The Dolphin Communication Project (DCP) is focused on the dual goals of scientific research and education. Thank You DCP Board!

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1 VOLUME 20 ISSUE uupdate from the Field: RIMS...2 uholiday Shopping Helps DCP!...3 uassociate Update: Marie Trone...4, 7-8 The Dolphin gazette NEWSLETTER FOR THE DOLPHIN COMMUNICATION PROJECT The Dolphin Communication Project (DCP) is focused on the dual goals of scientific research and education. Busy summer yields to busy autumn! Since our last issue, we wrapped up data collection off Bimini, The Bahamas and soon after we prepared in Bimini and our Port Saint Lucie, Florida office for Hurricane Matthew. We are grateful that everyone and our homes were spared, and we are keeping everyone who was seriously impacted by the storm in our thoughts. In late October, I headed to Roatan, Honduras for our 2016 eco-tour with a fantastic group of 16 eco-tourists. The rain did not stop our data collection or fun! We are already receiving sign-ups for 2017 and include details of other upcoming field programs (come join us!). DCP Resarch Associate, Marie Trone, has had a successful season in the Amazon and shares a thorough update here. We re also pleased to once again offer DCP tees, both long and short-sleeved, and in different colors! Please consider supporting us as you shop this holiday season. Happy Reading! Cheers! Kathleen In this issue U p d a t e f r o m t h e F i e l d : R I M S H o l i d a y S h o p p i n g - S u p p o r t D C P! R e s e a r c h A s s o c i a t e U p d a t e F i e l d O p p o r t u n i t i e s E - k i t b o n u s e s A n n o u n c e m e n t s C o l o r i n g Ti m e Mailing Address Dolphin Communication Project P.O. Box 7485 Port St. Lucie, FL USA FL Solicitation of Contributions Reg. #: CH42894 Thank You DCP Board! DCP would like to give a special thank you to our Board of Directors. Your enthusiasm over the years, particularly 2016, is invaluable. Well done and thank you! We cannot wait to see what 2017 brings! Internships If you are interested in interning with DCP during a fall, spring or summer semester, more information is available on our website. Please note, most internships are office-based and do NOT include field work. Check out the web site before contacting us at info{at}dcpmail{dot}org.

2 Update from the Field: RIMS (Roatan, Honduras) Submitted by Kathleen Dudzinski, PhD DCP s Summary - October Eco-tour & Research Program at RIMS/AKR There are often many dolphins in view at once! One weeklong program (22-29 October 2016) was completed as a data collection session for Kathleen and DCP at Anthony s Key Resort (AKR) and the Roatan Institute for Marine Sciences (RIMS). This week was offered through DCP as an eco-tour and included 16 (!) participants who arrived to Roatan to assist Kathleen with data collection and to partake in SCUBA, paddle-boarding and assorted water activities offered by AKR. The DCP eco-tourists learned about dolphin behavior, acoustics, and conservation as well as the reefs and dolphins. They helped Kathleen collect data during her early morning sessions and saw how pleased Kathleen was that Ronnie mostly ignored her! (Readers might remember Ronnie from 2014 and 2015 as very inquisitive of Kathleen s fins!) Kathleen collected video/stereo audio data with the MVA2 and a GoPro Hero3 camera mounted to the top of the MVA2. The GoPro faced forward to provide a wider field of view in comparison with the MVA2 camera. A GoPro Hero2 faced backward to provide a view of dolphins following Kathleen. We also deployed a passive acoustic monitoring (PAM) recorder, the Song Meter SM2M+ Marine recorder from Wildlife Acoustics. This was our third year deploying this recorder at RIMS. This recorder permits audio data recording on selected duty cycles and sample rates. For this recording session, the SM2M+ was loaded with a 10 min on/50 min off duty cycle and a 44.1 khz sample rate. This translates to four (4) hours of data recorded per day: the SM2M+ was deployed on Friday (28 October) afternoon and will be recovered when Kathleen returns to AKR/RIMS at the end of the year for our next DCP college-level field course (see page # in this issue). A total of ~180 minutes (~3 hours) of video data were collected with the MVA2 and another ~3 hours of data were collected with the GoPro Hero3. Sessions were conducted primarily in the morning between 06:45 AM and 11:30 AM, depending on the day and other programs scheduled. Two afternoon observation sessions were conducted. Kathleen and DCP volunteers are currently processing these data to confirm each dolphin ID on the video screen and to document how many minutes each dolphin is in view. Stay tuned for the winter issue of the Gazette for analysis updates! ~ Kathleen Next Chance to join Kathleen! 30 September - 7 October 2017 We will return to Roatan to collect data with eco-tour participants again in 2017! Our program this year was a huge success with 16 people joining Kathleen at Anthony s Key Resort to help with dolphin observations and data collection, as well as to do some SCUBA diving and vacationing! Our dates for 2017 are just a bit earlier the weeklong eco-tour is scheduled for 30 September - 7 October, Check out the RIMS Eco-tour page (look under the Education tab) to learn more about cost (just $900 pp!), logistics ($200 deposit) and other details. With a great 2-for-1 special from the folks at Anthony s Key, you get a great deal and help DCP! There was a fair bit of rain, but that meant rainbows! Sign up today if you are interested as the rooms are going fast! 2

3 Make your holiday shopping count! Purchase DCP shirts, adoption kits and more this season Classic DCP Shirts Available get yours in time for the holidays! Adult short sleeve: $28 (white, light blue, key lime or heather gray) Adult long sleeve: $33 (white, heather gray) Youth short sleeve: $25 (white, neon green) Also: a holiday t-shirt/adoption kit bundle! Order one of our t-shirts and choose the adoption kit bundle and you ll save $5 off the price of a hardcopy version of one of our adopt-a-dolphin kits. This special order period ends on 29 November All shirts will be shipped on or about 20 December and should* arrive in time for Christmas. USPS Priority shipping is included in the price of the shirts - no extra fees! Regrettably, we can currently only ship to US addresses. Visit to order your shirts today! *Colors vary by style. Our goal is for your shirts to arrive by Christmas, but this is not guaranteed. Donation Bonus! Donate before 31 December and receive special marine life notecards/postcards at no cost!* Donate $10 - $19 = 6 free cards Donate $20 or more = 15 free cards Monthly donation/membership $10 or more/month = 30 free cards Visit to make your donation today! *Minimum donation required. While supplies last. Exact card designs and card styles chosen at random. Cards have been generously donated by two DCP board members! Check out page 6 for more ways to help DCP - just by shopping! 3

4 Amazon Dolphin Acoustics Lab An update from the field Submitted by Marie Trone, PhD Marie Trone, PhD, is a Professor of Biology at Valencia College, Kissimmee, Florida and an Adjunct Professor, Brain and Behavior Science at University of Southern Mississippi. She is also a DCP Research Associate. Project Overview I was fortunate to spend almost 3 months in the Peruvian Amazon investigating Amazon River dolphin (Inia geoffrensis) acoustics this past summer. The pink dolphin is distributed throughout the Amazon River watershed. Amazonian wildlife is facing increasing anthropogenic pressures due to increasing deforestation for timber and swidden agriculture, intentional and by-catch mortalities associated with fisheries, erosion, oil extraction, mercury facilitated gold mining, and pollution. These dolphins, however, lack the protection provided by endangered species status, as the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has listed the Inia genus as data deficient. Attempts have been made to obtain Amazon River dolphin population parameters using traditional visual techniques. Photo-identification, as well as line and strip transects do not provide robust population data due to the dolphin s lack of a prominent dorsal fin, shallow surfacing behavior, extreme flexibility, swimming among trees in the flooded forest, and opaque water. Thus, alternative methods are necessary to assess Amazon River dolphin populations. One of our research goals concerns improving Amazon River dolphin census accuracy by using high-frequency acoustical methods and identifying trends that may be correlated to anthropogenic stressors. In conjunction with the Université de Toulon in France, we are exploring the possibility that there may be features in the acoustic emanations produced by the pink dolphins that would allow for more effective individual counting using automated, unsupervised machine learning methods. A second goal involves exploring correlations between acoustical parameters (e.g. frequency, amplitude (i.e. energy) and timing intervals) and dolphin size, sex, color, activity level and behavior. Moreover, it may be possible that the dolphins change their echolocation signals based upon the composition of fish communities present. Thus, Amazon River dolphin recordings could provide a plethora of useful ecological information and fascinating behavioral insights. Research Approach The majority of scientists exploring dolphin acoustics focus their efforts on low frequency signals that fall within the human hearing range. This bias has been driven by the lack of affordable, high-frequency recording equipment, as well as a possible anthropomorphic propensity. However, we believe that a tremendous amount of information is contained in the ultrasonic (i.e. above human hearing) portions of a dolphin click. The spectra (lower left) of an Amazon River dolphin click plot signal frequency and signal energy (amplitude) as a function of time. The amount of information available using ultra-high frequency recording equipment (lower left) is an order of magnitude greater than that obtained from historically available equipment (middle left). Perhaps patterns of frequency and amplitude could be used to individually identify dolphins via click prints that are analogous to human fingerprints. Continued on page

5 Field Opportunities A chance for everyone to join DCP in the field! Summer 2017 International Teen Expedition: Coral Reefs & Dolphin Studies - Roatan, Bay Islands, Honduras Ages Trip dates: Saturday, July 8th to Saturday, July 15th, 2017 Cost of trip: $3200, including all airfare, transportation, meals, accommodations, and activities A once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to experience to dolphins and coral reefs! Working alongside a Dolphin Communication Project Researcher, you ll stay at the beautiful Anthony Keys resort in Roatan, Honduras and will study and swim with dolphins and snorkel and explore the coral reefs of the western hemisphere s largest barrier reef. With daily lectures and research studies this expedition is academic as well as recreational. Registration will available at org on December 9th but contact educationinfo@mysticaquarium.org for additional trip information. Bimini, The Bahamas: 2017 Season 24 April - 4 May: University of New Brunswick Saint John 4 June - 10 June: Sacred Heart University 11 June - 23 June: Eastern Kentucky University Come join DCP s long-term study of wild Atlantic spotted (Stenella frontalis) and bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) off Bimini, The Bahamas. Each program includes hotel accommodation, boat trips in search of wild dolphins, at least one boat trip to observe wild sharks, 3 meals/day, course instruction and more. Exact course content varies by program. Topics common to all programs include dolphin photo-identification and general dolphin behavior. All students take an active role in DCP data collection, including taking underwater still photographs, which contribute directly to DCP s photo-id catalogs. All courses include additional opportunties to snorkel. Students not enrolled at the associated universities are welcome to apply. For general Bimini Field Course information, visit the cetacean ecology section of our website, under Education: January 2018: Roatan, Bay Islands, Honduras Option A Option B Colorado State University University of Rhode Island 6-13 January January 2018 Stay tuned for registration details! For general course information, visit: Kathleen and DCP will return to Roatan this New Year s Eve with students from Colorado State University (CSU) and the University of Southern Mississippi for a weeklong field course merging animal behavior and physiology topics! Kathleen will co-instruct the program with Dr. Shane Kanatous, CSU. Check out DCP s home page blog for field reports detailing this new program! 5

6 Electronic Adoption Kit: Bonus Time! Order an e-kit before 31 December... Streaming Marine Life Slide Show To show our appreciation to everyone who orders an electronic adoption kit during the remainder of 2016, we ll include a link to a slide show showcasing beautiful marine life photography of John Anderson of Terramar Productions. This 2:30 video is the perfect break during your busy day or a great backdrop to that holiday party you re hosting. Wherever you watch it, we know you ll enjoy watching the beautiful animals with which dolphins share their ocean home. Visit to order today. Just $30! AMAZON SMILE How many of you shop on Amazon.com? We bet it s a lot. What if, instead of starting at amazon.com, you could simply start at smile.amazon.com and poof! - a percentage of your purchases would go to the Dolphin Communication Project as a direct donation. You d say, Sign me up! Well, it s easy. Use your existing Amazon account. Find all your wishlists, registries and shopping carts waiting for you. On your first visit to smile.amazon.com, simply select Dolphin Communication Project as your charitable organization. Amazon will remember this and from that point forward, as long as you start at smile.amazon.com, every eligible purchase you make will result in a donation to DCP. Thanks to Amazon for this great program - and thanks to you for selecting DCP! Happy Shopping! Your DCP Membership is Waiting! Memberships go a long way to help DCP continue our research and education efforts and we are pleased to offer two ways to become a member: via a one-time donation or automatic monthly payments! Sustaining memberships: Choose your increment: $5, $7.50, $10, $15, $20 or even $100/month. Sign up once and your credit card or PayPal account will automatically be charged each month. No fuss. No muss. One-time memberships: With membership levels available for all budgets, this membership options allows you to make your entire annual contribution in one go. 6

7 Amazon Dolphin Acoustics Lab Continued from Page 4... To accomplish this goal, I am currently collaborating with Professor Hervé Glotin, from the Université de Toulon, who is the head of the Scaled Acoustic BIODiversity (SABIOD) Big Data Project sponsored by the Centre National de la Recherche Scienftifique (CNRS) in France. In addition to loaning me hydrophones that accurately record underwater sounds characterized by frequencies greater than 500 khz, he is also developing a prototypical digital-to-analog converter system referred to as JASON (Joint Acoustic Survey for ONline biodiversity). This JASON system is capable of making recordings that use up to 4 hydrophones simultaneously, with each hydrophone taking 1 million sound samples per second in real time, providing up to 500 khz of frequency range per hydrophone ( jason.html). Two methods have been employed to determine dolphin position in the water relative to the research boat. The first method relies on multiple hydrophones attached to a fixed array frame. Given the speed of sound in water at 20ºC is 1482 meters per second, the dolphin-produced click is detected at slightly different times by each hydrophone. Applied computer algorithms then suggest the location of the clicking dolphin. Figure 3 illustrates this paradigm, while Figure 4 portrays the four different arrival times resulting from one Amazon River dolphin click. A second method uses a HumminBird 997c side imaging (SI) system that was provided by the Dolphin Communication Project. This unit directs one high-frequency sound beam downward and two high-frequency sound beams to either side of the boat s transducer (Figure 5). The returning echoes are processed such that the dolphin can be located in the water column and an acoustic shadow is produced. During postprocessing several measurements can be made, including the length of the dolphin, its depth in the water and distance from the boat (Figure 6). Moreover, this side imaging unit elegantly shows bottom topography, structures and debris. The results obtained from the JASON and HumminBird systems are corroborated with videos and observational data collected during recording sessions. Lots of equipment fills our little research boat! Current Research and Accomplishments This work is the first to suggest that Amazon River dolphin clicks may be characterized by ultra-high frequency components. Results from the summer 2016 field season are currently being processed to unambiguously support this claim. Preliminary results also suggest several ways to identify the quantity of clicking dolphins within a recording. First, clicks produced by different dolphins arrive at the various hydrophones at different times. Second, click surface reflections are also recorded and easily identified in the recordings. Thus click reflections also have unique arrival times to each hydrophone. Click rates tend to gradually increase or decrease with time, leading to a third method of assessing the quantity of dolphins present in a recording based upon inter-click intervals. A fourth Amazon River dolphin s pink coloration technique involves inspecting changes in energy (amplitude), while a fifth method concerns changes in frequency. Collectively, all of these methods have produced the same results, suggesting that it may be possible to assess dolphin populations with a single, high-frequency hydrophone. Continued on page

8 Amazon Dolphin Acoustics Lab Continued from Page 7... Furthermore, it appears that the dolphins may actively use their clicks not only for navigation, but also as contact calls. In many of the locations where Amazon River dolphins reside the water is completely opaque, barring any visual contact between conspecifics. However, in one recording of a suspected adult female and juvenile, the dolphins appeared to be synchronizing their clicks. Not only did the two dolphins alternate clicking, they appeared to match their clicks with respect to quantity and frequency, suggesting a contact function. We also established a field research station, the Amazon Dolphin Acoustics Lab (ADAL), which is shown in Figure 9. Laboratory construction was overseen and donated by Pam Bucur (Figure 10), the general manager of Amazon Explorama Lodges ( This facility is located on the Amazon River with convenient access to two populations of Amazon River dolphins. Amazon Explorama Lodges provided the materials and constructed this lab adjacent to one of their ecotourism lodges. Despite the remote location of this lab, electricity and internet service are available. In addition to this laboratory work space Explorama supplied us with a boat, boat captain and gasoline. The ecotourism company, International Expeditions ( has also supported this research financially and logistically. In addition to arranging roundtrip airfare from Florida to Iquitos this year, they have also provided the required federal permits and passage to the Pacaya Samiria National Reserve in the upper Amazon. These contributions have enabled us to obtain recordings of Amazon River dolphins in possibly their most pristine habitat remaining. Our community outreach with a school on the Sucasari River. Finally, during the summer I sought to share our work with interested Peruvians. Students from local villages (Figure 11) and students from the Instituto de Investigaciones de la Amazonía Peruana (IIAP) and the Universidad Nacional de la Amazonía Peruana (UNAP) participated in data collection on boat trips by operating the recording equipment, documenting dolphin behavior, and taking photographs. My interactions with IIAP this past summer were very positive and together we hosted a symposium on August 3, 2016 in which colleagues from Peru, France, Chile, Belgium and the U.S. attended. As a result of this meeting, an employee of IIAP student became involved in this project and is currently reviewing video files and documenting the times and positions of dolphins surfacing in order to correlate dolphin behavior with the recorded acoustics. We look forward to continued community involvement in all aspects of the Amazon Dolphin Acoustics Lab pursuits. Future Directions The work discussed above is slated to be presented at the 2nd Listening to Aquatic Mammals in Latin America (LAMLA) workshop in Valparaiso, Chile at the end of November, As we move into 2017 the data will continue to be analyzed and distilled into peer-reviewed manuscripts for publication. Amid all of this activity, we are also making preparations to return to Peru in the summer of 2017 to expand our current results with an even more successful research venture. ~Marie 8

9 DCP Announcements! Kathleen and our collaborators have been busy! Check out these upcoming publications: Dudzinski, KM, Ribic, CA (in press). Pectoral fin contact as a mechanism for social bonding among dolphins. Animal Behavior & Cognition. Hill, H, Hendry, J, Dudzinski, KM, Sanabria, KT, Guarino, S (in press) The Development of Echolocation in Bottlenose Dolphins (Tursiops truncatus). International Journal of Comparative Psychology (special issue). Dudzinski, KM, Charrier, I, Maust-Mohl, M, McFadden, S, Missis-Olds, J, Reidenberg, JS, Thomas, J (in press) Chapter 11. Bioacoustical Studies on Aquatic and Marine Mammals. In (JA Thomas ed.) Vol. II Chapter 11 Bioacoustical Studies on Aquatic and Marine Mammals. Springer-Verlag. DCP has been rejuvenated with new student collaborators as well. Stay tuned for Issue 21.1 (2017) for updates from them all! In-Kind Donations: Our Wish List Do you have access to any of this equipment? Contact DCP to make an in-kind donation today! (Yup, in-kind donations are tax-deductible, too. Contact your account to learn how.) Name-A-Dolphin Stay tuned for the next opportunity! DCP occasionally offers supporters the chance to permanently name a dolphin in our wild dolphin photo-id catalog from Bimini, The Bahamas. These dolphins then become part of our Adopt- A-Wild-Dolphin roster and are available for adoption by anyone! Dolphins Leslie (#80), her offspring Paul (#99), Lil Jess (#35), Noodle (#94) and many other dolphins observed off Bimini got their names this way. Stay tuned for the next dolphin available for naming - maybe you ll be the one to name it! This unique opportunity is $750. Interested now? us at info{at}dcpmail{dot}org. Serious inquiries only. * Compact HD Projector * Underwater still cameras * SD cards * GoPro * Handheld GPS * * Office supplies - paper, pencils, erasers, rechargeable batteries, toner * * Frequent flyer miles * Laptop * * Video camera * Hydrophones * 9

10 Adopt a Wild Dolphin What s in your Adoption Kit? Dolphins currently up for adoption Adopting a wild dolphin with DCP helps to fund: An official adoption certificate Photograph of your adopted dolphin Details on how to download dolphin vocalizations from the Bimini adopt-adolphins as a ringtone or audio file DVD containing video of the Bimini dolphins Biography of your adopted dolphin Welcome letter and registration info Information Booklet with Atlantic spotted dolphin fact sheet and info about the Dolphin Communication Project Dolphin trading card sample? The purchase of new research equipment (e.g., cameras, underwater microphones) Conservation and education programs on Bimini, in the US and around the world Publication and dissemination of DCP s research results to the scientific community and the general public Maintenance of the DCP website, field reports, and our podcast The Dolphin Pod Classroom education programs for school-aged children including DCP Youth Program, Dolphin Research Trainee, Classroom Connections Volunteer, ecotour and internship opportunities for the public Stay tuned for our next Name-A-Dolphin opportunity! Holiday gift ideas Adopt-a-wild-dolphin t-shirts tinyurl.com/ylfx44v 10

11 11 DCP s Adopt-a-Dolphin Program DCP currently has ~25 dolphins from our catalog of Atlantic spotted dolphins residing around Bimini, The Bahamas available for adoption. While adoptive parents do not get to take their dolphins home, they will receive a certificate of adoption, a photo of their adopted dolphin, some facts about Atlantic spotted dolphins, information about DCP and our research around Bimini and a dolphin video. They will also receive the most recent edition of the Dolphin Gazette, DCP s quarterly newsletter, announced quarterly by eblast. Be sure to send us your address, or subscribe online at the newsletter page!. Please SEND my adoption package to: All dolphin adoptions through DCP help support our dolphin research throughout the world, and the creation and implementation of local, national, and international education programs for students of all ages. Each adoption costs $30 and lasts for one year. Become a spotted dolphin parent today & support valuable scientific research!. Some of our dolphins are listed below. For a complete list & all dolphin biographies, check out Yes! I want to Juliette Niecey Paul Swoosh Milo Cerra Inka Tina Lumpy Lil Jess Freckles adopt a dolphin! Split jaw Noodle I would like to adopt a dolphin: $30 for one year. Dolphin name: Please cut out and mail your order form, with check, to DCP at P.O. Box 7485, Port St. Lucie, FL Credit card payment is available online through our web site at If this is a gift, please note gift GIVER address: Name: Address: City: State: Zip: Name: Address: City: State: Zip: Postcards $1.00 each/ 3 for $2 Notecards $2.50 each/ 3 for $6 Iruka Gear To purchase Iruka gear visit DCP Gear To purhcase DCP gear, visit Membership Sustaining Memberships: Donate from $5 to $100/month to receive a DCP memo pad and information booklet! Annual Memberships : Student: $20 Individual: $30 Family: $45 Supporting: $75 Contributing: $150 Patron: $500 Supporting, Contributing & Patron Members receive a DVD copy of Dolphins - The Lighter Side. Contributing & Patron Members also receive a photo album featuring images and information about all of our adopt-awild-dolphins. All gifts subject to availability and may change. Visit to become a member today! Support DCP s research efforts buy purchasing some of the many products that we offer for sale. All products seen here are also available on our website: www. dolphincommunicationproject.org All profits from the sale of these products will directly fund DCP s research and education efforts. DCP is a nonprofit organization.

12 Coloring for Christmas! We hope you enjoy this fun coloring page, no matter what December holiday you celebrate! Thank you to Ranke de Vries for this creation! Thank you for reading the final Dolphin Gazette issue of It s been a year for the record books, but we are thankful for all of our supporters - on the ground, at sea, near and far. We wish you all a very healthy, happy and joy-filled holiday season. Did you read the last page first? Scroll up to find: An update from Kathleen s time at RIMS (pg 2) T-shirts for sale! Donation bonuses! More! (pg 3) News from the Amazon! (pg 4)