| Some
fins are extremely easy to identify. Notches are usually
along the trailing edge, where the fin is thinner. This
dolphin (Scooby) seems to have seen some heavy action.
Notches can be caused by biting from other dolphins, as well as
sharkbites, rope and line entanglements, boat strikes, and other
injuries. |
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Photo by
R. Young, 5/31/02, NMFS permit 976-1582 |
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Most
fins are not as easy to identify as Scooby above. The
dolphin on the left has subtle notches that require a good
photograph. The dolphin on the right has almost nothing to
go by other than the general shape. |
| Photo by
R. Young, 5/31/02, NMFS permit 976-1582 |
|
| Eve and
her calf Dodger swim up against the Spartina grass.
Dodger is Eve's third calf since the study was started in 1997. |
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| |
Photo by
S. Brantley, 7/19/02, NMFS permit 976-1582 |
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Triple
Notch is one of our largest dolphins and almost certainly a
male. His front, back, and top notches are very
distinct. The scratches on the side (tooth rakes from other
dolphins) will fade. |
| Photo by
R. Young, NMFS permit 976-1582 |
|
| This
juvenile dolphin has rather dramatic and fresh tooth rakes on his
body, as well as on his fin. Tooth rakes from other dolphins
are common on most individuals. |
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Photo by
R. Young, NMFS permit 976-1582 |
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|
Although
you can't really see Sweeper in this picture, you can see where
she gets her name. This is her favorite feeding
technique. We know Sweeper is a female because she was
always with her calf, Dusty. |
| photo by
Elizabeth Moses, 7/2/02, NMFS permit 976-1582 |
|
| Flattip
and her newborn calf swim between the muddy bank and an oyster
reef. Her calf is less than a month old. You can
recognize a newborn, or neonate, by the fetal folds along the
side, left over from when it was folded over in the womb.
The fetal folds will soon disappear. |
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| |
photo by
R. Young, 6/19/02, NMFS permit 976-1582 |
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|
Mullet
fly through the air as a dolphin rushes the bank on a
strand-feeding run. In this case, the dolphin did not leave
the shallow water, but strand feeding dolphins often literally
slide up onto the mud as they try to capture mullet. |
| Photo by
R. Young, 7/19/02, NMFS permit 976-1582 |
|
| Flattip's
calf is getting bigger by late August. Once calves begin to
get more independent, they tend to be social with the boat.
The calf will stay with Flattip for about 2 years or more. |
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| |
Photo by
R. Young, 8/22/02, NMFS permit 976-1582 |
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|
High
tide provides an interesting picture, as three dolphins surface
near an almost completely submerged creek bank. |
| Photo by
R. Young, 8/22/02, NMFS permit 976-1582 |
|
| Salt
marsh dolphins routinely go into some very tight spaces.
They will swim up into creeks at high tide that don't even exist
at low tide. They know their system very well. |
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| |
Photo by
R. Young, NMFS permit 976-1582 |
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|
We
survey the fish population (dolphin food) in the system each month
using a specialized entanglement net called a trammel net.
Here, Steve tosses the weighted end of the net onto the shore, and
the "set" begins. We do 12 sets a month in random
sites throughout North Inlet. |
| Photo by
D. Allen, 7/12/02 |
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| The
trammel net is 400 feet long and only takes about 20 seconds to
set. After the first end is thrown on the bank, the boat
runs along parallel to the shore. Shannon is counting out
marker flags on the net so that Dr. Young will know when to veer
back in for the final toss. This encloses a section of water
along the shore and all the fish within it. |
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| |
Photo by
D. Allen, 7/12/02 |
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|
Once the
net is set, we drive the boat inside the enclosed area and beat
the water to scare the fish into the net. Then it is time to
haul it in. |
| Photo by
D. Allen, 7/12/02 |
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| Steve
takes a ladyfish out of the net. All the fish are
identified, measured, weighed, and released. Selected
species are tagged to monitor movements and estimate population
size using mark-recapture statistics. |
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Photo by
D. Allen, 7/12/02 |
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|
This red
drum is tagged and ready for release. Other fish wait in the
cooler below for their turn. We suspect that red drum may be
a major prey species for dolphins in North Inlet, especially
during the winter when there aren't many other choices. |
| Photo by
R. Young, 7/12/02 |
|
| Shannon
pulls a stingray out of the net while Steve looks on. Its
stinging barb must be clipped off before it can be handled.
The barb will grow back in a matter of months. You never
know what you may catch. The biggest thing we caught all
summer was a 5 and a half foot finetooth shark. |
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Photo by
R. Young, 7/12/02 |
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|
Shannon
shows off a large green algae called Codium, or Dead Men's
Fingers, attached to an oyster shell. Normally these die off
in the spring in South Carolina, but this was a drought year and
the water remained unusually clear, allowing the benthic
macroalgae to flourish. With all that extra growing time, we
were finding the biggest Codium specimens Dr. Young had
ever seen. |
| Photo by
D. Allen, 7/12/02 |
|