Dear MARMAM members, We are happy to announce the release of our Annual Report of 2021 of the Montenegro Dolphin Research: Turning Research to Conservation Outputs for Cetacean Protection in Montenegro!
*Abstract:* Montenegro Dolphin Research started its dedicated cetacean research of Montenegrin waters in September 2016 and since then has been in the field for over 700 days to gather the missing knowledge on cetacean species and to understand the level of human impact on these magnificent creatures. Our results estimated the population size of bottlenose dolphins of 116±17 individuals in 2017, with a sharp decline to 79±21 individuals in 2019. However, the sighting rates of bottlenose dolphins increased from 24% in 2019 to 27% in 2020 and 47% in 2021. Since March 2020, Montenegro has had reduced human presence within the marine environment due to the COVID19 pandemic. It is interesting and also promising to see that the number of dolphin sightings immediately increased once the human pressure in the area decreased. Additionally, the inclusion of acoustic techniques in addition to the visual surveys revealed the dominant presence of foraging behaviour within the Bay of Kotor, with rare and specific vocalisation types being recorded in the area. Our previous studies in Montenegro highlighted the dominant presence of ‘travelling state’, proposing that Montenegro was mainly a migration corridor for the bottlenose dolphins. However, our recent acoustic results revealed that it also holds both foraging and socialising grounds. Last but not least, both the effect of tourism and fishery related boats revealed significant alterations to the behavioural budget of bottlenose dolphins in Montenegro, even when their exposure level to those specific boats are below 20% of the time. Montenegro is a country with a growing economy and tourism related activities are one of the main income sources. Even though eco-tourism is the one and only sustainable tourism source, the tourism industry is generally directed towards coastal development of hotels with little to no investment in their environmental impact assessment. As a result, uncontrolled coastal destruction, noise and chemical pollution, and plastic debris are already showing an impact on the marine ecosystem of Montenegro. Further, oil and gas explorations have started to take place within the coastal waters of Bar as well as in the unique deep-sea ecosystem of the Adriatic Pit with no publicly available report on the activities. Even though we are fully aware of the importance of economic growth in a country, any human activities that may be carried out in an uncontrolled and unregulated nature are likely to form severe threats to marine species and their associated habitats. Therefore, our project and its research and conservation outcomes form one of the most important steps towards effective conservation strategies that promote not only the protection of nature, but also sustainable blue economic growth. If you would like a copy of this report, please send an email to i...@dmad.org.tr or go to research gate: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/353380470_Montenegro_Dolphin_Research_Annual_Report_of_2021_Turning_Research_to_Conservation_Outputs_for_Cetacean_Protection_in_Montenegro All the best, DMAD Team *Marine Mammal Research Association* *Deniz Memelileri Araştırma Derneği (DMAD)* *i...@dmad.org.tr <i...@dmad.org.tr>* *www.dmad.org.tr* <http://www.dmad.org.tr/> *Follow us on: Instagram <https://www.instagram.com/DMADforNature/> & Facebook <https://www.facebook.com/DMADforNature/>*
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