A dedicated ethogram and the employment of the software BORIS for monitoring striped dolphin surface behaviour in Greece (Gulf of Corinth)

Abstract

The striped dolphin (Stenella coeruleoalba) is a cosmopolitan species common worldwide in tropical and temperate pelagic waters. The conservation status of the Mediterranean striped dolphin is defined as "vulnerable" [1]. Despite its large diffusion, the behaviour of striped dolphin is still not sufficiently known. The investigation of striped dolphin behaviour and its interaction with human activity in a protected area, as the Gulf of Corinth (Greece), would facilitate implementing measure for its conservation. The application of traditional behavioural sampling methods, the development of a dedicated ethogram and the use and customization of the software BORIS for sampling striped dolphin surface behaviour, from land and at sea, is discussed in the present manuscript. The description of behaviour observed for the first time and the difference among behaviours observed from land and at sea and in presence/absence of boat traffic is also presented. The results of this study show that measured behaviours can be considered sensors to monitor the effect of human activity, as boat traffic, on a cetacean’s population.