Regional Science and Technology Fund
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Esta é uma presença online oficial do Governo dos Açores
Evaluating platforms of opportunity to monitor cetacean responses to ocean changes
- StateONGOING
- NameCatarina Toscano Fonseca
- Host entityOkeanos – Institute of Marine Sciences
- University awarding the degreeUniversity of the Azores
- Science Networks
Objectives
The main objective of this project is to understand the potential of the POPA (Azorean Fisheries Observer Programme) dataset to obtain robust estimates of cetacean abundance and distribution in the Azores and the associated risk of ship collisions in a changing climate. To achieve this goal, I will validate the POPA data against dedicated cetacean surveys, exploring ways to best combine both datasets, where dedicated surveys represent a gold standard but POPA data represents cheap and easily available data with wider temporal and spatial coverages. More specifically, I will:
- Establish methods and protocols to use the data from POPA to obtain the best possible estimates of distribution and abundance of the cetacean species from such opportunistic data.
- Understand the environmental conditions that influence the spatio-temporal distribution and density patterns of these species in the study area.
- Assess the current and future risk of collisions between ships and cetaceans given potential climate-induced changes in cetacean distribution.
Results & Impact
This PhD project actively contributes to the preservation of many economically and ecologically important cetacean species of the Azores by providing information on their occurrence, distribution and abundance. This information is vital to support appropriate conservation measures and
enable a more efficient marine spatial planning, as required by several European directives. In addition, it will evaluate the potential of a cost-effective data collection platform for the continuous monitoring of cetacean populations, a prerequisite for ecosystem-based management of marine areas, and the combined effects of an anthropogenic threat (ship collisions) and climate change on the cetacean species occurring in the Azores.
