Dear colleagues,
My co-authors and I are pleased to share the publication of our new paper in
Frontiers of Marine Science:
Schoeman RP, Patterson-Abrolat C, and Plön S (2020) A global review of vessel
collisions with marine animals. Front. Mar. Sci. 7: article 292.
https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2020.00292
<https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2020.00292>
ABSTRACT:
Concern about the effects of maritime vessel collisions with marine animals is
increasing
worldwide. To date, most scientific publications on this topic have focused on
the
collisions between large vessels and large whales. However, our review found
that at least
75 marine species are affected, including smaller whales, dolphins, porpoises,
dugongs,
manatees, whale sharks, sharks, seals, sea otters, sea turtles, penguins, and
fish.
Collision incidents with smaller species are scarce, likely as a result of
reporting biases.
Some of these biases can be addressed through the establishment of
species-specific
necropsy protocols to ensure reliable identification of collision-related
injury, particularly
blunt force trauma. In addition, creating a ship strike database for smaller
species can
assist in identifying the species most frequently involved in collisions,
identifying high-risk
areas, and determining species-specific relationships between vessel speed and
lethal
injury. The International Whaling Commission database on collisions with large
whales
provides a good example of this type of database and its potential uses.
Prioritizing the
establishment of a species-specific necropsy protocol and a database for
smaller species
as well as the identification of high-risk areas for species other than large
whales, would
be a valuable step toward the mitigation of collisions with smaller species.
Full link:
https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmars.2020.00292/full
<https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmars.2020.00292/full>
Cheers,
Renee
School of Environmental Sciences
Nelson Mandela University
South Africa
email: renee.p.schoe...@gmail.com
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