Application for Animal Ethics Approval AE25901 - DU LOp, Rebecca

: dministrative S mma AEC Committee:

AEC Number:

Outcome of initial I committee meeting:

Date and signature of chairperson: I

Expiry date of project:

DU 'LOp, Rebecca Chief Investigator: r.dunlop@uq.edu.au

1 Category of appr cat'" n ~ Research

D Teaching o Breeding A2 Type of an'"mals

o Laboratory animals

~ ative/exotic wildlife and marine animals

o Production animals

D Companion animals

D Other or combination (including pest/feral animals)

3 Pro-eet f Ie

The contextual use of mother/calf communication s·gnals in humpback hales.

4 Type of ap rcat"on [8l Ne project D Ren aI

o Resubmission of project recently refused a proval

5 Startda e

6 Pro·ect dural'" D 1 year ~ 2 years

o 3 years 70rgan·sat" n responsi e for 0 -tori gad annually re rting

The University of Queensland

8 Broad context of t e pro-ect

[8J 1 ~ The Understanding of Human or Animal Biology

o 2. The Maintenance and Improvement of Human or Animal Health and elfare

o 3. The Improvement of AnimaJ Management or Production

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D 4. The Achievement of EducationaJ Objectives

D 5. Environmental Study

1

The contextual use of mother/caR communication signals in.,,~ AE25901

9 Pro"ect aims

Humpback hales are best kno n for the complex, rhythmic songs that are produced exclusivelY' by males, As most research regard~ng humpback hale vocal behaviour has focused on song" comparatively litHe study has been carried out on their non-so 9 vocaiisations termed 'social sounds', Presumably, one of the most im ,rtant vocal exchanges is bet een a fema e and her calf" as they must maintain contact . hire on migration from tro ical calving grounds to polar feeding areas .. Ho 'ever, it is sti I unkno, n ho acoustic communication is used in these pairs, This project -n be the first to quantitatively describe and classify the social catls produced by east Australian humpback whale female/calf pairs during their migration and to invesUgate their context-specific acoustic behaviour.

A100 erv- of ex ri ental a roach

This roject seeks to simultaneously tag humpback whale calves and their mothers (adult females) ith Acousonde tags~ hich are high resolution, non-in asive, suction-cup tags that record the tagged wha e's orientation, movement, and

depth concurrent to sound recordings. This allo s for the collection of sub-surface contextual data that corresponds to the acoustic behaviour of the tagged hale and nearby conspedfics.. hire single tag deployments have a ready pro r.ded some data on female/calf vocaasanons. it is impossible to teU which animal, the fema!e or the calf" is producing hat sound. Therefore, simu taneous tagging is the only method of attrib·' ling tag-recorded so nds to individual whales, hich is necessar for a definif e analysis of can exchange within these airs ..

AI1 ntici ated 0 tcomes and ,nef"' s to society

Increasing potential for anthropogenic disturbance from recreational vessel use and ship ·ng noise represents an area of gro -ng concern in cetacean science. For example, if certain vocalisations are used as contact caJls between a female and her calf, an increase in ocean noise may mask these signals .. That cou then tead to more frequent and/or prolonged separations that decrease calf survival rates" Howe er, in order to understand the b·o ogicaJ significance of ~ncreasing human-induced noise, e must first understand the ro 'e of vocal co munication in the femaie/caH relationship under natural noise conditionss Tberetore, the results of this project . ra· e a foundation or future noise stu· ~ies that may influence management decisions regarding the conservation of this population"

A12 H is this "eel "ng fun '1

CI Dr Rebecca, Dunlop - funding to e confirmed.

A13 S II proEect req "re insft .~ al ,", safety ap al? DYes f81 0

uire any 01 r pe s or ocume tali o?

A15 D s the p "ect" Dyes ~No

e rlf an s-on ith any ot er instituf 0 s1

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The contextual use of mother/caH communication signals in" .. AE25901

B: Person el

C -ef InVI!stIIO

DU LOP, Rebecca ( eterinary Science)

QuaiT cations:

Affiliation:

Project tasks:

Experience and/or further training:

BSc;PhD

UQStaff

Driving the boat during close approaches to humpback whales; providinq oversight on tag programming; recording behavioural observations.

Humpback hales ( egaptera novaeangliae) - 15 years - operafng small boats around cetaceans; tagging; bMopsying; recording behavioural observations; analysing hum back whate social sounds and acoustic behaviour.

ves·. ato

Qualifications:

Affiliation:

Project tasks:

Experience and/or further training:

er Pa ·ci a s

BVSc;PhD

UQStaff

Tagg·ng hales during close approaches and record'ng behavioural observations.

Hum bac whales ( egaptera novaeangliae) - 20 years - operating smaU b ats around cetaceans; tagging; biopsying; recording behavioural observations; analysing humpba hate acoustic s·gnals.

DEC ,Kat erine (Vete • Sc· ice)

Qualifications:

Affiliation:

Project tasks:

Experience and/or further training:

BSe

UQ Student - Postgraduate

Conducting ehavioural observations; photographing tagged groups; data analysis,

Experience in co dueling surve s, visual observations, photo-identification, and acoustic recordings of cetaceans; operating small boats. Currently analysing humpback hale social sounds and acoustic behaviour.

ari e (8 » SL DE, R b (Ex e al: Blu

Qualifications:

Affiliation:

Project tasks:

Experience and/or further training:

BSe (Honours); PhD

External

Driving the research vessel and tagging whales during close approaches.

Hum back hates ( egaptera novaeangliae) - 30 years - many years of driving around hales and tagging ith s cf on-cup taqs,

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The contextual use of mother/calf communication signals in .... AE25901

c: E erimenta es·gn

· al se

These figures are broken do n into more detail in the following sections.

; Species Strain Cass Total a '" as Whales and DolphFns Humpback Whales (Megaptera Adult 30

novaeangliae)

other/caD communication in humpba.ck hales

1 Whafes and Dolphins (Adult, 30 Other Queensland Female) location: Neosa heads Humpback Whales (Megaptera and Sunshine Beach - in novaeangliae) the ifd.

Statistical J sf'" tio: e plan to deploy tags simu aneousJy on adult females and their calves, The estimated number of ind- ., uals (30 animals; 15 pairs) accounts for groups that i be approached to ithin 300m and tagged~ The com - nents of the proposed action that involve interactions ith whales ill only ha e a minor and transitory effect I

on the ind·'viduals affected, and the number 'used' will be extremefy small compared to the overall size of the population. Although e expect the successful number of t a-tag deployments to be low (15 rnax.) due to metho ological d-fficully, ' e believe that the difference in vocal behaviour be een groups . wll be 10 enough to justify

, a limited sample size that ill be sufficient in addressing our aims"

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The contextual use of mother/calf communication signals in .... AE25901

C1.1.3 Exper-mental me odolog'y

This project involves field ork at Peregian Beach, Sunshine Coast, in September and October 201'7 and" i"f necessary, 201 a_ At this time, humpback whales will be migrating south ards along the coast on their return ·ourney to the ntarctlc, Tagging efforts ill primarily occur off oosa Heads and Sunshine Beach as the whales are passing through. ore than 70 suction-cup tags have been deployed successfully on adult hales at this study site since 2003 (un er Commonwealth and Queensland state permits), spanning eight field seasons, and are no used around the orld on a range of cetacean species. This project seeks to simultaneously tag humpback whale calves and their mothers (aduH females) .. Successful calf tagging has been carried out on the Ha aiian breeding grounds ~th observed reactions no more ad erse than those d cumented in adults (Stimpert et at 2012; Chen et at 2015)~ Only robust calves eerned to be over one month of age (as indicated by the absence of foetal folds and an upright dorsal fin) and demonstrating some level of independence -II be considered for tagging.

Tags are placed on ind~ "dual hales by positioning a small boat (5 - 6m) adjacent to the whale during a surfacing and us·ng a long, carbon-fibre poe to stick the tag to the whaJe's back, ideally on the dorsum in front of the dorsal fin. We ill attempt to tag the calf first, as they surface more frequently and are less sens"tive to disturbance than adult females" e will then attempt to tag the mother on her next surfacing. Humpback whales are disturbed temporarily by the close approach of the tagging boat (to within 6m) but to erate the tags well once they are on as they are non-in asive (Williamson et at 2016) .. Female/calf pairs that are not traveling quickl or erratically will be chosen for ap roach. I eal pairs it be traveling slo y rather than remaining stationary. as those groups' d· e times and surfacing locations will be easiest to predict In line lh preY· ous permits, e will not remain in close proximity to any group for more than 60 minutes. Iter tagging, the research boat ill back off to a distance of at least 300m so that the group can be isually folio ed ithout risking any further disturbance to the pair's natural be aviour, The Acousonde 3 tags that e use have two to four suction cups and are temporary attachments that in eventual fall off the wha es (often hen a hale is surface active or the tag is ru ed by a conspecific). Once detached, the tag ·11 float to the surface and give off a radio signal so that it can be retrie ed by the boat

From experience, the sing e most stressful procedure in this ork is the close approach of the boat e are therefore mindful of the need to minimise disturbance 0 the whales, hich ·11 be achieved by (i) using only highly experienced boat drivers that kno ho to manoeuvre research vessels around hales, (ii) ensuring that I e do not at any point posif on the boat be een a female a her ca f, (iii) using non-invasive tags, and (iv) lea ing any group that exhibits evasive behaviours (Le", short surfacing intervals, rapld changes in direction, and aggressive surface behaviours) indicative of stress .. Our aim is to perf rm close at roaches as fe times as possib e per group.. It is important to note that even hales that a ear distressed fo I ing a boat ap roach tend to settle back into their preceding swimming routine once the vesse has retreated to an acceptable distance. As the goal of this project is to examine the na ural, undisturbed behaviour of ese pairs, it is in our best interest, both ethically and scientifically, to ensure that e minimise the effects e have on e hales,

Procedure: sop- life Su eys

Details or variation Under the guidance of SOP ild ife Surveys there is no section that refers specifically to marine to SOP: mammals. The tagging and biopsying of whales will be conducted ith techniques suitable for

marine mammals, but based on the general outlines proposed in the i' ife Surveys SOP by DER Animal Ethics Committee.

C1 .. 1 .. S e fare dassificaf 0

~ '1. Observational study in 'ving minor interference

o 2M nimal unconscious ithout recovery

o 3. inor conscious intervention ithout anaesthesia

o 4. inor 0 erati e procedures ith reco ery

o 5. Surgery ith recovery

o 6~ Minor physiological challenge

o 7. Major physiological challenge

o 8. Death as an end-point (not euthanasia) a

C2 Pain ad· stress, i DYes ~ 0

e -polnts -II al 0 seve e ad erse effects to occur

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The contextual use of mother/calf communication signals in~._ AE25901

C3 Des h as an end point o Yes ~ No

C4 Re-us of a imals f' mao her project DYes ~ 0

C5 Pro n eel restrai t or co finement D Yes JZl No

C6 Pr ction of ascites fluid DYes [81,0

C7 Tissue sharing DYes ~No

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The contextual use of mother/calf communicaf on signals in ... AE25901

D: Animal elfare 01 Justification of choice of expe lmental animal

As calves represent a substantial investment for female humpback whales, the ability to mediate close proximity while traveling on migration is presumably a significant link to calf fitness and survival, By conducting contextual an functional analyses of female/calf vocelisations we hope to shed light on the importance of vocal communication in these pairs under natural ambient noise conditions.

As large baleen whale species cannot be maintained in captivity" any research attempting to understand aspects of their biology must be undertaken in their natural environment. Ho ever, humpback hales are a sui able target species as their migratory corridor passes particularly c. ose to shore along the portion of coastline C osen for the study site, creating easy and efficient access for the co lection of data ith a robust samp e size. ResuHs of studies on humpbacks can thus be appJied to some extent to rarer baleen hale species or those that inhabit deep, inaccessi eaters.

02 e fare issues presen ed by C oiee of anima s, strai s or genotypes

fA

D3 Source of a fma s ild population

D Trans rtaron a ace - atisa"o of a .. als

fA

D5 ousl of animals

N/A

D6 Feedi of an-mals

N/A

07 inte ance a d e bei g of ani als

, fA

DB N/A

D9 Justifica·o for Unfer pain and dis ess Based on earlier answerS:T this question does not apply-

010 J stir cation for ea as an end point Based on earlier answers, this question does not apply.

D11 Justifica ion for re-u e Based on earlier answers, this question does not appJ~

D12 J s -ficatio for PJ 0

Based on eariier answers, this question does not apply.

D13 ustificat- for uclion of asci es f uid Based on earlier answers, this question does not app/~

D 4 Veterinarian to be co ed· necessary

None of our procedures are invasive, ho ever, should we observe an injured or sick animal, Dr. Michael Noad 'ill be consulted as a veterinarian.

015 E . e ge cy contact

Dr. Rebecca Dun op ( mobile).

business hours landline; j! mobile); Katherine Indeck (

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The contextual use of mother/calf communication signals in... AE25901

D16 Fate of animals on com lefon of procedures or project

~ Re eased to natural habitat

o Sold D Returned to commercial farm

o Scheduled death on trial (death as an end point) D Scheduled euthanasia on trial

o Scheduled euthanasia post trial o Transferred immediately to another project

o Kept at institution for later use or saJe o Adopted or re-homed

No entries

18 (s) f dis sal N/A

019 Pro~ect ris ma age ent Project risks in olve those associated ith boat operations and close approaches to whales .. These risks ill be mitigated

, by' making sure proper controls are in place to prevent serious issues (as per the project's risk assessment), holding a compu sory safety briefing for an participants before beginning fiel ork, and maintaining the practice of only operating the boat in good eather condifons" Special care will be taken when performing close approaches for tagging, and risks ill be minimised by using only highly experienced boat drivers that kno ho to manoeuvre research vessels around hales and ensuring the use of personal protection equipment (i,e .. , helmets and life ests), Please refer to the project's

com eted risk assessment (TasklD 73910, Humpback hale mother/calf communication) for more detailed information on identified risks and controls for prevention ..

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The contextual use of mother/caR communication signals In.; AE25901

E: Com liance E1 Biosafety a roval mbers Since the Chief Investigator indicated in Part A that this project does not require biosafety approval; this question is not applicable.

E2 Ot er rmits or ocu enla -on

We -II be lodging app ications for a Queensland Scientific Research and Education Purposes Permit and a Commonwealth General Permit Ap lication for hales and Dolphins.

E3 Col aborat- g institufo (5) Since the Chief Investigator indicated in Part A that this project will not involve collaboration with any other institutions$ this question is not applicable ..

E4 Curre I EC number to be re ed Since the Chief Investigator indicated in Part A that this is not a renewal of an existing project, this question is not appJicable~

E5 Re a report Since the Chief Investigator indicated in Part A that this is not a renewal of an existing projea, this question is not applicable.

E6 Pre - OUS a . ca· n nu ng res mitted ere Since the Chief Investigator indicated in Part A that this is not a resubmission of a project recently refused approvalff this question is not applicable"

E7Repace t

OUf main goal is to examine sound producf 0 and communication behaviour in hump ack hale mother/calf pass, As this project is focused on a specific bio!og·caI as ect of a free-ranging cetacean, it is not via e to rep ace the target species ith another animal or observe them under different conditions (Le., a controlled laboratory environment).

ESReducfo All procedures in be carried out ith the utmost care in an effort to minimise the disturbance to whales, and careful consideration (particularly to ca f age and group behaviour) win be given before choosing groups for close approaches and tagging attempts. Tagging is a non-invasive technique, and close approaches by boat will be minimised by performing muHipie procedures within a single surfacing when possi Ie (e.q., tagging of both the mother and her calt). Therefore, e feel that the number of whales 'used' in this study will be the minimum number necessary to address the aims of the study-

E9 Refine n The procedures described co orm to current best practice .. They are not expected to result in unnecessary or excessive pain or distress. Appropriate expertise is in p ace to ensure the elfare of all animals included in this project

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The contextual use of mother/calf communication signals m.; AE25901

F: Declaration

F'2 Attach ,n S (op "onal) No attachments

(1 Rebecca Du op, as Chie,f In esfgatorl ec are that:

~ I' a d a I others in 0 ved In this project are familiar1 and "U comply, with re evant Common ea th and Sta e or Territory egis'afo and . h t e requirements of the Australian code for the care and use of an tmete for scieatitic purposes c nrent edition),

~ 0 . not commence until (tten approval is obtained from a University of Quee sand nimal Ethics Committee (AEG).

~ i be availab e to undertake this project, inc uding resources for e eri ary services if req ired"

~ I accep responsibusy for at matters re ating to the e tare of animas used in his project,

L81 here my anima s are being housed in a recognised animal faGilitY1 I ave contacted the 0 C of tha faci i y rlor to sub itUng t is ap rca ion.

~ The I or atio i is for ·5 co pete and accurate to the bes of my kno edge.

arne: Date: _

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