Rebecca Wellard

Curtin University · Centre for Marine Science and Technology (CMST)

Researchers can investigate many aspects of animal ecology through noninvasive photo–identification. Photo–identification is becoming more efficient as matching individuals between photos is increasingly automated. However, the convolutional neural network models that have facilitated this change need many training images to generalize well. As a r...

Genome sequences can reveal the extent of inbreeding in small populations. Here, we present the first genomic characterization of type D killer whales, a distinctive eco/morphotype with a circumpolar, subantarctic distribution. Effective population size is the lowest estimated from any killer whale genome and indicates a severe population bottlenec...

Killer whale preying effort and predation success on large adult whales has long been in debate. For the past 10 years killer whales off the Western Australian (WA) coast have been observed successfully preying on humpback whale calves, minke whales and beaked whales. More recently, in 2019 and 2021 killer whales off the south coast of WA were obse...

Population genomic data sets have enhanced power to detect cryptic and complex population structure and generate valuable information for the conservation and management of wildlife species. Globally, killer whales (Orcinus orca) are considered to have a complex population structure due to their ability to specialize in a variety of ecological nich...

While in the northern hemisphere, many studies have been conducted on the vocal repertoire of long-finned pilot whales (Globicephala melas), no such study has been conducted in the southern hemisphere. Presented here, is the first study on the vocalisations of long-finned pilot whales along the southern coast of mainland Australia. Multiple measure...

Cetaceans are iconic predators that serve as important indicators of marine ecosystem health. The Bremer Sub-Basin, south-western Australia, supports a diverse cetacean community including the largest documented aggregation of killer whales (Orcinus orca) in Australian waters. Knowledge of cetacean distributions is critical for managing the area’s...

Killer whales (Orcinus orca) are top marine predators occurring globally. In Antarctic waters, five ecotypes have been described, with Type C being the smallest form of killer whale known. Acoustic recordings of nine encounters of Type C killer whales were collected in 2012 and 2013 in McMurdo Sound, Ross Sea. In a combined 3.5 h of recordings, 638...

In 1955, 17 killer whales (Orcinus orca) stranded on a beach in Paraparaumu, New Zealand. From the grainy, black and white photographs (Fig. 1), it was clear that they were not typical killer whales: they were small, with narrow, pointy dorsal fins, a bulbous head, and the prominent white eyepatch normally found on killer whales was reduced to a ti...

Killer whales (Orcinus orca) are found in all oceans of the world. In Antarctic waters, five ecotypes have been described, each displaying distinct differences in morphological features, foraging behaviours, habitat and diet preferences, and genetic structure. Acoustic recordings of Type C killer whales were collected between December 2012 and Janu...

Cetaceans are some of the most iconic animals on the planet, yet few of the 45 species of whales, dolphins and porpoises known to occur in Australian waters have been extensively studied to date. Historical commercial whaling records and recent modelling studies suggest that the submarine canyons within and around the Bremer Marine Park provide fav...

Approximately 70 kilometres south-east of Bremer Bay (119.4°E, 34.4°S) off southern Western Australia’s coast lies a group of submarine canyons that incise the continental slope, plunging to depths of more than 1,000 metres. Charismatic pelagic organisms such as cetaceans, sharks, seabirds and squid are known to concentrate in high abundance above...

Killer Whales of the Bremer Sub-Basin: A Photo-ID Catalogue. Project O.R.C.A. Centre for Marine Science and Technology, Curtin University, Perth, Western Australia.

Observations of killer whales (Orcinus orca) feeding on the remains of beaked whales have been previously documented; however, to date, there has been no published account of killer whales actively preying upon beaked whales. This article describes the first field observations of killer whales interacting with, hunting and preying upon beaked whale...

A newly defined species, the Burrunan dolphin (Tursiops australis), was described in 2011 by Charlton-Robb et al., and is endemic to southern and south-eastern Australian coastal waters. This species' distribution is characterized by small, isolated, and genetically distinct populations. With only two known populations in Victoria, the species is n...

To date, there has been no dedicated study in Australian waters on the acoustics of killer whales. Hence no information has been published on the sounds produced by killer whales from this region. Here we present the first acoustical analysis of recordings collected off the Western Australian coast. Underwater sounds produced by Australian killer w...

There are errors in the Funding section. The correct funding information is as follows: The 2015 data collection was supported by the SeaWorld and Busch Gardens Conservation Fund (http://swbg-conservationfund.org/). Authors who received the funding were CE and LF. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to pu...

A dolphin had previously been trained to perform a cross-modal matching-to-sample task. In one version of this task the animal had to investigate a sample object that was concealed in a box through its echolocation sense alone, then select the correct match among up to three alternative objects visually in air. Given the frequency range of a dolphi...

A dolphin had previously been trained to perform a cross-modal matching-to-sample task. In one version of this task the animal had to investigate a sample object that was concealed in a box through its echolocation sense alone, then select the correct match among up to three alternative objects visually in air. Given the frequency range of a dolphi...