Marine Mammals of the Arabian Seas

Sciara, Giuseppe Notarbartolo di; Baldwin, R.M.; Braulik, Gillian T.; Collins, Tim; Natoli, Ada

doi:10.1007/978-3-030-51506-5_26

Cited by 5 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 118 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…The deep waters of the Arabian Gulf on the edge of the continental shelf contain more species than the warm, sandy shallow waters. In the former habitat, one may find the mighty sperm whale (Physeter macrocephalus) that reaches 20 meters in length, although no confirmed records of sperm whales in the gulf (Notarbartolo di Sciara et al, 2021). Even larger blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus) which may grow to 30 meters in length could be found here as reported by Baldwin (2003) who suggested that blue whales are rare, but widespread in the region, occurring even in the Arabian Gulf.…”

Section: Deep Water Cetaceansmentioning

confidence: 39%

“…Even larger blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus) which may grow to 30 meters in length could be found here as reported by Baldwin (2003) who suggested that blue whales are rare, but widespread in the region, occurring even in the Arabian Gulf. The largest of the dolphins, the 4 meters long Risso's dolphin (Grampus griseus), a deep water species, which was not confirmed to be recorded from the gulf because the basin is not expected to be a suitable habitat for them (Notarbartolo di Sciara et al, 2021).…”

Section: Deep Water Cetaceansmentioning

confidence: 96%

“…The species was also mentioned to occur in the Arabian Gulf by Mohamed & Hussain (1998), but no details were offered by those authors to distinguish the animals they sighted from T. aduncus. Notarbartolo di Sciara et al (2021) suggested that more data must be collected before T. truncatus is considered to be present in the gulf. Instead, T. aduncus seemed to be recorded throughout the region's coastal waters (Braulik et al, 2010;Cowan, 2013).…”

Section: Near-shore Cetaceansmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Based on the maximum number of sightings in one day, the population of S. chinensis in the Boubyan area is believed to be 70-100 individuals. Another humpback dolphin, S. plumbea, is an exclusively coastal species that is frequently reported from very shallow nearshore waters with a largely continuous distribution along much of the coastline of the Arabian Gulf (Baldwin et al, 2004;Notarbartolo di Sciara et al, 2021).…”

Section: Near-shore Cetaceansmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, relatively stable, high-level salinity and temperature environments in the Arabian Gulf are in contrast with the changing conditions of the monsoon regime and vigorous upwelling phenomena which govern the climate and productivity of the oceanic waters adjacent to the Arabian seas (Notarbartolo di Sciara et al, 2021). Despite the harsh environmental conditions of the Arabian Gulf, it contains internationally important ecosystems comprising coral reefs, seagrass beds and mangrove forests (Burt, 2014;Vaughan et al, 2019).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 4 more Smart Citations

Impact of Salinity Changes in Shatt Al-Arab Estuary on Biodiversity of Marine Mammals of the Arabian Gulf: A Review

Salman¹

2021

Biol. Appl. Environ. Res.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Salinity changes in the Shatt Al-Arab Estuary and North-West Arabian Gulf were monitored and reviewed in terms of the shortage of freshwater inflows to the Shatt Al-Arab Estuary. Data from previous and current surveys on marine mammals in the area have also been checked and compared to study the biodiversity under newly-developed circumstances. The Eco-physiological investigation was performed to assess the salinity tolerance limits of whales, dolphins and dugong. One-third of the world’s 81 species of whales and dolphins, collectively called cetaceans, are thought to occur off the shores in the area. The new checklist is prepared according to recent surveys in the neighbouring Arab Gulf countries and the known checklist of mammals in Iraqi waters. Spatial variation of the marine mammals of the southern part was governed by the occurrence of feeding habitats rather than a direct response to salinity variations. Alteration of seaweed’s habitats in response to water pollution is reported to have a direct effect on the biodiversity of mammals in the gulf. The results of this review were discussed in terms of salinity tolerance, hazardous ecological factors and spatial variation. No obvious effect of salinity changes imposed by the shortage of freshwater inflow on the distribution or loss of marine mammals neither on their habitat in the Arabian Gulf.

show abstract

Section: Deep Water Cetaceansmentioning

confidence: 39%

Section: Deep Water Cetaceansmentioning

confidence: 96%

Section: Near-shore Cetaceansmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Near-shore Cetaceansmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

Impact of Salinity Changes in Shatt Al-Arab Estuary on Biodiversity of Marine Mammals of the Arabian Gulf: A Review

Salman¹

2021

Biol. Appl. Environ. Res.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

Marine Mammals of the Emirates: Whales, Dolphins, Porpoises and Dugongs

Natoli,

Al Hameli

2023

A Natural History of the Emirates

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Marine mammals have always captured the imagination of the people they share their environment with, but few people know that various species populate the waters of the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The world’s second largest population of dugongs reside in the Abu Dhabi Emirate, while two species of dolphins (Indian Ocean humpback and Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphin) and the elusive finless porpoises inhabit Abu Dhabi and Dubai waters. Facing both the Sea of Oman and the Arabian Gulf, the UAE hosts a total of 18 species of marine mammals. These include the biggest animal on Earth, the blue whale, Bryde’s, humpback whales and killer whales, to name a few. However, ecological information about these species is still scarce. With the exponential increase of anthropogenic pressure and effects of climate change on the UAE marine environment, they are facing the risk of disappearing unnoticed. It is imperative to gain a better understanding of their ecology and main threats that affect them to support the implementation of effective conservation measures. Here we review the evolutionary history and adaptation to the water environment of these charismatic group of animals and provide the most up-to-date information on their status in UAE.

show abstract

Citizen science data of cetaceans in the Arabian/Persian Gulf: Occurrence and habitat preferences of the three most reported species

Natoli

Moura

Sillero

2021

Marine Mammal Science

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Citizen science data are becoming increasingly relevant in wildlife studies, especially when obtaining data requires costly logistics. In the Arabian/Persian Gulf, baseline information about cetaceans is scarce despite their regular presence. From 2012 to 2019, a citizen science campaign conducted in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) obtained information on 1,292 cetacean sightings. These were methodically validated by experts, resulting in 1,103 records where species was confidently assigned. From the 12 species reported, we analyzed the spatial patterns of occurrence and drivers of habitat preference for the three most reported species: Tursiops aduncus (Ta 53%), Sousa plumbea (Sp 45%), and Neophocaena phocaenoides (Np 2%). Ecological

show abstract

Marine Mammals of the Arabian Seas

Cited by 5 publications

References 118 publications

Impact of Salinity Changes in Shatt Al-Arab Estuary on Biodiversity of Marine Mammals of the Arabian Gulf: A Review

Impact of Salinity Changes in Shatt Al-Arab Estuary on Biodiversity of Marine Mammals of the Arabian Gulf: A Review

Marine Mammals of the Emirates: Whales, Dolphins, Porpoises and Dugongs

Citizen science data of cetaceans in the Arabian/Persian Gulf: Occurrence and habitat preferences of the three most reported species

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About