Bow-riding Behavior
Bow-riding occurs when dolphins ride on the front of pressure waves created by vessel movement. Dolphins are often observed bow-riding on large vessels in the Corpus Christi Ship Channel. A project is underway to understand what might promote this behavior in the ship channel.
Photo Credits: Eliza Mills, NMFS permit no. 23203
How do we study this behavior?
In the field, TCBDP researchers use a Sony camera to visually capture and document the movement of dolphins and vessels in the Corpus Christi Ship Channel off of Port Aransas, TX. One unique dolphin behavior is bow-riding, which occurs on the pressure wave in front of moving vessels.
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A digital theodolite is used in the field to track dolphin movement and document behaviors. The theodolite is an instrument that uses two reference locations (chosen by the researchers) to triangulate the area an object is in. The scope of the theodolite is aimed at the dolphin at the surface of the water and a GPS location (latitude, longitude coordinates) can be calculated for that specific location. TCBDP researchers can collect accurate locations of dolphin groups in the ship channel to be mapped in software like ArcGIS for spatial analysis. Behaviors are collected through observation of dolphin activity.
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Currently, TCBDP researchers are trying to determine if bow-riding behavior is promoted from certain vessel aspects: vessel type, vessel size, bow shape, vessel speed, vessel travel direction, tidal state). Determining the predictors of of bow-riding could help in understanding this behavior in an industrialized marine area.