The Ecology and Conservation Group
Emmanuelle Martinez

RESEARCH

Responses of Hector's dolphins (Cephalorhynchus hectori hectori) to vessel activity in Akaroa Harbour, Banks Peninsula, New Zealand.

New Zealand is widely touted as a world leader in dolphin-based tourism. However many questions remain regarding the impacts of tourism on targeted species. Hector's dolphins is endemic to New Zealand and are prime targets for commercial dolphin-watching operations. This endangered species is strictly coastal, resident in well-defined areas, has a low migratory range and is generally attracted to vessels. These same factors also make this species potentially vulnerable to disturbance. A genetically fragmented population structure further implies that any impacts on these localised populations would not be buffered by neighbouring populations. Therefore, this highlights the need to manage populations at the appropriate level, i.e. at a local level. Akaroa Harbour, located at the centre of the Banks Peninsula, is a prime tourism spot for dolphin-watching/swimming activities with Hector's dolphins. The harbour is also generally busy with other non-commercial vessel traffic. Despite the protection the Marine Mammal Sanctuary affords the Hector's dolphins around the Banks Peninsula region (created in 1988 to protect the dolphins from gillnetting), the most rapidly increasing industry that is likely to impact on the dolphins, i.e. tourism, remains poorly understood. There is a paucity of information on the effects of vessels and tourism on Hector's dolphins in Banks Peninsula and the Canterbury region at large. Despite the fact that research is lagging behind the growing tourism industry, there is growing evidence, both worldwide and in New Zealand, that cetaceans do exhibit short-term reactions to the presence of vessels. Assessing the potential effects of commercial and non-commercial activities in Akaroa Harbour is therefore crucial and urgent. This sense of conservation urgency has also been recently recognised in the Department of Conservation (DoC) Marine Mammal Action Plan for 2005-2010, where Hector's dolphins have been identified as "a priority species" and a key objective for DoC is to "effectively protect Hector's dolphins against avoidable adverse effects of tourism". The importance of identifying the effects of vessel activities in Akaroa Harbour is further highlighted by the fact that permits in Canterbury are up for review in 2005. Two independent reviews commissioned by DoC highlighted the fact that essential to effective and sustainable management of the dolphin-watching tourism industry in the Harbour is the basic need for a comprehensive study on interactions between tourists and Hector's dolphins.

Akaroa Harbour. by E. Martinez

FUNDING BODIES

• Massey University Doctoral Scholarship
• Massey University
• Department of Conservation
• New Zealand Federation of Graduate Women Fellowship
• James Sharon Watson Conservation Trust (Forest and Bird)
• Whales and Dolphins Conservation Society
• Project AWARE Australasia
• Helping Hand Fund

PUBLICATION / REPORTS

Martinez E & Orams MB 2009. Report on the use of stones as auditory stimulants during swim-with-dolphins encounters with the South Island Hector's dolphins (Cephalorhynchus hectori hectori) in Akaroa Harbour, New Zealand. Internal report to the Department of Conservation, Canterbury Conservancy.

Martinez E 2008. Dugong. In: M. Lück (Ed). Encyclopedia of Tourism and Recreation in Marine Environments. CABI International Publishing, Oxford.

Martinez E 2008. Moreton Island. In: M. Lück (Ed). Encyclopedia of Tourism and Recreation in Marine Environments. CABI International Publishing, Oxford.

Martinez E 2008. Jacques-Yves Cousteau. In: M. Lück (Ed). Encyclopedia of Tourism and Recreation in Marine Environments. CABI International Publishing, Oxford.

Martinez E 2008. Jean-Michel Cousteau. In: M. Lück (Ed). Encyclopedia of Tourism and Recreation in Marine Environments. CABI International Publishing, Oxford.

Martinez E 2007. Responses of South Island Hector's dolphins (Cephalorhynchus hectori hectori) to vessel activity in Akaroa Harbour, Banks Peninsula. Implications for the tourism industry? Progress Report for the Department of Conservation, Canterbury, New Zealand.

Martinez E 2006. Responses of South Island Hector's dolphins (Cephalorhynchus hectori hectori) to vessel activity in Akaroa Harbour, Banks Peninsula. Implications for the tourism industry? Progress Report for the Department of Conservation, Canterbury, New Zealand.

Martinez E & Slooten E 2003. A selective, annotated bibliography for Hector's dolphins. DoC Science Internal Series 124. Department of Conservation, Wellington. 40p. |webPDF|

Martinez E 2003. Pre-disturbance study of Hector's dolphins (Cephalorhynchus hectori) prior to a dolphin-watching operation at Motunau, New Zealand. Unpublished MSc Thesis, University of Otago, New Zealand. |Abstract(PDF, 70 KB) | Thesis (PDF, 12 MB)|

Martinez E, Green E, Dawson S & Slooten E 2002. Hector's dolphin (Cephalorhynchus hectori) population size, habitat utilisation, behaviour, and response to tourism in Porpoise Bay, New Zealand. Internal report to the Department of Conservation, Southland Conservancy.

Martinez E & Slooten E 2001. Report on the New Zealand cetacean environment. Report presented at the 2001 International Whaling Commission annual meeting, Sydney, Australia.

Richter C, Lusseau D & Martinez E 2001. A critical review of methodologies employed to assess impacts of marine mammal watching activities on cetaceans. Report presented at the 2001 International Whaling Commission annual meeting, Sydney, Australia.

Martinez, E 1998. Potential effects of human activities on populations of dolphins. Unpublished BSc Dissertation. University of Leicester, UK.

CONFERENCES

2009- Proceedings of Coastal and Marine Research Congress, Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
Martinez E & Orams MB. ‘Kia angi puku to hoe i te wai’. Ocean noise and tourism. |Full paper|
Schaffar A, Garrigue C, Virly S & Martinez E. The unregulated growth of humpback whale watching in New Caledonia: Where are we today? |Abstract|

2007 - New Zealand. Proceedings of the 17th Biennial Conference on the Biology of Marine Mammals, Cape Town, South Africa.
Martinez E, Orams MB, Brunton DH. Responses of Hector's dolphins (Cephalorhynchus hectori hectori) to vessel activity in Akaroa Harbour.
|Abstract (PDF, 19 KB)|Poster (PDF, 1.2 MB)|

2007 - Proceedings of the 5th International Coastal and Marine Tourism Congress, Auckland, New Zealand.
Martinez E, Brunton DH & Orams MB. Responses of Hector's dolphins (Cephalorhynchus hectori hectori) to vessel activity in Akaroa Harbour.
|Abstract (PDF, 19 KB)|Poster (PDF, 1.2 MB)|

2001 - Proceedings of the 14th Biennial Conference on the Biology of Marine Mammals. Vancouver, Canada.
Martinez E & Slooten E. Ecology, behaviour and potential impact of tourism on Hector's dolphins (Cephalorhynchus hectori) at Motunau, New Zealand. 262p.

OTHER EXPERIENCES

• Effect of vessels on humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae), South Lagoon, New Caledonia (July 2005; August 2007; August 2008).
  Lead researchers: Ms Aline Shaffar & Dr Claire Garrigue.
• Capricornia Cetaceans Project, Capricorn Coast, Australia (June-July 2006).
  Lead researcher: Mr Daniele Cagnazzi (PhD Project)
• Effects of vessel traffic on the behaviour of the East Australian humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae), Moreton Island, Australia (June-July 2005).
  Lead Researcher: Ms Jodi Smith, Massey University (Msc Project).
• Research on sperm whales (Physeter macrocephalus) off Tonga (June 2003).
  Lead Researchers: Drs Steve Dawson and Liz Slooten, University of Otago.
• Distribution and abundance of South Island Hector's dolphins (Cephalorhunchus hectori hectori) in relation to oceanographic features, Banks Peninsula, New Zealand (September 2001; June 2002).
  Lead Researcher: Ms Deanna Clement, University of Otago (PhD Project).
• South Island Hector's dolphin (Cephalorhynchus hectori hectori) population size, habitat utilisation, behaviour, and response to tourism in Porpoise Bay, New Zealand. (December 2001/ March 2002).
  Lead Researchers, Ms Emmanuelle Martinez and Ms Erin Green, University of Otago (MSc Project).