Project Update: November 2007

From the beginning of the project in September 2007, we were able to monitor 12 fishing trips from Ilo, Salaverry and San Jose ports. We first started with the training of the observers in the sampled sites, continued by the design of guides for dolphin species ID (see attachment 'diptico tira').

Main species impacted in San Jose port has been the Burmeister porpoise Phocoena spinipinnis, especially by boats using nets. While in Salaverry port common and dusky dolphins were the most common species. Finally in Ilo port, no cetaceans were observed in boats using longlines. This latter confirms that the longline as a fishing gear has little or none impact in pelagic species of cetaceans.

I am attaching some pictures of the cetaceans captures, the first one is on a common dolphin and the second is a Burmeister porpoise, both animals captured with nets out of San Jose.