Line of action:

Marine ecosystems

Status:

En ejecución

Location:

Region of Murcia

Execution date:

2022

Duration:

01/06/2022 - 31/12/2025

Total budget:

53.405€

Amount of aid from the Biodiversity Foundation:

€50,734.75 (95.00%)

Since the establishment of the Network of Strandings of cetaceans and sea turtles in the region of Murcia in 2003 (BORM nº 274 of November 26, 2003), more than 600 strandings have been attended, making it impossible to determine the cause of their entry between 40-50% of the time.

The project aims to go one step further in the scientific knowledge of the causes of threat suffered by stranded species with a view to their future correction.
Sea turtles and cetaceans are large migrators, which makes them important biomarkers for the evaluation of the current state of our seas and oceans.
The biological information obtained will be very useful in the management and protection of these species.

Some of the actions that will be carried out are:

• Quantification of marine litter intake in cetaceans: the intake by dead stranded cetaceans will be identified and quantified both by type of litter and by quantity, as a background we have 2 sperm whales in 2018, one died due to the ingestion of plastic material (20 kg) and the other had plastic remains in its digestive system.
• Assessment of entanglement in cetaceans: it will be identified and quantified both by type of garbage and by the amount on the outside of the dead and live stranded cetaceans, as precedents we have some cases of cetaceans (dolphins and pilot whales) with ends on the peduncle of the tail, the last one a bottlenose dolphin this year.
• Calculation of marine litter intake in sea turtles: it will be identified and quantified both by type of garbage and by quantity, the ingestion by stranded turtles both alive and dead, the presence of plastics in the digestive system of sea turtles (mainly loggerhead turtles) is a frequent fact.
• Estimation of sea turtle nets: it is currently one of the most important causes of sea turtle entry into recovery centers, the animals suffer serious injuries that can range from death to the loss of one or more limbs.
• Assessment of fishing interaction in cetaceans and sea turtles: fishing interaction or by-catch is one of the most important causes to determine.
• Diagnosis of infectious and/or parasitic diseases: cetaceans and sea turtles, to a lesser extent, suffer from a series of diseases that can decimate their population (Morbillivirus in striped dolphin populations) or at least prevent a normal life for the animals.
• Diagnosis of trauma: another cause of admission that has been observed are those associated with traumas of various types in both cetaceans and sea turtles, they can be due to collisions with boats (fractures in the head, shell, etc.), blows with propellers (deep lacerations, amputations), biological interactions with other species (bite marks spread over the body of the dolphin, etc.). rib fractures, liver ruptures, etc.), gas embolism due to inadequate decompression (multitude of gas bubbles distributed throughout the animal’s bloodstream).
• Migratory and survival study in sea turtles (mainly loggerhead turtles): this action is considered essential to improve the scientific knowledge that we currently have about the migrations of the Caretta caretta , it will also provide us with valuable information that will allow us to see if the recovery work is effective assessing the survival of the released individuals.