Pygmy blue whales: Citizen scientists in Timor-Leste help research

For about two months annually, fisherman Faustino Mauloko da Cunha transforms his house alongside the South Pacific coast right into a whale monitoring station.

From the morning, villagers and scholar volunteers collect on the home in Subaun, a village within the north of Timor-Leste. Armed with binoculars and telephoto cameras, they watch the cobalt waters for certainly one of its nice treasures – pygmy blue whales.

When there’s a sighting, it’s all programs go.

Faustino’s son, Zacarias, dispatches a drone. Then the crew’s chief, Australian marine ecologist Karen Edyvane, guides him to take the very best pictures. When the drone returns, the crew critiques the photographs, taking notes on a white board.

It’s a small and thrifty operation in Timor-Leste, which is a part of an archipelago that lies between South East Asia and the South Pacific. But it has generated a wealth of details about pygmy blue whales – one of many largest animals on earth, whose huge habitats and elusive nature make them difficult to review.

These citizen researchers, all of them locals, have noticed almost 3,000 pygmy blue whales over the previous 10 years – Prof Edyvane considers {that a} “truly extraordinary” quantity.

Timor-Leste has one of many world’s highest concentrations of marine mammals.

During the migration season – October and November – lots of of pygmy blue whales move by the nation’s waters as they make the epic journey spanning 1000’s of kilometres from southern Australia into the Banda Sea that lies to the north of Timor-Leste.

But the world has been under-researched, says Prof Edyvane, who began the monitoring programme in 2014.

During whale season over the previous decade, she has primarily based herself in Subaun, about 50km (31 miles) from the capital Dili, working with fishermen, college students and dive tour operators to doc the cetaceans.

They have documented “some of the lesser known, intimate reproductive behaviours of blue whales, some for the very first time,” says Prof Edyvane, who lectures on the Australian National University and Charles Darwin University.

In July, as an illustration, the crew captured underwater footage of a mom nursing her calf, providing a glimpse into the species’ reproductive behaviours, which have remained largely unknown.

“It’s very, very exciting,” she adds.

The project started as a Facebook group, inviting local volunteers to spot and document the lives of pygmy blue whales.

Prof Edyvane trained them on surveying methods and hired professionals to teach them how to use telephoto cameras and drones so that they could conduct aerial and boat surveys.

“When locals living along the coast see the whales swimming by, they will post pictures on Facebook and WhatsApp. Updates come on a real-time basis and when someone shares something, everyone gets very excited,” Prof Edyvane says.

In 2016, the team worked with a dive tour operator to launch the first whale-watching tour.

It was only last year that they set up a “research station” outside the da Cunha’s village home – photos show a simple hut overlooking the bay. Outside are two tables, plastic chairs and white boards mounted on the hut’s walls.

During this year’s whale season, undergraduates from the National University of East Timor gathered at the research station to help with the sightings.

Even such a basic structure has made the task easier.

“We’re able to monitor all day and all night,” Prof Edyvane says. “We’ve also been able to get the most incredible footage. The whales come in so close sometimes we can actually hear their blows.”

Citizen researchers like these have become powerful eyes and ears on the ground for marine scientists, says wildlife scientist Vanessa Pirotta.

“The combination of people having access to tools like drones and social media means we have insights into things that are happening while we may be behind the desk writing grants to fund our work,” she stated.

The enhance in analysis exercise in Subaun has additionally led to an increase in tourism.

The demand for whale-watching excursions has elevated, diving teacher Cassio Schumacher tells the BBC, including that these excursions are “booked up years in advance”.

Local non-profits have warned of the dangers of unregulated whale tourism and the federal government has stated it intends to make use of Prof Edyvane’s analysis to “absolutely defend and preserve” the marine life that pass through Timor-Leste’s waters.

Prof Edyvane believes that with regulation, whale tourism has the potential to create jobs and grow Timor-Leste’s economy.

The country is one of the poorest in the world, where average annual incomes in cities hover around $1,500, according to the International Monetary Fund. In Subaun, most villagers work as subsistence fishermen and farmers, earning just about $600 to $900 a year.

The da Cunha family has now started preparing meals from local produce and the day’s catch for the students and tourists – an additional source of income.

“We enjoyed having the guests around and will love to do it again,” Faustino, 51, tells the BBC on a WhatsApp video name. “We will make it a better experience [next season].”

His son, Zacarias, has additionally been contracted to offer drone providers for the venture. Prof Edyvane says she plans to coach him to present talks about whales in English.

The 26-year-old says what he appreciates is that the guests are studying to guard the world: “The college college students study quick and properly to defend this space.”

As for the tourists, he says the locals are happy to teach them. “We remind vacationers to not swim with the whales however as an alternative watch them from a distance.”