Meeting Abstract
P2.135 Wednesday, Jan. 5 Nutrition and Habitat Based Diet of Wild Dolphins in the Bahamas as a Model for Understanding Prey Selection MALINOWSKI, C/R*; HERZING , D/L; Florida Atlantic University; The Wild Dolphin Project cmalino1@fau.edu
Two sympatric dolphin species, Atlantic spotted (Stenella frontalis) and bottlenose (Tursiops truncatus), are resident to Little Bahama Bank, Bahamas. Targeted prey may vary depending on reproductive status of female spotted dolphins (pregnant, lactating, or non-reproductively active), and based on age class for both species. Major habitats (sand, grass, sand/grass, rock, reef) utilized for foraging have been analyzed for each encounter to determine interspecies habitat use differences. I have analyzed 360 foraging encounters for Atlantic spotted dolphins and 150 foraging encounters for bottlenose dolphins from years 1992-2010. I hypothesize that 1) Atlantic spotted and bottlenose dolphins utilize different habitats for foraging, and 2) Targeted prey frequencies are significantly different between reproductively active females and non-reproductively active others, which can be explained by prey nutritional values. During the summers of 2009 and 2010 (May-Sept), 31 species of fish and 2 species of squid known to be common dolphin prey were collected off Little Bahama Bank. Specimens were analyzed in a laboratory in order to determine nutritional values: caloric energy value, % protein, % lipid, and % water content. Results of 64 specimens analyzed for nutritional content show certain species, such as flounder, to have much lower energy value than other species such as razorfish. Analysis of reproductive status and age class in spotted dolphins is predicted to produce results showing a positive correlation between frequencies in targeted prey and energy values. Reproductively active females are predicted to feed mostly on prey that will give the highest energy return. Habitat overlap is predicted to be minimal for interspecies foraging. This study, to our knowledge, is the first to explore energy demands and habitat use of wild dolphins in the Bahamas.
