Research Projects

CETAMADA keeps the research towards marine mammals:
Two scientific missions have taken place after the 2010 whale season ended in Ste Marie.-

Cétamada was pleased to receive the two acoustic specialists: Olivier Adam from the Acoustics Department at the University of Paris (France), and Federica Pace from the Acoustics Department University of South Hampton (UK). During their eight (8) days of stay a total of 7 hours and 22 minutes of humpback whales song were recorded at the end of September this year. Being this the third year in a row for this study, a total of 45 hours of recordings have been taken o the specialized acoustics labs in South Hampton and in Paris. The research is looking annually patterns in the songs heard in Ste Marie’s coastal waters, and comparing such results and recording to the ones in Australia, specialists could determine if a mix between Australian and Malagasy humpback whales population occurs. The next step in this research area is to set up a prototype of a static acoustic device, such as a buoy. Ideally this system could also be used together with an Argos system to register physical characteristics of the sea, such as temperature, in a continuous way. This strategy will allow us to understand better the role of singers in the Channel of Ste Marie, and for humpback whales populations in general. As well, algorithms can be determined for night, day, sub-seasonal singers, and ultimately to establish the possible noise pollution and interference in the marine environment around the Channel of Ste Marie.

The other special mission, in the month of October, was the dolphin-watching feasibility study. Two specialists: Adele Cadinouche and Olivier Van Canneyt, from Mauritius and France respectively, guided the Cétamada team trough this research. A total of 40 hours and 30 minutes of research effort covering 561 km of Ste Marie’s coastal waters, to count 2 dolphin observations (T. adancus). So, while the study shows no real potential for dolphin watching as an economical activity, compared to whale-watching in the area, the aerial survey shows the opposite for marine mammals biodiversity. With 2 hours and 40 minutes flight, covering 490 km of Ste Marie’s coastal waters, 16 observations were recorded; out of them 19 were humpback whales, even though the season for the operators ended the 1st of October due to the absence of whales in the area. Also, 41 dolphins were counted by the aerial survey and even a possible observation of a dugong. This indicates that humpback whales this season seem to be aggregating further away from the coast. Boat surveys during this research registered 6 humpback whales.

As you can see Cetamada’s research projects is focused, but not limited, to humpback whales.  Nevertheless, the major goal for the upcoming season is to estimate the actual number of humpback whales for the C3 breeding population (Madagascar) that comes to the Channel of Ste Marie, since no research have been done since 1994 despite we are talking about a Whale Sanctuary. In order to achieve this important target, we have design a strategic combination of land, boat and aerial surveys for the up coming season 2011. Cétamada has used all surveys methodologies in previous years, so the expertise and more than 95% of the equipment needed, is assured (including plane and boats; trained pilot, skippers and observers), we are looking for strategic partnerships and sponsors for this important survey, so please feel free to contact us for further information.