Shannon dolphins in Kerry

A POD of bottlenose dolphins, which many people believed were confined to the lower reaches of the Shannon Estuary, have been found up to 30km outside that range, a new study shows.

As a permanent dolphin location, a section of the estuary between Kerry and Clare is a special area of conservation (SAC), but the dolphins are also found in the Atlantic, north and south of the estuary.

Clear photographic evidence has emerged to show Shannon dolphins are regularly in Brandon Bay and Tralee Bay, Co Kerry.

And, there’s a firm likelihood that dolphins found off places like Doonbeg, Kilkee and Lahinch, Co Clare, are also from the Shannon pod, although no studies have been done to show what pod they are from.

Some of the dolphins were also spotted much further up the estuary at Labasheeda Bay.

Shannon dolphins represented 98% of the dolphins photographed during surveys, off Kerry, between 2008 and 2016.

This shows the Kerry side is of major significance for the Shannon dolphins and highlights the need to extend the SAC to include Brandon Bay and Tralee Bay, the researchers urge.

The five researchers, including Simon Berrow, of the Shannon Dolphin and Wildlife Foundation, also say it is essential to determine if dolphins regularly found on the northern side, off Clare, are from the Shannon and, therefore, outside the SAC.

Photography is widely regarded as an accurate means of identifying dolphins as they often acquire markings, mainly on dorsal fins, which enable them to be identified.

The latest findings are published in the Biology and Environment magazine which stresses the successful, long-term management of the dolphins requires information on the size and distribution of the population.

Dolphins in the Brandon/Tralee areas had been understudied, according to the researchers whose findings have provided the largest volume of information on them.

‘’The Lower River Shannon SAC was designated under the EU Habitats Directive to protect the Shannon dolphin population. Therefore, its boundaries should include areas where these dolphins are known to regularly occur,’’ they stress, calling for an extension of the SAC to Brandon/Tralee.

“As the results from this study have shown, the high percentage of Shannon dolphins identified and re-sighted within the bays over the study period provides evidence that they represent a significant area of the population’s distribution.’’

The Shannon Dolphin and Wildlife Foundation has been collecting photos of dolphins in the estuary since 1993, building up a catalogue of more than 200 individuals. Its best estimate of the current population is 136.