Ghosts in the darkness: A National Geographic Explorer's quest to study the elusive Amazonian
Presenter Status
Professor, Department of Biology
Preferred Session
Oral Session
Location
Berrien Springs, MI
Start Date
20-10-2023 12:30 PM
End Date
20-10-2023 2:00 PM
Presentation Abstract
All three manatee species are considered Vulnerable to extinction primarily due to anthropogenic causes. Manatees are aquatic mammals that can live in a variety of environments ranging from marine habitats to freshwater lakes and rivers. Many of those habitats have murky water, making detection using traditional visual surveys very challenging. As a result, scientists currently have no accurate way to estimate population sizes or monitor population trends for many of the populations. This is especially the case for Amazonian manatees, which greatly hamper conservation efforts. Since 2005, I have been working on varies innovative methods to study these elusive aquatic mammals. In this presentation I review and summarize those efforts, including the preliminary results from my National Geographic funded study comparing two novel ways in which Amazonian manatees can potentially be surveyed. By combining traditional knowledge from manatee hunters and the use of cutting-edge sonar technology, we ultimately hope to develop a science-based solution to the lingering problem of studying and monitoring these elusive gentle giants
Ghosts in the darkness: A National Geographic Explorer's quest to study the elusive Amazonian
Berrien Springs, MI
All three manatee species are considered Vulnerable to extinction primarily due to anthropogenic causes. Manatees are aquatic mammals that can live in a variety of environments ranging from marine habitats to freshwater lakes and rivers. Many of those habitats have murky water, making detection using traditional visual surveys very challenging. As a result, scientists currently have no accurate way to estimate population sizes or monitor population trends for many of the populations. This is especially the case for Amazonian manatees, which greatly hamper conservation efforts. Since 2005, I have been working on varies innovative methods to study these elusive aquatic mammals. In this presentation I review and summarize those efforts, including the preliminary results from my National Geographic funded study comparing two novel ways in which Amazonian manatees can potentially be surveyed. By combining traditional knowledge from manatee hunters and the use of cutting-edge sonar technology, we ultimately hope to develop a science-based solution to the lingering problem of studying and monitoring these elusive gentle giants