7. NOČ DELFINOV

Tokratna, že 7. Noč delfinov je tik pred vrati. Vabimo vas, da se nam zopet pridružite v ljubljanskem Mestnem muzeju, 9. februarja ob 18.30 uri in preživite z nami večer, poln zanimivosti iz sveta delfinov.

Lepo vabljeni!

GREETINGS

Morigenos Society wishes you and your loved ones a joyful Christmas holiday and a happy and prosperous New Year.

Thank you for your support!

Team Morigenos

Voščilo

V društvu Morigenos želimo vam in vašim bližnjim vse dobro ob prihajajočih praznikih. 

Hvala za vašo podporo!

ekipa Morigenos

NEW STUDY BY MORIGENOS ON PECULIAR SOCIAL PARTITIONING IN A DOLPHIN SOCIETY

A new study published in the journal Marine Biology investigated the social network of dolphins in the northern Adriatic Sea. It showed that dolphins living in the Gulf of Trieste form distinct social groups and some of these groups don’t seem to like to talk to each other.

It is widely known that dolphins usually occur in groups. In the case of common bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus), group composition often changes, with animals joining or leaving the groups. But these groups are not random. Individual dolphins prefer to spend time with particular other dolphins, which could sometimes be described as their “best friends”.

We investigated the social network of dolphins living in the Gulf of Trieste (northern Adriatic Sea) over 9 years. We discovered something quite remarkable. It turned out that the resident dolphin society is composed of three distinct social groups: two large social groups with stable membership and long-lasting friendships, and a smaller third social group, nicknamed “freelancers”, with much weaker bonds and no particularly long-lasting friendships. But this isn’t the remarkable part yet. It turned out that the two large social groups seem to avoid each other most of the time. However, instead of than having different “territories”, they actually overlap in space – but not in time. In other words, we found that dolphins share at least some part of their home range, but they use it at different times of day. This pattern was so persistent through the years that we internally started referring to these two social groups as “morning group” and “evening group”. Such temporal partitioning based on time of day has not previously been documented in whales and dolphins, nor in other mammals it seems. The “freelancers” displayed no such pattern.

“We were quite surprised by this” said Tilen Genov from Morigenos, the lead author of the study and a PhD student at the Sea Mammal Research Unit, University of St Andrews, UK. “It is not uncommon for dolphin social groups to segregate in space, but here they segregate in time. It appeared a bit unusual.”

“We still don’t know the entire extent of their ranging patterns, so it is possible that their ranging patterns differ overall. But we do know they overlap in at least part of their range, and they seem to share it by sticking to particular times. We would sometimes even see one group in the morning, and then another group in the same area in the late afternoon of the same day.”

Interestingly, the two social groups also differed in ways they interact with fisheries, as one regularly interacted with trawlers, while the other did not (“trawler” vs. “non-trawler” dolphins). Dolphins therefore employ different strategies when it comes to obtaining food. Previous studies elsewhere have shown that such tactics are learned and passed on from mothers to young. So the next logical question was: Are differences in fishery-related behaviour affecting the segregation patterns? Apparently not. Even when taking fishery-related behaviour into account, this failed to explain the time-of-day segregation.

It remains unknown what the reasons for these differences are. Both social groups contain both males and females, so segregation is not dependent on the sex of the animals. There may be genetic factors (dolphins within social groups may be close relatives) or there may be diet differences, which would partly explain why some dolphins follow fishing boats and others do not. All this is the topic of further investigation, currently ongoing. However, a study published by Morigenos just last week showed that these dolphins are all equally contaminated with PCBs, toxic man-made chemicals, regardless of potential differences in what they eat.

This study demonstrates how different segments of the same animal population may behave very differently and have differing effects on human activities such as fishing. In turn, they may respond differently to human impacts, as temporal partitioning may make animals either more or less vulnerable certain types of disturbance. This study also showed that groups are more stable than is usually the case for this species, and that bottlenose dolphin social structure may be more variable than was previously assumed.

Morigenos has been studying dolphins in the Gulf of Trieste and adjacent waters of the northern Adriatic Sea since 2002, looking at their population size and distribution, behaviour, social and genetic structure, and the effects of human activities on them.

The paper is available open access at the following link: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00227-018-3450-8

NOVA RAZISKAVA DRUŠTVA MORIGENOS O NENAVADNI SOCIALNI STRUKTURI DELFINOV

Nova raziskava socialne strukture delfinov iz Tržaškega zaliva, objavljena danes v ugledni mednarodni reviji Marine Biology, je pokazala, da se delfini ob slovenski obali delijo v ločene socialne skupine. Nekatere med njimi se med seboj očitno ne marajo preveč.

Splošno znano je, da delfini navadno plavajo v skupinah. V primeru velikih pliskavk (Tursiops truncatus) se sestava teh skupin pogosto spreminja, saj posamezne živali prihajajo in odhajajo. Toda te skupine niso naključne. Posamezni delfini raje preživljajo čas s prav določenimi drugimi delfini, ki bi jih lahko opisali kot njihove “najboljše prijatelje”.

V društvu Morigenos smo preučevali socialno mrežo delfinov v Tržaškem zalivu, v raziskavi, ki je trajala 9 let. Odkrili smo nekaj izjemnega. Ugotovili smo, da je lokalna delfinja družba sestavljena iz treh ločenih socialnih skupin: dveh večjih skupin s stalnim članstvom in dolgoletnimi prijateljstvi, ter manjše tretje skupine, s šibkejšimi vezmi in brez dolgotrajnih prijateljstev. Toda to še ni tisti izjemen del. Izkazalo se je, da se dve večji socialni skupini večino časa medsebojno očitno izogibata. Toda namesto, da bi imeli različne “teritorije”, si delita prostor – ne pa tudi čas. Drugače povedano, delfini si delijo vsaj del svojega območja, ki pa ga uporabljajo ob različnih delih dneva. Ta vzorec je skozi leta postal tako očiten, da smo pogovorno ti dve socialni skupini začeli imenovati kar “jutranja skupina” in “večerna skupina”. Takšno časovno ločevanje doslej še ni bilo dokumentirano pri kitih in delfinih, niti pri drugih sesalcih. Tretja skupina (ki jo v hecu imenujemo “freelancerji”) ni kazala tovrstnih vzorcev.

“To nas je precej presenetilo” je povedal Tilen Genov iz društva Morigenos, ki je vodil raziskavo. “Pri socialnih skupinah delfinov ni nenavadno, da se ločujejo prostorsko, toda tukaj se ločujejo časovno. Zdi se nekoliko nenavadno.”

“Še vedno ne poznamo celotnega obsega njihovega gibanja, zato je možno, da se skupini na splošno gibljeta v različnih delih severnega Jadrana. Toda vemo, da se prekrivata vsaj na tem območju, ki pa si ga delita tako, da ga uporabljata ob različnih urah. Včasih lahko eno skupino opazujemo v bližini Pirana v dopoldanskih urah, kasneje pa drugo skupino na istem območju v poznih popoldanskih urah istega dne.”

Zanimivo je, da se obe socialni skupini razlikujeta tudi v svojem vedenju glede na ribiške aktivnosti: ena skupina je bila redno vključena v interakcije z ribiškimi ladjami s povlečnimi mrežami (t.i. kočami), druga pa ne. Delfini torej uporabljajo različne strategije pridobivanja hrane. Prejšnje raziskave drugod po svetu so pokazale, da so tovrstne taktike naučene in da se prenašajo z mame na mladiča. Naslednje logično vprašanje je torej bilo: Ali razlike v vedenju glede na ribiške aktivnosti vplivajo na prej omenjeno časovno ločevanje? Očitno ne. Celo ko smo upoštevali tovrstno vedenje, to še vedno ni pojasnilo časovnega ločevanja glede na del dneva.

Razlogi za zgoraj omenjene razlike zaenkrat še niso znani. V obeh socialnih skupinah so tako samci kot samice, kar pomeni, da ne gre za razlike med spoloma. Morda gre za genetske faktorje (delfini iz iste socialne skupine so morda bližnji sorodniki) ali pa morda za razlike v prehrani, kar bi deloma pojasnilo zakaj nekateri delfini sledijo ribiškim ladjam, drugi pa ne. Vse to je predmet nadaljnjih raziskav, ki trenutno potekajo. Raziskava društva Morigenos, objavljena v preteklem tednu, je pokazala, da so vse te skupine delfinov enako obremenjene s toksičnimi PCB spojinami, ne glede na morebitne razlike v prehrani.

Ta raziskava je pokazala, da se lahko različni segmenti iste populacije vedejo zelo različno in imajo lahko posledično različne vplive na človeške aktivnosti kot je ribištvo. Obenem pa se lahko različno odzivajo na človeške vplive, saj so lahko nekatere živali zaradi časovnega ločevanja bolj ali manj občutljive na določene vrste pritiskov. Ta raziskava je pokazala tudi večjo stabilnost socialnih skupin kot je sicer značilno za to vrsto delfinov in izpostavila, da je socialna struktura pri tej vrsti bolj raznolika kot se je doslej domnevalo.

Društvo Morigenos delfine v Tržaškem zalivu in okoliških vodah preučuje od leta 2002, s poudarkom na raziskavah velikosti in razširjenosti populacije, vedenja, socialne in genetske strukture ter vplivov človeških aktivnosti na delfine.

Članek je prosto dostopen na naslednjem naslovu: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00227-018-3450-8

Namenite 0,5% dohodnine za ohranjanje delfinov v slovenskem morju

Vsakdo, ki v Sloveniji plačuje dohodnino, lahko podari do 0,5 % svoje dohodnine eni izmed več kot 5 tisoč nevladnih organizacij, ki delujejo v javnem interesu.

Tudi društvo Morigenos je eden izmed upravičencev za namenitev dela dohodnine, saj delujemo v javnem interesu na področju ohranjanja narave in na področju varstva okolja.

Takšna donacija vas nič ne stane – pol odstotka vaše dohodnine bo sicer pristalo v proračunu, vzelo pa vam bo le nekaj minut časa. Vse, kar morate storiti, je, da v obrazec vpišete svoje podatke, ga podpišete in najkasneje do 31.12.2018 pošljete na vaš davčni urad; lahko pa zahtevo podate tudi preko sistema e-Davki na spletni strani https://edavki.durs.si/. Vaša izbira upravičenca za namenitev dela dohodnine nato velja do preklica.

Prejeta sredstva bomo v celoti namenili raziskovanju in varstvu delfinov, izobraževalnim dejavnostim, usposabljanju mladih ter razvijanju strokovnega kadra na področju morskih sesalcev, znanosti in varstva narave.

Hvala za vašo podporo!

NEW STUDY BY MORIGENOS ON TOXIC POLLUTANTS IN DOLPHINS

New research shows that dolphins in the northern Adriatic contain high levels of PCBs, highly toxic chemicals banned in the 1970s-1980s, and that females pass on their pollutant burden to their young. A new study led by Morigenos was published yesterday in the journal Science of the Total Environment.

PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls) are a group of man-made chemicals previously used in the manufacture of products including electrical equipment, flame retardants and paints. High exposure to PCBs is known to weaken animal immune systems and markedly reduce breeding success by causing abortions or high mortality in newborn calves. Even though their use has been banned for three decades, they are still present in the marine environment, and particularly in top marine predators such as dolphins.

An international team of researchers, led by Morigenos, evaluated PCB and other organochlorine contaminants in bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) living in the Gulf of Trieste (northern Adriatic Sea), the northernmost part of the Mediterranean Sea and one of the most human-impacted areas in the Mediterranean. Apart from Morigenos, the study involved the Sea Mammal Research Unit at the University of St Andrews (UK), Zoological Society of London’s Institute of Zoology (UK), Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (CEFAS, UK) and the Institute of Marine Sciences of the Italian National Research Council (Italy).

Overall, 87.5% of dolphins had PCB concentrations above the toxicity threshold for the onset of physiological effects in marine mammals, while 65.6% had concentrations above the highest threshold published for marine mammals based on reproductive impairment in seals. Such high contaminant levels are of concern particularly in combination with other threats to dolphins, including bycatch in fisheries, disturbance by boat traffic, marine litter, prey depletion, etc.

“We have been studying these dolphins for over 16 years, so we know most of them well. Through long-term re-sighting histories of identified individuals, we were able to link PCB levels in individual dolphins to parameters such as sex, reproductive output and social group membership.” said Tilen Genov from Morigenos, the lead author of the study and a PhD student at the University of St Andrews, UK.

The research showed that males have significantly higher pollutant concentrations than females. This is because females offload a substantial amount of their toxicological burden to their young through gestation and lactation. That is also why females that have not yet had calves had significantly higher concentrations than those that had previously produced at least one calf. Such results are expected based on our knowledge of mammal physiology, but it is not very common to demonstrate this phenomenon in wild whales and dolphins.

Dead animals stranded on shore are typically used for pollutant studies, but with such samples, one never knows exactly where and how the animals lived before washing up on shore. Furthermore, the decomposition may alter the pollutant concentrations in the tissues. On the other hand, because obtaining samples from live animals is not easy, many long-term observational studies of dolphins lack information on pollutants. Here, researchers were able to combine these two important aspects, as samples were collected from live dolphins of known identities, without capturing or harming them. While this isn’t the first research to do that, such studies remain relatively rare, especially in the Mediterranean Sea, the largest enclosed sea in the world, with substantial human pressure. With the largest sample size of live free-ranging animals in the Mediterranean Sea or Europe published for this species to date, this study provides valuable new information on pollutants in dolphins.

Dr Paul Jepson, co-author of the study and specialist wildlife veterinarian at Zoological Society of London’s Institute of Zoology, said: “This is another study showing high or very high levels of a very toxic and persistent pollutant – PCBs – in European dolphins. PCBs have the ability to cause diseases like cancer and can also suppress reproduction.”

Morigenos has been studying dolphins in the Gulf of Trieste and adjacent waters since 2002, looking at their population size and distribution, behaviour, social and genetic structure, and the effects of human activities on them.

Tilen Genov: “Our previous research has also shown that these dolphin form distinct social groups, which behave differently and may have different diets. This implied that the amount of pollutants they accumulate may also differ because of the different food they eat. However, this study showed that they are all equally contaminated, regardless of potential differences in what they eat, and that PCBs are a problem for all of them.”

Dr Paul Jepson: “The wider context is that much more needs to be done - across European countries - to clean-up the major sources of PCBs entering the marine environment. The Mediterranean Sea has some of the highest PCB exposures globally in dolphins and other wildlife species.”

The paper is freely available at the following link: https://authors.elsevier.com/a/1YBpcB8ccghjk

NOVA RAZISKAVA DRUŠTVA MORIGENOS O TOKSIČNIH SPOJINAH V DELFINIH

Nova raziskava je pokazala, da imajo delfini v severnem Jadranu v svojih telesih visoke vsebnosti PCBjev, izredno toksičnih spojin, prepovedanih že od 70. in 80. let, in da samice svoje strupeno breme prenašajo na svoje mladiče. Nova raziskava pod vodstvom društva Morigenos je bila včeraj objavljena v ugledni mednarodni reviji Science of the Total Environment.

Poliklorirani bifenili oz. PCB spojine so skupina umetnih kemikalij, ki so se nekoč uporabljale pri izdelavi različnih izdelkov, vključno z električno opremo, zaviralci gorenja in barvami. Gre za eno najbolj toksičnih snovi, kar jih je ustvaril človek. Znano je, da visoka izpostavljenost PCB spojinam pri živalih povzroča oslabitev imunskega sistema in znatno zmanjšano rodnost. Slednja se lahko izraža kot povečano število splavov ali kot visoka smrtnost novorojenih mladičev. 

Mednarodna ekipa znanstvenikov pod vodstvom društva Morigenos je ugotavljala prisotnost PCB in drugih kemičnih spojin v velikih pliskavkah (Tursiops truncatus), ki živijo v Tržaškem zalivu in okoliških vodah severnega Jadrana, najsevernejšem delu Sredozemskega morja in enem od najbolj obremenjenih območij v celotnem Sredozemlju. V raziskavi so poleg društva Morigenos sodelovali še Univerza St Andrews (Velika Britanija), Zoološki inštitut Zoološkega društva v Londonu (Zoological Society of London, Velika Britanija), Center za znanosti o okolju, ribištvu in akvakulturi (CEFAS, Velika Britanija) in Inštitut za morske znanosti Italijanskega nacionalnega sveta za raziskave (Italija).

Vsega 87.5% delfinov je imelo PCB koncentracije nad pragom toksičnosti, kjer pride do fizioloških vplivov pri morskih sesalcih, medtem ko jih je 65.6% imelo koncentracije nad pragom, za katerega je bilo ugotovljeno, da vodi v nesposobnost razmnoževanja pri morskih sesalcih. Takšne visoke vsebnosti onesnaževal so zaskrbljujoče predvsem v kombinaciji z drugimi grožnjami kot so naključni ulov v ribiške mreže, vpliv pomorskega prometa, onesnaženje s plastiko, pomanjkanje plena, ipd.

“Te delfine preučujemo in spremljamo že 16 let, zato večino zelo dobro poznamo. S pomočjo dolgoletnih podatkov o opažanjih posameznih identificiranih delfinov smo lahko koncentracije onesnaževal povezali z različnimi parametri kot so spol, rodnost in pripadnost določenim socialnim skupinam.” je povedal Tilen Genov iz društva Morigenos, vodilni avtor raziskave in doktorski študent na Univerzi St Andrews iz Velike Britanije.

Raziskava je pokazala, da imajo samci bistveno višje koncentracije onesnaževal kot samice. Do tega pride, ker samice velik del svojega toksikološkega bremena prenesejo na mladiče v času brejosti in dojenja. To je tudi razlog, da imajo samice, ki še niso imele mladičev, bistveno višje koncentracije kot samice, ki so že imele vsaj enega mladiča. Takšni rezultati so glede na naše poznavanje fiziologije sesalcev sicer pričakovani, vendar je ta pojav razmeroma redko moč prikazati pri prostoživečih kitih in delfinih.

Za študije prisotnosti onesnaževal se navadno uporablja vzorce poginulih živali, ki jih naplavi na obalo. Toda pri tovrstnih vzorcih se nikoli ne ve, od kod poginule živali izvirajo ter kje in kako so živele pred smrtjo. Prav tako lahko proces razpadanja spremeni koncentracije onesnaževal v tkivih. Po drugi strani pa večina dolgoročnih terenskih raziskav živih delfinov ne vključuje informacij o onesnaževalih, saj je pridobivanje vzorcev živih živali težavno. V tej raziskavi pa so raziskovalci združili ta dva pomembna vidika, saj so pridobili vzorce živih živali, ki jih že leta spremljajo. Čeprav to ni prva raziskava, ki je ta dva vidika uspešno združila, so tovrstne raziskave v svetu še vedno razmeroma redke, predvsem v Sredozemskem morju, ki velja za največje polzaprto morje na svetu, z občutnimi človeškimi pritiski. Ta raziskava predstavlja doslej največje število analiziranih vzorcev živih prostoživečih velikih pliskavk v Sredozemlju in Evropi ter prispeva pomembne nove informacije o onesnaževalih v delfinih.

Dr. Paul Jepson, so-avtor raziskave in veterinarski specialist za prostoživeče živali pri Zoološkem inštitutu Zoološkega društva v Londonu, je dejal: “To je še ena raziskava, ki kaže visoke ali zelo visoke nivoje izredno toksičnih in obstojnih onesnaževal – PCB spojin – v evropskih delfinih. PCB spojine lahko povzročajo bolezni kot je rak in tudi onesposobijo zmožnost razmnoževanja.”

Društvo Morigenos delfine v Tržaškem zalivu in okoliških vodah preučuje od leta 2002, s poudarkom na raziskavah velikosti in razširjenosti populacije, vedenja, socialne in genetske strukture ter vplivov človeških aktivnosti na delfine.

Tilen Genov: “Naše predhodne raziskave so pokazale, da ti delfini tvorijo več ločenih socialnih skupin, ki se različno obnašajo in imajo morda celo različno prehrano. To bi lahko pomenilo, da se tudi količina onesnaževal, ki jo kopičijo v telesih, med skupinami razlikuje zaradi razlik v prehrani. Toda ta raziskava je pokazala, da so vsi enako obremenjeni z onesnaževali in da so PCB spojine problem za celotno populacijo.”

Dr. Paul Jepson: “Širši kontekst tega je to, da je potrebno narediti še ogromno – v vseh evropskih državah – da se počisti glavne vire PCB spojin, ki vstopajo v morsko okolje. Delfini in druge morske živali v Sredozemlju imajo izredno visoko izpostavljenosti PCB spojin, med najvišjimi na svetu.”

Članek je prosto dostopen na naslednjem naslovu: https://authors.elsevier.com/a/1YBpcB8ccghjk

ADOPT A DOLPHIN FROM THE SLOVENIAN SEA - A WONDERFUL GIFT FOR THE HOLIDAYS

Give your loved ones interesting and useful gift for upcoming holidays: adopt a dolphin from Slovenia and support conservation of dolphins and their environment in the northern Adriatic.

By adopting a dolphin you financially support the research of marine mammals in Slovenia and the northern Adriatic.

With the donation for the one-year dolphin adoption, you will financially support our work and thus contribute to the conservation of the northern Adriatic and its biodiversity.

Every adopter receives an adoption certificate which includes: the adopter’s name, the name of the dolphin, a biography of the chosen dolphin with his best photos (all in English language). Adopters will also receive a gift: a Morigenos T-shirt and a postcard.

For more informations go to: https://www.morigenos.org/en/adopt-a-dolphin/

POSVOJITE DELFINA IZ SLOVENSKEGA MORJA - ČUDOVITO DARILO ZA PRAZNIČNE DNI

Obdarujte svoje najbližje z zanimivim in koristnim darilom: posvojite delfina iz slovenskega morja in podprite varstvo delfinov in njihovega okolja v severnem Jadranu.

Z donacijo, ki jo prispevate za enoletno posvojitev delfina, finančno podprete delo društva Morigenos in s tem pripomorete k ohranjanju našega morja in njegove biotske raznovrstnosti.

Vsak posvojitelj prejme certifikat o posvojitvi z njegovim in delfinovim imenom ter življenjepis izbranega delfina z njegovimi najboljšimi fotografijami. Posvojitelji prejmejo tudi majico in razglednico društva Morigenos.

Več informacij najdete na: https://www.morigenos.org/posvojite-delfina-iz-slovenskega-morja/

SUPPORT A GOOD CAUSE

Help us achieve our goals! Morigenos and its effort for the conservation of dolphins and healthy marine ecosystems has been chosen for the Slovenian partner of the action #VEDNOPODPIRAJ DOBER NAMEN (ALWAYS SUPPORT A GOOD CAUSE), organised by Coca-Cola. Within the action, they will financially support three socially responsible Slovenian projects working on the topics of sports, environment and community. We would truly appreciate your support through giving us your vote and sharing this among your friends! Follow the link and click on ODDAJ SVOJ GLAS (GIVE YOUR VOTE) for Morigenos. You can vote as many times as you want, until 31 December 2018. Each vote counts. Thank you for your support!

You can vote here.

PODPRITE DOBER NAMEN

Pomagajte nam pri uresničitvi naših ciljev! Društvo Morigenos in njegovo prizadevanje za varstvo delfinov in zdravih morskih ekosistemov je bilo izbrano za slovenskega partnerja akcije #VEDNOPODPIRAJ DOBER NAMEN, ki jo organizira podjetje Coca-Cola. V okviru akcije bodo finančno podprli tri družbeno odgovorne slovenske projekte na področjih športa, okolja in skupnosti. Zelo hvaležni vam bomo, če za društvo Morigenos oddate svoj glas in k sodelovanju preko svojih omrežij povabite tudi prijatelje! Glasujete lahko večkrat, vse do 31. decembra 2018. Vsak glas šteje, saj boste s tem tri projekte z največ prejetimi glasovi pomagali uresničiti. Hvala za vašo podporo!

Glasujete lahko tukaj.

Skrivnostni svet delfinov - otvoritev fotografske razstave

Kdaj: 24.11.2018 ob 18.00 uri

Kje: galerija Apolonijeve palače (Župančičeva ulica 7, Piran)

*Dogodek je finančno podprla Občina Piran.

SLOVENIA TAKES OVER THE PRESIDENCY OF THE INTERNATIONAL WHALING COMMISSION

Last week marked the end of the biennial 67th meeting of the International Whaling Commission (IWC) in Florianopolis, Brazil, where Slovenian took over the 2-year presidency of the Commission from Japan. The International Whaling Commission was set up based on the Convention for the Regulation of Whaling, signed in Washington on 2 December 1946. Slovenia became a member of the IWC in 2006. IWC member states are divided to those that oppose different types of whaling (“like-minded or anti-whaling countries”, which includes Slovenia) and those that support whaling (“countries for the sustainable use of whales or pro-whaling countries”). The IWC mainly decides on the whaling quotas and strategies for their conservation. The aim of the Convention itself is the regulation of whaling, rather than prevention of it. Nevertheless, in 1982 the IWC placed a moratorium (ban) on commercial whaling, which brought some whale species to the brink of extinction. Some types of whaling are still allowed under certain circumstances, for example the aboriginal subsistence whaling that allows local tribes or communities to carry out traditional whaling for their own consumption. Two more types of whaling are being carried out, outside the scope of the IWC. The first is the “scientific whaling”, allowed by the Convention, but carried out under the exclusive jurisdiction of member countries. This type of whaling is carried out by Japan. The second type of whaling is the one under the objection to the moratorium, used by Iceland and Norway.

SLOVENIJA PREVZELA PREDSEDOVANJE MEDNARODNI KOMISIJI ZA KITOLOV

V brazilskem Florianopolisu se je ta konec tedna zaključilo bienalno 67. zasedanje Mednarodne komisije za kitolov (IWC), kjer je Slovenija zadnji dan zasedanja od Japonske prevzela dvoletno predsedovanje komisiji. Mednarodna komisija za kitolov je nastala na podlagi Mednarodne konvencije o ureditvi kitolova, ki je bila podpisana v Washingtonu 2. decembra 1946. Republika Slovenija je pogodbenica komisije od leta 2006. Države pogodbenice se delijo na tiste, ki se zavzemajo za popolno ali delno prepoved različnih vrst kitolova (“skupina podobno mislečih držav”, kamor spada Slovenija) ter tiste, ki temu nasprotujejo (“skupina za trajnostni kitolov”) in si prizadevajo za uveljavitev določenih oblik kitolova. Komisija odloča predvsem o kvotah za ulov kitov in ukrepih za njihovo varstvo. Temeljni namen konvencije je ureditev in ne prepoved kitolova, kljub temu pa je Komisija leta 1982 sprejela moratorij, s katerim je ustavila komercialni kitolov, ki je v preteklosti nekatere vrste kitov pripeljal na rob izumrtja. Pod določenimi pogoji je še vedno dovoljen kitolov, ki ga izvajajo domorodna ljudstva za namene samooskrbe. V praksi se izvajata še dve obliki kitolova, ki sta izven nadzora Komisije. Prva je t.i. “znanstveni kitolov”, ki ga omogoča sama Konvencija, njegovo izvajanje pa je v izključni pristojnosti držav pogodbenic. To vrsto kitolova izvaja Japonska. Druga oblika kitolova je uveljavitev pridržka na moratorij, kar izrabljata Islandija in Norveška. Kljub imenu pa kitolov ni več edini ali glavni predmet dela komisije, saj le-to danes vključuje mnoge vidike raziskovanja in varstva kitov in delfinov, npr. preprečevanje neželenega ulova v ribiško opremo ter trčenj kitov z ladjami, problematiko onesnaženja ter drugih groženj kitom in delfinom. Komisija je tako v svetovnem merilu eno izmed osrednjih mednarodnih teles za vprašanja raziskovanja in varstva kitov in delfinov. Društvo Morigenos oz. njegovi člani v delu komisije sodelujejo predvsem kot aktivni člani Znanstvenega odbora.

DELFINI SE PODPIŠEJO Z ŽVIŽGOM

Delfini se podpišejo z žvižgom Jata velikih pliskavk, ki se zadržuje v slovenskem morju, je posebna tudi v svetovnem merilu

Oglejte si naš prispevek v časopisu Delo in poizvejte zelo zanimive informacije o delfinih v Jadranu. Priporočamo.

KLIKNITE TUKAJ ZA POVEZAVO DO PRISPEVKA

12th DOLPHIN DAY

On Saturday, 18th August 2018, 12th Dolphin Day will take place in Piran. We kindly invite you to spend your afternoon in our company. A more detailed programme will be announced soon.

12. DAN DELFINOV

V soboto, 18. avgusta 2018, bo v Piranu potekal že 12. Dan delfinov. Lepo vabljeni, da to popoldne preživite v naši družbi. Podrobnejši program sledi kmalu.

OUR FIRST AERIAL FOOTAGE OF DOLPHINS IN THE GULF OF TRIESTE

In 2017, Morigenos started testing the utility of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs, also known as drones) for studies of behaviour, group dynamics, body condition, morphometrics and other aspects of dolphin biology. Here we share some of the first aerial shots of our dolphins. We hope you enjoy them.

NAŠI PRVI ZRAČNI POSNETKI DELFINOV V TRŽAŠKEM ZALIVU

Društvo Morigenos je v letu 2017 začelo testirati uporabo brezpilotnih zrakoplovov (t.i. dronov) za raziskave vedenja, dinamike skupin, telesnega stanja, morfometrije in drugih vidikov biologije delfinov. Tukaj z vami delimo nekatere od prvih posnetkov naših delfinov. Upamo, da vam bodo všeč.

MORIGENOS V REVIJI NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC

S ponosom oznanjamo, da si lahko v junijski številki ugledne revije National Geographic Slovenija preberete prispevek o društvu Morigenos in delfinih ob slovenski obali.

MORIGENOS IN NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC

We are proud to announce that you can read about Morigenos and dolphins along the Slovenian coast in the June issue of National Geographic Slovenija (in Slovenian).

Vaquita na robu izumrtja

                                   © Thomas A. Jefferson

Vaquiti, najbolj redkemu morskemu sesalcu na svetu, grozi izumrtje.

To ne pomeni, da moramo to sprejeti. To je trenutek, da dvignemo svoje glasove in ukrepamo po svojih najboljših močeh za rešitev te vrste.

Vse o tej temi si lahko ogledate v kratkem videu spodaj:

https://vimeo.com/254869496

The vaquita is on the brink of extinction

                                   © Thomas A. Jefferson

The vaquita, the world’s rarest marine mammal, is approaching imminent extinction.

This does not mean that we should accept this outcome. This is the moment where we all raise our voices and take action in order to do more than our best in trying to save this species.

Here is a video that explains everything about this:

https://vimeo.com/254869496

MORIGENOS AT THE 32nd CONFERENCE OF THE EUROPEAN CATEACEAN SOCIETY

At the 32nd conference of the European Cetacean Society in Italian La Spezia, Morigenos once again took active part in the conference. Four of our team members attended various workshops and the conference, where Tilen Genov presented a talk "Evaluating the population-level effects of cryptic events on a coastal dolphin population".

Two posters were also presented. The first poster presented on a "Severe jaw injury in a common bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) from the Gulf of Trieste, the northern Adriatic Sea", with Ana Hace as the lead author. The second poster, titled "First assessment of organochlorine levels in three different cetacean species in the Greek Ionian Sea" was presented in co-authorship with other researchers, led by Guia Consales from the University of Siena.

At the end of the conference, Tilen Genov received The Mandy McMath Conservation Award 2018 from the European Cetacean Society, for an outstanding contribution to the field of marine mammal conservation. You can read more about the award ceremony and award itself here.

MORIGENOS NA 32. KONFERENCI EVROPSKEGA ZDRUŽENJA ZA KITE IN DELFINE

Na 32. konferenci Evropskega združenja za kite in delfine (ECS) v italijanski La Speziji je društvo Morigenos ponovno zelo uspešno sodelovalo. V petih dneh so se štirje člani udeležili različnih delavnic ter same konference, kjer je imel  Tilen Genov predavanje z naslovom "Hude poškodbe kot varstvena grožnja: ocenjevanje vplivov kriptičnih dogodkov na obalno populacijo delfinov (Severe injuries as a conservation concern: evaluating the population-level effects of cryptic events on a coastal dolphin population)".

Predstavljena sta bila tudi dva posterja. Prvi je bil poster z naslovom "Huda poškodba čeljusti pri veliki pliskavki (Tursiops truncatus) iz Tržaškega zaliva v severnem Jadranu (Severe jaw injury in a common bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) from the Gulf of Trieste, northern Adriatic Sea)", prve avtorice Ane Hace. Drugi poster pa je bil objavljen v soavtorstvu s tujimi raziskovalci, z naslovom "Prva ocena ravni organokloridov  pri treh različnih vrstah delfinov  v grškem Jonskem morju (First Assessment of organochlorine levels in three different cetacean species in the Greek Ionian Sea)", katerega prva avtorica je Guia Consales z Univerze v Sieni.

Ob zaključku konference je Tilen Genov od Evropskega združenja za kite in delfine prejel nagrado Mandy McMath 2018, za izjemni prispevek k varstvu morskih sesalcev. Več o nagradi si lahko preberete tukaj.

Prestigious Award for Tilen Genov

Yesterday in La Spezia Tilen Genov, the founder and the president of the Morigenos, received The Mandy McMath Conservation Award 2018 for his outstanding contribution to the field of marine mammal conservation and welfare, with particular emphasis on contributions to environmental education and to conservation of cetaceans in practice from the European Cetacean Society.

Congratulations Tilen!

Prestižna nagrada za Tilna Genova

Tilen Genov, ustanovitelj in predsednik društva, je včeraj na Evropskem združenju za kite in delfine v La Speziji dobil prestižno nagrado ECS Mandy McMath. Nagrada se podeljuje za izjemen prispevek k raziskovanju in ohranjanju morskih sesalcev s posebnim poudarkom na prispevkih k okoljskemu izobraževanju in ohranjanju kitov in delfinov.

Čestitke Tilen!

15 let nazaj so bili ti delfini med prvimi foto-identificiranimi v slovenskem morju

Danes mineva natanko 15 let od dneva, ko smo prvič spoznali in fotografirali delfine Morigenos, Deinon, Foki, Alenka in Wit. Ti delfini so bili med prvimi foto-identificiranimi delfini v slovenskem morju ali Tržaškem zalivu. Prvič smo jih srečali 30. marca 2003, v Mesečevem zalivu, med Izolo in Strunjanom. Te delfine še vedno redno videvamo in nanje gledamo kot na stare prijatelje. Upamo, da jih bomo videvali še mnogo let! Z vami delimo nekaj starih fotografij, ki so bile takrat posnete še na film!

DEINON

 MORIGENOS IN WIT

15 YEARS AGO THESE WERE AMONG THE FIRST DOLPHINS TO EVER BE PHOTO-IDENTIFIED ALONG THE SLOVENIAN COAST

   

On this day, exactly 15 years ago, we first met and photographed dolphins Morigenos Deinon, Foki, Alenka and Wit. These were among the first dolphins to ever be photo-identified along the Slovenian coast or in the Gulf of Trieste. We first encountered them on 30 March 2003 in Moon Bay, between Izola and Strunjan, Slovenia. We still regularly see these dolphins, and consider them our old friends. We hope to keep encountering them for many years to come! We share with you some old photos, which at that time were still taken on film!

MORIGENOS & WIT

DEINON

Vabljeni na dogodek EU SI TI: evropsko povezovanje - izkušnje preteklosti in pogled v prihodnost, ki bo potekal v sredo, 28. februarja, v Kopru. Med govorci bo tudi predsednik našega društva Tilen Genov.

Dogodek je brezplačen, več pa si lahko preberete na spodnji povezavi:

https://www.facebook.com/events/1805870049705928/