DOLPHINS PUT CEDAR KEY ON THE MAP
By Molly Jubitz, member of the board of directors, Cedar Key Dolphin Project
February 5, 2020
Our resident bottlenose dolphins have put Cedar Key on the map. At the worldwide meeting of the Society for Marine Mammalogy and the European Cetacean Society in Barcelona, Spain in December, attended by 2,700 people from 95 countries, a huge map of Florida was displayed on the stage screen, with a large star on Cedar Key. After the presentation, some attendees told members of the Cedar Key Dolphin Project they had heard of or read about their work on the bottlenose dolphins in Cedar Key.
The map was part of a “speed talk” given by Rebecca Hamilton, University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, on communications involved in the driver-barrier feeding behavior most of us have observed. Hamilton presented findings for her masters’ degree acoustics project, the data for which was gathered during the Cedar Key Dolphin Project’s summer field research season in 2019, when she served as field manager.
Dr. Stefanie Gazda, founder and president of the Cedar Key Dolphin Project, presented a poster at the conference. Using samples obtained in the summer field season of 2010, Gazda and others analyzed the carbon and nitrogen present in the samples to learn more about what and where the dolphins are eating. Dr. Gazda and the poster’s co-authors are employed at the University of Florida, Department of Biology. Gazda’s mentor and graduate advisor, Dr. Richard Connor, professor at UMass Dartmouth, also was present at the WMMC19 conference.
Another past field assistant (2016) for CKDP, Taylor Hirsch, presented some of the results from her PhD research on sperm whales. Hirsch is a student at Dalhousie University in Nova Scotia. Also attending the conference were past field assistants Suzanna Mickey (2019,) BS Coker University, and Jolinde Vlaeyen (2018, 2019,) who earned her master’s degree in animal behavior in the Netherlands, as well as Monica Arancibia (2018).
These past field assistants are part of a group of more than a dozen scholars who have spent at least one summer season in Cedar Key with the CKDP over the past several years. Dr. Gazda began her studies of the resident bottlenose dolphins in 2001, while she was a master’s student under Dr. Connor. Cedar Key Dolphin Project, a non-profit educational organization, was incorporated in 2016.
Dr. Gazda explained the field work is not glamorous, but often is grueling work encompassing long days, often 8-10 hours on the boat, in the heat of summer. The work is described as “grunt work:” small engine and trailer repair, docking and launching the boat in often less than perfect conditions, operating cameras, video cameras, hydrophones, collecting and recording data, identifying dolphins by their fins, processing data for analysis.
“They have to think on their feet,” Gazda said. The crews may experience boredom, then intense activity all at once. Avoiding oyster bars is an occupational goal. While past field work has been done in the summer, from June through August, a future plan of CKDP is to be able to complete field work year-round, with twice a month research trips, for example.
What’s coming in 2020?
More research into the unique driver-barrier feeding behavior of Cedar Key’s dolphins is leading to more acoustic studies, more videography and video from above, through the use of drones. Dr. Gazda is a licensed drone pilot with permits from the FAA and the US Fish and Wildlife Dept. photo permits. The primary reason acoustic studies and photography from above the water are necessary is because the waters in this region of the Gulf are too murky for visibility from under the water.
Dr. Gazda noted her team observes strict rules regulating the photography of dolphins, which are protected marine mammals. Rules require photographers to be no closer than 50 yards from an animal, and there is to be no interaction with dolphins from a boat. “People are not supposed to affect the behavior of the dolphins in any manner. Doing so is harassment.”
CKDP is a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation. At this time, no funding comes from university or governmental support. Graduate students may have limited university support for their individual projects. Over the years, CKPD has received a variety of small grants from the Society of Marine Mammalogy, National Geographic, The International Fund for Animal Welfare, private donations and fundraising by the CKDP board of directors.
What can you do?
There are a number of ways readers can help the CKDP further its research into these important long-lived creatures.
Educational Panel: On Thursday, February 6 at 3 p.m., the Cedar Key Friends of the Library board and other involved individuals, along with Dr. Stefanie Gazda, will dedicate an educational panel featuring the Bottlenose Dolphins of Cedar Key, which is located on G. Street, near the corner of 1st Street. This project, sponsored by the Friends of the Library, was accomplished through a gift in memory of Melinda Barbour, long time Cedar Key resident.
Library Lecture: Later that afternoon, February 6 at 5 p.m., Dr. Gazda will give a lecture at the Cedar Key Public Library, featuring news from of the previous field research season and upcoming research, as well as information about stranded marine mammals.
Benefit Event: Comeback Special: an evening with Elvis will take place on Thursday, February 27, hosted by 83 West on Dock Street. Doors open at 6:30 p.m., with performance at 7 p.m. Tickets ($50) include music, appetizers, one beer or wine, and featured, along with the performance by Ted Torres Martin, 2016 Images of the King World Champion Elvis Tribute Artist (revisitedelvis.com), will be a live auction hosted by Emmy Award-winning News 13 Entertainment Reporter Allison Walker Torres. Tickets may be purchased in person at 83 West or online at cedarkeydolphinproject.org. (There is a $2 fee for online purchases.)
Benefit Event donations: Readers may contribute directly to CKDP or give a tax-deductible donation item to the silent or live auctions. There will be a variety of art, experiences and merchandise at the event. Contact Molly Jubitz at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Cedar Key Open Golf Tournament: CKDP has learned the organization will be one of the beneficiaries of this year’s Cedar Key Open, which will take place on Wednesday, March 11. This event has become one of the top charitable events in Cedar Key, helping a number of community organizations. The tournament and awards dinner at the Big Deck (Low Country Boil by Ricky Cooke) is sponsored by Bryan and Darlene Skarupski, and your support goes to many worthwhile projects.
Volunteer: CKDP is seeking volunteers for the 2020 Summer field season. Though volunteers are needed each day of the field season, an individual volunteer may commit to 1-2 full days per week throughout the research season, June, July and August. One or two times per week, the team will drive to Waccasassa Bay for launch. Volunteers are required to be able to lift #50 and spend long days on a boat in the heat. If you are interested in this opportunity, application may be made on the CKDP website https://www.cedarkeydolphinproject.org.
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