Land-Based Survey on Irrawaddy Dolphins (Orcaella brevirostris) in Kuching Bay, Sarawak, Malaysia

Muhammad Raziq, Saiful Bahari (2022) Land-Based Survey on Irrawaddy Dolphins (Orcaella brevirostris) in Kuching Bay, Sarawak, Malaysia. [Final Year Project Report] (Unpublished)

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Abstract

Land-based marine mammals survey is a reliable method as dolphins can be observed without any habitat interference and behaviour disturbance. This survey aimed to determine all the parameters that could influence the behaviour of the Irrawaddy dolphins such as tide level, fisheries activity, and vessel present, as well as the location of the survey. Land-based survey was conducted for 12 days at four different places in Kuching Bay, Sarawak: i) Permai, ii) Santubong, iii) Pasir Panjang and iv) Pasir Pandak. Kruskal-Wallis test was used to analyse the comparison between the number of fisheries activities present and the locations towards the behaviour of Irrawaddy dolphins, Mann-Whitney U test was used to analyse the comparison between the number of fisheries activities present and tide level. There was a significant difference in sightings between the locations and the fisheries activities present (H = 17.09, df = 5, p = 0.004). However, the result showed no significant differences in tide level (Z = 1.8578, p = 0.0632) for all six fisheries activity/vessels observed. The results of this finding will be important to conservationists and the authorities to minimise the destruction of habitat and reduce the disturbance to Irrawaddy dolphins, especially in the location with the most fisheries activities present.

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