Acronym CETACEOSMADEIRA II
Category
Fisheries
Title Identifying critical marine areas for bottlenose dolphin and surveillance of the cetaceans' conservation status in Madeira archipelago Programme LIFE
Instrument (FP6)
Contact Type (FP7)
Strand (Interreg)
NA
Theme (FP7)
Activity Area (FP6)
Regional Area (Interreg)
Action (COST)
NA
Specific Programme (FP7)
NA
Funding source European Coordinator Luís Freitas Coordinator email luisfreitas@museudabaleia.org
Coordinator institution
NA
Institutions involved
NA
Start year 2009 End year 2013 Funding (€) € 795,074 Website http://www.cetaceos-madeira.com Summary The conservation status of the bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) is considered of low concern in Madeiran waters. This species of dolphin, however, is being found more frequently in the low-depth inshore area between the Madeira and Desertas islands and is subject to several threats resulting from human activities. The growing popularity of whale-watching and a rise in shipping traffic and recreational boats in the archipelago are increasing the pressure in the concerned area. These pressures may contribute, in the medium/long term, to a negative change in the conservation status of the bottlenose dolphin. To avoid whale-watching growing to an unsustainable level, it is important to establish operating areas and designate limits on the number of tours. All the cetaceans found in the Madeira archipelago are potentially subject to the negative impacts from this activity. The precautionary principle should be considered in order to maintain or halt eventual changes to their present conservation status. The surveillance of the conservation status of cetacean species in Madeira has been conducted only in the inshore waters due to a lack of funding. Therefore, there is a lack of knowledge of the offshore marine environment of the Madeira Exclusive Economic Zone. In order to fill this gap, an evaluation of the potential threats (such as fisheries) to cetaceans acting in the offshore environment of the Madeira EEZ is needed. Other areas in the archipelago may also be candidates for marine Natura 2000 sites for this species. The creation of the marine Natura 2000 sites for bottlenose dolphin should take into consideration a wider perspective of the Atlantic population of the species shared by Madeira, Azores and the Canary Islands, which will clearly contribute to the improvement of the ecological coherency and connectivity of the Natura 2000 network of marine sites in the Atlantic. The project aims to: Identify the areas of importance for the bottlenose dolphin in the coastal waters of the Madeira archipelago, with the aim of establishing adequate marine Nature 2000 sites for this species; Define areas of operation for the whale-watching boats in Madeira archipelago waters and establish the carrying capacity for this activity; Survey the conservation status of cetacean species in Madeira offshore waters.
Keywords
Bycatch;
Dolphins;
Environmental impact;
Cetaceans;
Marine Region
2
Canarias and Madeira Islands (34.1.2)
1
Marine Region Map
