C. (2001) The Bight of Benin, a North Atlantic breeding ground of a Southern Hemisphere humpback whale population, likely related to Gabon and Angola substocks. Paper SC/53/IA21 presented to the IWC Scientific Committee, July 2001, 7 pp.Google Scholar
Van Waerebeek, K., Nobimé, G., Sohou, Z., Tchobozo, S., Dossou-Bodjrenou, J.S., Dossou, C. and Dossou-Hountoudou, A. (2002) Introducing whale and dolphin watching to Benin, 2002 exploratory survey. Report to the Netherlands Committee for IUCN, Amsterdam, 9 pp.Google Scholar
Van Waerebeek, K., Barnett, L., Camara, A., Cham, A., Diallo, M., Djiba, A., Jallow, A.O., Ndiaye, E., Samba Ould Bilal, A.O. and Bamy, I.L. (2004) Distribution, status, and biology of the Atlantic humpback dolphin, Sousa teuszii (Kükenthal, 1892). Aquatic Mammals 30, 56–83.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wada, S., Oishi, M. and Yamada, T.K. (2003) A newly discovered species of living baleen whale. Nature 426, 278–281.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Walsh, P.D., Fay, J.M., Gulick, S. and Sounguet, G.P. (2000) Humpback whale activity near Cap Lopez, Gabon. Journal of Cetacean Research and Management 2, 63–67.Google Scholar
Weir, C.R. (2008) The distribution and seasonal occurrence of cetaceans off northern Angola. Journal of Cetacean Research and Management 9, 225–239.Google Scholar
Weir, C.R. (2009) Distribution, behaviour and photo-identification of Atlantic humpback dolphins (Sousa teuszii) off Flamingos, Angola. African Journal of Marine Science.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Weir, C.R. (2010) A review of cetacean occurrence in West African waters from the Gulf of Guinea to Angola. Mammal Review.CrossRefGoogle Scholar