Balina ve Yunus Araştırmaları

Turkey has a long coastline, more than 8300 km, and several islands and is surrounded by four seas of different oceanographic characters. However, the history of cetacean study in Turkey has a relatively short history.

As it had already been known, there are three ceatcean species in the Black Sea, which are Tursiops truncatus, Delphinus delphis and Phocoena phocoena.

As a part of the monitoring study of cetacean strandings on the Turkish coasts of the Black Sea, we have started a study on bycatch. The cetacean bycatch due to the turbot fisheries in the western coast of the Turkish Black Sea in 1993-1997 was reported by Öztürk et al. (1999). In this study, a total of 63 specimens were examined. Except one specimen of T. truncatus, all samples were P. phocoena. Most specimens were immature animals, with the body length less than 130 cm. Bycatch occurred with the bottom gill nets for turbot fisheries from April to June. The mesh size of the net is 22 cm and its length is 150 m. Maximum depth of the setting of the net is about 80 m. Another study by Tonay and Öztürk (2003) reported 40 bycatches and stranded dolphin specimens in the western Black Sea. Among them 38 animals were P. phocoena, one was T. truncatus, and one was D. delphis. It is urgently needed to collect more data on this bycatch to regulate the turbot fishery.

A national cetacean protection strategy was already established in 1994. However, to maximize the use of stranding animals, which are unique sources of biological information of cetaceans, coordinating a national standing network was urgent. We organized the first cetacean stranding network meeting in Istanbul in April, 1998. In this meeting, a general consensus was made to establish a database in the Turkish Marine Research Foundation. The second meeting was held in Istanbul again with the participation of harbour masters, fisheries agents, coast guards and some NGO's in 2000. Establishing a stranding network and database under TUDAV umbrella was decided there. In 2003, the Black Sea stranding network was established. The aims of this network are;
· to collect information on strandings such as place, date, and weather condition;
· to collect imformation on stranded animals, such as species, sex, age, body length of the animals, and possible cause of stranding;
· to collect tissue samples for genetic analyses;
· to collect stomach contents for feeding analyses.

On the other hand, many Turkish fishermen in the Black Sea have complained the net damage made by dolphins and they demand compensation for such damage. Cetaceans are under the legal protection since 1983 in the Turkish waters although dolphin-fisherman interaction has not always been good. The stranding network anticipates active participation of fishermen. We should cooperate with fishermen, so that their relation with dolphins may improve in the future.

Our stranding network has just started and it will take some time to work properly. Experts from Sinop, Trabzon and Rize also participate to provide data to the network. This initiative may extend to other Black Sea countries in the near future.

Turkish Marine Research Foundation is ready for any cooperation with other NGO's or researchers from other Black Sea countries. For further information on cetacean strandings, please visit our website, www.tudav.org.

References
Öztürk, B., Öztürk, A. A., Dede, A. 1999. Cetaceans bycatch in the western coasts of the Black Sea in 1993-1997. The 13th Annual Conf. of ECS. p.134
Tonay, A., Öztürk, B. 2003. Cetacean Bycatches in Turbot Fishery on the Western Coast of the Turkish Black Sea. Proc. of International Symposium of Fisheries and Zoology (In Memory of Ord. Prof. Dr. Curt KOSSWIG in His 100th Birth Anniversary.23-26 October 2003, Istanbul. (in press)

Tursiops truncatus (©A.M. Tonay/TUDAV)

Delphinus delphis (©A.M. Tonay/TUDAV)

In the Turkish water of the Aegean Sea and Mediterranean Sea, nine cetacean species are known to occur (Table 1). Those are Delphinus delphis, Tursiops truncatus, Stenella coeruleoalba, Globicephala melas, Grampus griseus, Pseudorca crassidens, Physeter catodon, Ziphius cavirostris and Balaenoptera physalus. There are 14 cetacean species living in the whole Mediterranean Sea. Among them, ten species, including Phocoena phocoena living in the Black Sea, are observed in the Turkish waters. All these cetacean species are under the protection by law since 1983 in Turkish waters (Öztürk, 1996).

Species	Black Sea	Marmara Sea	Aegean Sea	Mediterranean Sea
Delphinus delphis	+	+	+	+
Tursiops truncates	+	+	+	+
Phocoena phocoena	+	+	-	-
Stenella coeruleoalba	-	-	+	+
Grampus griseus	-	-	+	+
Pseudorca crassidens	-	-	+	+
Globicephala melas	-	-	+	+
Ziphius cavirostris	-	-	+	+
Balaenoptera physalus	-	-	+	+
Physeter catodon	-	-	+	+

The species listed below appear in the Annex 2 to the Protocol Concerning Specially Protected Areas and Biological Diversity in the Mediterranean.

The listings of those cetacean species in Table 1 and their status in IUCN Red Data Book are summarized in Table 2. Besides those listed in Table 2, ACCOBAMS covers all those species.

Table 3. Convention listings and IUCN status of cetacean species in Turkish waters of the Mediterranean and Aegean Seas.

Species	Bern Convention	Washington Convention	Bonn Convention	EU Habitats Directory	IUCN Status*
Delphinus delphis	App.II	App.II	-	Ann.IV	-
Tursiops truncatus	App.II	App.II	-	Ann.IV	DD
Stenella coeruleoalba	App.II	App.II	-	Ann.IV	LR
Grampus griseus	App.II	App.II	-	Ann.IV	DD
Pseudorca crassidens	App.II	App.II	-	Ann.IV	-
Globicephala melas	App.II	App.II	-	Ann.IV	-
Ziphius cavirostris	App.II	App.II	-	Ann.IV	DD
Balaenoptera physalus	App.II	App.I	App.I&II	Ann.IV	EN
Physeter catodon	App.II	App.I	App.I&II	App.IV	VU

*IUCN Status; -: Not included in Red List of threatened species, DD: Data deficient, LR: Lower risk – conservation dependent, EN: Endangered, VU: Vulnerable.

The brief information of the cetacean species in the Turkish water of the Aegean and Mediterranean Seas is as follows.

Common names: Fin whale (En), uzun balina (Tr), Rorqual commun (Fr)
The second largest cetacean, reaching 27m (southern hemisphere) and 75t. In the Mediterranean, reliable length measurements are considerably smaller (<22m). Feeds on krill, small schooling fishes, and squid.
Distribution: Cosmopolitan, inhabits primarily oceanic waters in both hemispheres, from the tropics to polar waters. Undertakes extensive seasonal migrations between tropical and polar zones. Abundant in the western and central (Ionian Sea) Mediterranean, rare in the eastern region. B. physalus is recorded from the Turkish Mediterranean Sea around Karataş, Antalya, Finike and Mersin area.
Status in the Mediterranean: Recent genetic evidence supports the hypothesis that fin whales in the Mediterranean are a resident population, reproductively isolated from the Atlantic. The population estimate in the eastern Mediterranean in summer is centered above 1500 individuals. Records exist of accidental captures in pelagic driftnets, although the impact of fisheries on this species appears to be moderate.

Common names: Common dolphin (En), Tirtak (Tr), Dauphin commun (Fr)
Distribution: Once common throughout the Mediterranean, common dolphins are now rare except in the Alboran Sea and in the coastal waters of western Greece (Ionian Sea). This species is common mainly in Finike area near Antalya.
Status in the Mediterranean: There is no population estimate of common dolphins in the Mediterranean. The causes of this species’ sharp decline in the region are unknown. The Mediterranean population(s) should be considered endangered, and is regarded as a conservation priority by the IUCN 1996-1998 Action Plan for the Conservation of Cetaceans. Common dolphins are accidentally caught in fishing gear (Öztürk, 1998).

Common names: Long-finned pilot whale (En), Pilot yunus (Tr), Globicéphale commun (Fr)
Distribution: Common in the region of Gibraltar and in the deepest portions of the Alboran Sea, Balearic waters and waters west of Sardinia, pilot whales become rare in the Tyrrhenian Sea, and are virtually absent from the Adriatic Sea and the eastern basin. G. melas has also been recorded from the Turkish Mediterranean coasts.
Status in the Mediterranean: There is no population estimate for this species in the Mediterranean Sea. Pilot whales are known to be bycaught in pelagic driftnets.

Common names: Risso’s dolphin (En), Risso yunus (Tr), Dauphin de Risso (Fr)
Distribution: A common Mediterranean odontocete, particularly frequent in waters over steep continental slopes throughout the basin. Vagrant in the northern Adriatic. Reports from the eastern Mediterranean are rare, but probably reflect lack of observations rather than of presence. Indications exist that individuals may be year-round residents of some areas. This species is also found in the Turkish coasts, such as Fethiye and Kalkan.
Status in the Mediterranean: There is no population estimate for this species in the Turkish coasts. There have been some instances of accidental capture in fishing gear in Fethiye area (Öztürk &Öztürk 1998).

Common names: Sperm whale (En), Kasalot (Tr), Cachalot (Fr)
Distribution: Sperm whales are found throughout the Mediterranean in deep waters, particularly where the continental shelf slope is steepest. Based on observations of newborn specimens, sperm whales supposedly breed in the Mediterranean. It is unknown whether sperm whales in the Mediterranean belong to a North Atlantic population or make a separate, resident population. P. catodon is also distributed along the Aegean and Mediterranean coast of Turkey namely; Saros Bay, Güllük Bay, Fethiye Bay, Göcek Bay, and Finike Bay. P. catodon is known to occur off Kemer-Antalya, which is one of the deepest areas of the Mediterranean Seas.
Status in the Mediterranean: Considered common in the Mediterranean in the older literature, sperm whales are currently infrequent. Mortality by entanglement in driftnets is important in sperm whales, and potentially unsustainable. Such bycatch of a female sperm whale was reported in June 2002 and she was successfully rescued and released within a few days.

Common names: False killer whale (En), Yalanci katil balina (Tr), Faux-orque (Fr)
Distribution: Quite rare in the Mediterranean, as a vagrant from the North Atlantic. Reports of sightings, strandings and captures exist from the Alboran Sea, the Balearic Islands, the Ligurian Sea, Sardinia, Sicily, the northern Adriatic and the Aegean Sea. A specimen stranded in İzmir in 1997.
Status in the Mediterranean: The individuals occasionally observed in the Turkish seas are likely to belong to either North Atlantic or Red Sea populations.

Common names: Striped dolphin (En), Cizgili yunus (Tr), Dauphin bleu et blanc (Fr)
Distribution: Today the commonest pelagic cetacean in the Mediterranean, the striped dolphin is found throughout the offshore deep waters. Striped dolphins are year-round resident and breed in the Turkish Aegean and Mediterranean coasts (Öztürk, 1996a).
Status in the Mediterranean: There is no striped dolphin population estimate in the Turkish Aegean and Mediterranean .High mortality rates were reported for this species from accidental takes in driftnets (Öztürk et al., 2001). Mediterranean striped dolphins were affected by a severe outbreak of a morbillivirus epizootic in 1990-91, possibly linked to high levels of contamination by PCBs and other organochlorine compounds . Striped dolphin is mostly coastal in the Turkish water of the Aegean Sea and Mediterranean.

Common names: Bottlenose dolphin (En), Afalina (Tr), Grand dauphin (Fr)
Distribution: The commonest coastal marine mammal in the Mediterranean, found over the continental shelf from Gibraltar to Asia Minor. In some areas (e.g., the northern Adriatic and southern Tunisia) this is the only common cetacean.
Status in the Mediterranean: There are no comprehensive population estimates for this species in the Turkish Aegean and Mediterranean. Long-term studies in specific locations (e.g., İskenderun, Cilician Basin) have demonstrated the year-round, predictable presence of a number of identifiable individuals. Bottlenose dolphins are known to become accidently caught in fishing gear, and frequent conflicts with coastal fishing activities may result in significant mortality levels. This species coastal habits expose it to extremely high levels of contamination by organochlorine compounds and trace elements, and make bottlenose dolphins particularly vulnerable to human encroachment on the coastal environment.

a) Lack of basic information
For elaborating effective protection measures for the cetacean in the Turkish Aegean and Mediterranean Seas, basic information on their population size, distribution, and ecology is necessary. However, due to lack of resources, both financial and human, very little is available at the moment. Information on strandings is hard to obtain because of the insufficiency of the stranding network. For example, Öztürk and Öztürk (1998) reported cetacean strandings in the Aegean and Mediterranean coasts of Turkey. During 1990-1997, a total of 23 strandings were recorded. However, they assumed this figure should be more as many strandings were not reported due to the lack of effective stranding network.

b) Fishing activities
Illegal fishing and overfishing put considerable pressure on fish stocks in the region. Illegal fishing on juvenile fish and non-target species damages the ecological balance in the region. This may create food shortage for cetaceans, not just the decline of the fishermen’s catch. As they often prey commercial fish species, there can be conflicts between fishermen and cetaceans over those commercial fish stocks.

Furthermore, the bycatch in the swordfish driftnets in the Aegean and Mediterranean coast of Turkey poses threat for some cetacean species, such as S. coeruleoalba, T. truncatus, and G. griseus. The swordfish fishing season lasts only two months, May and June. Mesh size of the driftnet used for the swordfish is 240-260mm and the total length of the net is 1000 -1500m on average and the depth is 4m. The driftnet is set in the depth of 6-7m in general. Although the driftnet fishery is banned since 1998, there is still some illegal fishing in the region (Öztürk et al. 2001). One example was a female sperm whale, entangled to one of those illegal driftnets and later successfully rescued in Fethiye area on the Mediterranean coast.

c) Coastal development
Loss of habitats due to the coastal construction and human activities, such as fishing and recreation, is one of the main threats for the coastal cetaceans in these seas, such as T. truncates, and G. griseus. There are many hotels, resorts and roads established just by the water in the region. Because this coastline is very popular for tourists, there are many recreational boats cruising during summer. This may annoy some cetaceans in breeding and feeding, and they subsequently abandon these sites.

d) Pollution
There are several sources of pollution, but mainly domestic and ship originated pollution are concerned here.
Waste water discharges can cause eutrophication in the coastal waters as well as microbial contamination of cetaceans. Industrial wastes cause the contamination of heavy metal and organochlorines in cetaceans.
Ship originated pollution, such as bilge water and oil, affect both coastal and offshore cetaceans. Shipping activities, military exercises, and seismic studies cause noise pollution in marine environment. As cetaceans greatly depend on sounds for communication and feeding, this noise pollution can be affecting them.
Solid waste, such as plastic bags, can be fatal to some cetaceans when they are sucked.

e) Lack of public awareness
Although ordinary public perceive cetaceans as friendly and peaceful animals in Turkey, they hardly know about their biology and ecology, sometimes even their existence in the Turkish water, because the information is so scarce. For the effective protection of the cetaceans, the public participation is essential.

1. Objectives
Due to the above threats cetaceans are facing in the Turkish water of the Aegean and Mediterranean Seas, their habitats are affected and their populations are declining. Although the exact size of the cetacean populations are not known, precautionary approached should be taken considering their low reproductive rate. Therefore, the National Action Plan is elaborated herafter to:

a) Protect and conserve cetacean habitats including feeding, breeding and calving grounds, without however, being restricted to there aspects.

b) Protect, conserve and recover the cetacean populations in the Turkish waters in the Mediterranean Sea.

2. Priorities
Priorities considering the protection and conservation of cetaceans and their habitats in the Turkish water of the Aegean and Mediterranean Seas are:

a) Elucidating the current status of cetaceans, that is, monitoring, research and data collection and dissemination with regard to biology, ecology, and habitats of cetaceans;

Among the above priorities, a), c), and e) are considered to be the main urgent plans to be implemented for the following reasons. The priority (a), elucidating the current status of cetaceans, is the base line for any researches or conservation plans in the future. Nothing can be elaborated or implemented without the information which is going to be provided by this action. The other two priorities, (c): elimination of incidental catches, and (e): protection of feeding, breeding, and calving grounds, are directly concerning the survival of the cetaceans in the Turkish Mediterranean and Aegean Seas. The other three priorities, b), d), and f), are indirectly affect the survival of the cetaceans in the region in the longer time scale.

A. Survey on distribution of cetaceans
Lack of information on cetaceans is one of the major problems concerning the protection of them. The result of this activity provides basic information for the other activities mentioned below, particularly the establishment of Special Protected Areas.

A.1. Objective
To understand the spatial and seasonal distribution of cetaceans, so that the effective protection measures can be elaborated and implemented.

A.2. Description
To identify spatial and seasonal distribution, population structure of cetaceans by cruise surveys and interviewing fishermen and other people who work at sea.

A.3. Responsibilities
Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs (MARA), Ministry of Environment (MOE)

A.4. Stake holders
MARA, MOE, Universities, NGOs, fishermen, local authorities, local people

A.5. Prerequisites
Testing the appropriate survey methods, training the appropriate survey crew, and making questionnaires

A.6. Problems for implementation
Can be costly to cover all seasons and all coasts as the coastline of Turkey is long.
Data collected by interviewing can be biased because of the different degree of experience of the people who are ineterviewed.

A.7. Calendar
One year should be spent for the Aegean coast and another year for the Mediterranean coast. Total time span is 2 years for this project.