Markov Modulated Poisson Processes for Clustered Line Transect Data

We model the points of the detection along the transect line by a Markov modulated Poisson process (MMPP). The MMPP can accommodate the spatial cluster structure typical of many line transect surveys. The basic idea is that animal density switches between a low and a high level according to a latent Markov process. The MMPP is attractive from a mathematical point of view, as it provides an explicit expression for the likelihood function and other important quantities. We focus on estimating the level of overdispersion in the number of detected animals, as this is important for quantifying the precision of the line transect estimator of animal abundance. The approach is illustrated using both simulated data and data from a minke whale sighting survey conducted in the North Atlantic. Received: August 2004 / Revised: August 2005     

Decline in Relative Abundance of Bottlenose Dolphins Exposed to Long-Term Disturbance

Abstract:  Studies evaluating effects of human activity on wildlife typically emphasize short-term behavioral responses from which it is difficult to infer biological significance or formulate plans to mitigate harmful impacts. Based on decades of detailed behavioral records, we evaluated long-term impacts of vessel activity on bottlenose dolphins ( Tursiops sp.) in Shark Bay, Australia. We compared dolphin abundance within adjacent 36-km² tourism and control sites, over three consecutive 4.5-year periods wherein research activity was relatively constant but tourism levels increased from zero, to one, to two dolphin-watching operators. A nonlinear logistic model demonstrated that there was no difference in dolphin abundance between periods with no tourism and periods in which one operator offered tours. As the number of tour operators increased to two, there was a significant average decline in dolphin abundance (14.9%; 95% CI =−20.8 to −8.23), approximating a decline of one per seven individuals. Concurrently, within the control site, the average increase in dolphin abundance was not significant (8.5%; 95% CI =−4.0 to +16.7). Given the substantially greater presence and proximity of tour vessels to dolphins relative to research vessels, tour-vessel activity contributed more to declining dolphin numbers within the tourism site than research vessels. Although this trend may not jeopardize the large, genetically diverse dolphin population of Shark Bay, the decline is unlikely to be sustainable for local dolphin tourism. A similar decline would be devastating for small, closed, resident, or endangered cetacean populations. The substantial effect of tour vessels on dolphin abundance in a region of low-level tourism calls into question the presumption that dolphin-watching tourism is benign.     

Trace elements in tissues of sperm whales stranded along the Italian coast

Five sperm whales (Physeter macrocephalus) stranded along the Italian coast between 2007 and 2009 were analysed for concentrations of trace elements in the muscle, liver, kidney, lung, heart and skin. Essential elements (Zn, Cu, Fe, Cr, As, V and Se) show ranges of variability comparable with the limited data reported in the literature on this species and a homeostatic physiological control. Very low concentrations of nonessential elements (Hg, Cd and Pb) were detected in all tissues, suggesting a minor impact of these pollutants on the sperm whale populations of the Mediterranean Sea. This finding possibly reflects the pelagic lifestyle and deep-sea cephalopod diet of this group of giant cetaceans. In addition, this finding contrasts with the high levels of nonessential elements measured in many other species of cetaceans (e.g. Stenella coeruleoalba, Tursiops truncatus) stranded along Mediterranean coasts and which reflects significant coastal anthropogenic effects. The main result of this work is the compiled dataset which provides a preliminary target for conceptual understanding of the potential effects of open marine pollution on the Mediterranean sperm whale population.     

Renal lesions in Greenland sledge dogs ( Canis familiaris ) exposed to a natural dietary cocktail of persistent organic pollutants

Persistent organic pollutants such as Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB) and dichloro diphenyl trichloroethane (DDT) are known to exert various adverse health effects in wildlife mammals. The impact from dietary intake of minke whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata) blubber high in organohalogen and other chemical contaminants on renal morphology and function was investigated via a controlled study on West Greenland sledge dogs (Canis familiaris). Our results showed significantly higher frequencies of glomerular, tubular, and interstitial lesions in the exposed group. Furthermore, higher urine protein?:?creatinine ratio and plasma urea levels were found in the exposed group, which indicated a negative impact on kidney function via tubular and glomerular dysfunctions. The lesions were similar to those observed in top predator marine species–such as seals and polar bears–and humans exposed via diet to persistent environmental pollutants. The lesions may have impacts on the overall health of these animals. It is reasonable to suggest that chronic exposure to organic pollutants via a country diet of high trophic level marine organisms may have an impact on renal morphology and function in Arctic apex predators in general as well as Inuit people.     

Heavy metal contents of the sperm whale physeter macrocephalus and the bottle‐nosed dolphin tursiops truncatus beached on Languedoc‐Roussillon seaside (Mediterranean,France)

The contamination of Sperm Whale Physeter macrocephalus and bottle‐nosed dolphin Tursiops truncatus by lead is less than detection limit, insignificant by cadmium and nickel, not very high by copper and quite high by zinc. On the other hand, the concentration of mercury, very low for Sperm Whale, is very high for bottle‐nosed dolphin.

The pollution of Physeter macrocephalus is significantly lower than that of dolphin Stenella coeruleoalba and probably that of other species of cetaceans living near the coast; this might be due to its pelagic life and its diet.

The mercury pollution of Tursiops truncatus (especially that of one of the two subjects analyzed) is quite similar to that of Stenella coeruleoalba. This might be due to the fact that Tursiops truncatus can live in the open sea just as well as close to the seashore.     

中国东海抹香鲸体内多氯联苯的组成特征及毒性当量

用气相色谱-质谱联用仪测定了一只中国东海海域抹香鲸(Physeter macrocephalus)皮脂24种多氯联苯(PCBs)同系物的含量,并分析了其组成特征以及国际毒性当量.结果表明,东海海域抹香鲸皮脂PCBs的湿重含量为1.12μg.g-1;PCBs同族体中以含6和5个氯原子的化合物为主,高氯代PCBs占总量的92.10%;PCBs同系物中以PCB153、PCB138、PCB101和PCB149居多,分别占到PCBs总量的21.28%、15.97%、10.29%和10.23%;抹香鲸皮脂的TEQs含量为1663.07 pg.g-1,其毒性主要来自PCB126,其次是PCB123和PCB118;初步推断中国东海海域的抹香鲸受PCBs污染程度较轻.     

基于鲸鱼优化算法与投影寻踪耦合的云南省初始水权分配

论文基于公平性、效率性和可持续性原则,选取水资源开发用率等17个分水指标建立云南省初始水权分配指标体系,运用投影寻踪（Projection Pursuit, PP）技术确定云南省各州市初始水权分配水量。针对PP技术最佳投影方向难以确定的不足,利用一种新型群智能算法——鲸鱼优化算法（Whale Optimization Algorithm, WOA）寻优PP模型最佳投影方向,构建WOA-PP耦合的初始水权分配模型。通过6个典型测试函数对WOA进行仿真验证,仿真结果与文化算法（Cultural Algorithm, CA）、差分进化（Differential Evolution, DE）算法、混合蛙跳算法（Shuffled Frog Leaping Algorithm, SFLA）、布谷鸟搜索（Cuckoo Search, CS）算法、粒子群优化（Particle Swarm Optimization, PSO）算法和人工蜂群（Artificial Bee Colony, ABC）算法的寻优结果进行比较。结果表明：1）无论是单峰还是多峰函数,WOA能够探索不同的搜索空间,具有良好的开发和勘探能力,对Sphere等6个函数的寻优精度高于CA、DE、SFLA、CS、PSO和ABC算法,表现出较好的寻优精度、收敛速度、全局寻优能力与收敛稳定性。2）从WOA-PP模型初始水权分配结果及目前实行的综合法水量分配结果对比来看,2015年昭通、丽江、临沧、红河、文山、怒江两种方法的分配结果相差最小,在0.11亿~0.41亿m³之间;玉溪、普洱、大理、德宏和迪庆两种方法的分配结果相差最大,在2.06亿~4.38亿m³之间;其余州市两种方法的分配结果在1.12亿~1.61亿m³之间。2020年保山、昭通、丽江、临沧、红河、文山、怒江两种方法的分配结果相差最小,在0.02亿~0.41亿m³之间;昆明、玉溪和德宏两种方法的分配结果相差最大,分别为5.89亿、5.66亿和3.54亿m³;其余州市两种方法的分配结果在1.89亿~2.85亿m³之间。3）论文提出的初始水权分配模型及方法具有一定的可操作性和有效性,可为区域初始水权分配提供新的思路和方法。     

THE EFFECT OF BIOLOGICAL VARIABILITY ON MONITORING STRATEGIES: METALLOTHIONEINS AS AN EXAMPLE1

ABSTRACT: An increasing need exists to determine the relative health of estuarine and coastal systems with respect to their ability to support populations of fishery organisms. Many monitoring programs developed for this purpose utilize physiological and biochemical techniques to determine if marine organisms axe stressed by contaminant exposure. The use of the low molecular weight, metal-binding protein, metailothionein, is used as a model technique to detect non-lethal stress in aquatic organisms. Test organisms were the American oyster, Crassostrea virginica, the blue crab, Callinectes sapidus, and the beaked whale, Mesoplodon europaeus. The data presented illustrates how natural environmental and physiological factors can affect the mobilization and partitioning of metals by organisms and contribute to observed variability in data sets. The processes that affected trace metal partitioning and accumulation were: in oysters, the reproductive cycle/season of the year; in blue arabs, growth and the molt cycle; and in the whale, the type of food and habitat. To effectively monitor populations of fishery organisms, therefore, it is necessary to identify those factors that control survival, growth, and reproduction so that better predictive models can be formulated that will not be confounded by uncontrolled variables.     

Contrasting ecological information content in whaling archives with modern cetacean surveys for conservation planning and identification of historical distribution changes

Many species are restricted to a marginal or suboptimal fraction of their historical range due to anthropogenic impacts, making it hard to interpret their ecological preferences from modern-day data alone. However, inferring past ecological states is limited by the availability of robust data and biases in historical archives, posing a challenge for policy makers . To highlight how historical records can be used to understand the ecological requirements of threatened species and inform conservation, we investigated sperm whale (Physeter macrocephalus) distribution in the Western Indian Ocean. We assessed differences in information content and habitat suitability predictions based on whale occurrence data from Yankee whaling logs (1792–1912) and from modern cetacean surveys (1995–2020). We built maximum entropy habitat suitability models containing static (bathymetry-derived) variables to compare models comprising historical-only and modern-only data. Using both historical and modern habitat suitability predictions  we assessed marine protected area (MPA) placement by contrasting suitability in- and outside MPAs. The historical model predicted high habitat suitability in shelf and coastal regions near continents and islands, whereas the modern model predicted a less coastal distribution with high habitat suitability more restricted to areas of steep topography. The proportion of high habitat suitability inside versus outside MPAs was higher when applying the historical predictions than the modern predictions, suggesting that different marine spatial planning optimums can be reached from either data sources. Moreover, differences in relative habitat suitability predictions between eras were consistent with the historical depletion of sperm whales from coastal regions, which were easily accessed and targeted by whalers, resulting in a modern distribution limited more to steep continental margins and remote oceanic ridges. The use of historical data can provide important new insights and, through cautious interpretation, inform conservation planning and policy, for example, by identifying refugee species and regions of anticipated population recovery.