Morphological differences between coastal bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops aduncus) populations identified using non-invasive stereo-laser photogrammetry
Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 20, 2026

Bottlenose Dolphin Tursiops truncatus Spermatozoa: Collection, Cryopreservation, and Heterologous In Vitro Fertilization
Published on: August 21, 2017
Martin van Aswegen1,2,3, Fredrik Christiansen4,5,6,7, John Symons4,5
1Environmental and Conservation Sciences, Murdoch University, South Street, Murdoch, WA, 6150, Australia. mvanas@hawaii.edu.
Abstract:
Obtaining morphometric data on free-ranging marine megafauna is difficult, as traditional methods rely on post-mortem or live-capture techniques. We linked stereo-laser photogrammetry with long-term demographic data to compare length-at-age (LaA) growth curves of two well-studied populations of Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops aduncus) in south-western (SW) and Shark Bay (SB), mid-western Australia. First, we determined the relationship between total length (TL) and blowhole-to-dorsal fin (BH-DF) length from post-mortem subjects (R2 = 0.99, n = 12). We then predicted TL from laser-derived BH-DF measurements of 129 and 74 known-age individuals in SW and SB, respectively. Richards growth models best described our LaA data. While birth length (103-110 cm) was similar between study regions, TL estimates at 1, 3, 12, and 25 years differed significantly (p < 0.001). Asymptotic length of adult males (SW = 246 cm, SB = 201 cm) and females (SW = 244 cm, SB = 200 cm) also differed significantly. Morphotypic variations likely reflect regional adaptations to local water temperatures, with the temperate SW having cooler waters than sub-tropical SB. We demonstrate the effectiveness of a non-invasive technique to understand ecological, demographic and life-history characteristics of long-lived marine megafauna, which are critical parameters for informing conservation and management actions.
Related Concept Videos
Identifying Statistically Significant Differences: The F-Test
Conservation of Small Populations
What is Population Genetics?
Population Growth
What are Populations and Communities?
Difference from Background: Limit of Detection
The LOD indicates the presence or absence...

