MARINE MAMMAL SCIENCE, 19(1):59-73 (January 2003) © 2003 by the Society for Marine Mammalogy ABUNDANCE OF BOTTLENOSE DOLPHINS IN THE BAYS, SOUNDS, AND ESTUARIES OF NORTH CAROLINA Anprew J. Read Duke University Marine Laboratory, 135 Duke Marine Lab Road, Beaufort, North Carolina 28516, U.S.A E-mail: aread@duke.edu Kim W. UrIAN Biological Sciences, University of North Carolina at Wilmington, Wilmington, North Carolina 28403, U.S.A. BEN WILSON Sea Mammal Research Unit, Gatty Marine Laboratory, University of St. Andrews, Sc. Andrews, Scotland KY16 8LB, United Kingdom DANIELLE M. WapLes Duke University Marine Laboratory, 135 Duke Marine Lab Road, Beaufort, North Carolina 28516, U.S.A. ABSTRACT We conducted a mark-recapture survey of bottlenose dolphins Tursiops trun- catus in the bays, sounds, and estuaries of North Carolina during July 2000, using photographic identification techniques. During this survey we took 7,682 photographs of dolphins and, of these, 3,457 images were of sufficient quality for analysis. We identified 306 dolphins from distinctive nicks and notches on their dorsal fins. Eighty-six dolphins were photographed on more chan one occasion during the course of the survey; one dolphin was photographed on four separate days. We then applied the results of our photographic analyses to sev- eral mark-recapture models and examined potential violations of the assumptions of these models, including an unexpected correlation becween photo quality and mark distinctiveness. Our analysis suggests chat our results are robust to possible violations of these assumptions. The resulting estimates were then scaled to account for the proportion (0.46) of unmarked dolphins in the population. Our best estimate of the number of dolphins present in the inshore waters of North Carolina during July 2000 is 1,033 with a 95% Confidence Interval of 860-1,266 (CV = 0.099). Most dolphins were found in the northern part of the study area, which includes the second largest estuarine system in the United States. 5960, MARINE MAMMAL SCIENCE, VOL. 19, NO. 1, 2003 Key words: bottlenose dolphins, Tirsiops truncatus, abundance, mark-recapture, photo-identification The bottlenose dolphin, Tursiops truncatus, is diseribueed continuously along the intensively developed shoreline of the eastern coast of che United States, but surprisingly little is known of the biology of the species in this region. This lack of knowledge hampers our ability to assess che impact of human activities, such as bycatches in commercial fisheries, on these dolphins. Bottlenose dolphins are taken as bycatch in a variety of commercial fisheries along the Atlantic coast and preliminary assessments indicate that these bycatches may exceed sustainable removal levels (Waring e a/. 2000). To assess the potential impacts of these bycatches on affected populations, information is required on population structure, mortality levels, and abundance. At the present time, much of this information is incomplete or missing (Waring ef al. 2000). Along the eastern coast of the United States, coastal bottlenose dolphins are found over che continental shelf, along ocean beaches, and in waters inshore of barrier islands, in bays, sounds, and estuaries (Kenney 1990). The abundance of dolphins in che ocean has been estimated from aerial surveys using standard line- transect techniques (Waring ef a/. 2000). These techniques are difficult to employ, however, inside barrier islands along this coast because of the physical complexity and turbidity of hese waters. Consequently, there are no reliable estimates of abundance for these habitats, even for the very large estuarine systems of Chesa- peake Bay and the Albemarle and Pamlico sounds. Thus, current published esti- mates of the abundance of coastal bottlenose dolphins are negatively biased (, Waring e al. 2000). In the present study we addressed this shortcoming by con- ducting a mark-recapture survey of bottlenose dolphins in the bays, sounds, and estuaries of North Carolina. Our study area included the Pamlico and Albemarle sounds, the second largest estuarine ecosystem in the United States (Fig. 1). We used boat surveys and phoco-identification techniques to determine the occurrence of individual bottlenose dolphins and applied these data to mark recapture models. Mark-recapture (or capture-recapture) is a numerical tool used widely in ecological studies to estimate the number of identifiable individuals in a population (Otis e¢ a/. 1978). Traditionally in such studies animals have been physically marked by researchers, but more recently the presence of natural marks, documented using photographs, have become more widely exploited («g., Hammond ef af, 1990; Williams et a/. 1993; Wells ef al. 1996a, b; Wilson et al. 1999). Mark-recapture models typically require specific assumptions. By carefully designing and subsequently testing the sampling and individual identification procedures used in chis study, as well as choosing appropriate models, we at- tempted to minimize che impact of violating these assumptions. This approach allowed us’ to generate an estimate of the number of animals present in che bays, sounds and estuaries of North Carolina in July 2000. Meruops Field Effort We conducted photo-identification surveys in waters inshore of the barrier is- lands of Norch Carolina (Fig. 1) during two week-long periods separated byREAD ET AL: BOTTLENOSE DOLPHIN ABUNDANCE, ol Atlantic Ocean Figure 1. Bays, sounds, and estuaries of North Carolina in which mark-recapture photo-identification surveys of bottlenose dolphins were conducted in July 2000. Dashed Tine demarcates northern and southern areas for which abundance was estimated separately. eighe days in July 2000, Due to the large expanse of the study area, we used three vessels simultaneously: one in the southern portion of the state (Southport, Cape Fear River, New River, and Bogue Sound), a second in the central portion (Newport River, Core Sound, Neuse River, Pamlico River, and southern Pamlico Sound), and a third in the northern portion (northern Pamlico Sound, Roanoke Sound, Albemarle Sound, and Currituck Sound). We conducted these surveys from 6-8-m outboard-powered, cencer-console research vessels. Researchers on each boat included an operator, one or ewo photographers, and a data recorder. At each encounter with dolphins, we recorded the position (using GPS) and a field estimate of the number of dolphins in the group. We took pho- tographs of the dorsal fin of each dolphin with SLR cameras, 300-mm lenses and color slide.film. We attempted to photograph the dorsal fin of every dolphin in each group encountered. No previous surveys of bottlenose dolphins have been conducted in most of this area, so to maximize the numbers of animals sampled, we used the experi- ence of local watermen co help direce our survey coverage. On each survey day the three boats set routes using prior information about the perceived discri- bution of dolphins in their area. In addition, a shore-based field co-ordinator contacted fishermen, marine wildlife officers, marine patrol personnel, and other researchers, on a daily basis to determine the location of bottlenose dolphins in real time. The co-ordinator then directed the nearest survey vessel coward them.