Golden Gate Cetacean Research Organization: The Porpoises and Dolphins of the SF Bay Area

Golden Gate Cetacean Research biologists, Jon Stern, Bill Keener and Izzy Szczepaniak, will present the results of their newest research on the porpoises and dolphins of San Francisco Bay, providing an update since their last talk for ACS in 2012.  The team has been studying two species, harbor porpoises and bottlenose dolphins, from shore and boat for the past 6 years. The team has compiled the first photo-identification catalogs for harbor porpoises and the San Francisco Bay bottlenose dolphins, giving us a window into the lives of individual animals. They will share their observations about the unexpected return of harbor porpoises to the Bay, and the appearance of bottlenose dolphins off our coast.  Learn about changes to the Bay ecosystem that played a role in bringing back porpoises, the warm water El Niño conditions that brought bottlenose dolphins up from Southern California, and what this may mean for our coast. Here's your chance to find out the difference between a porpoise and a dolphin, where to see these fascinating creatures, and what you can do to help in the study of marine mammals in the Bay. 

For more information, visit: www.ggcetacean.org