
Robin PerrtreeSavannah State University | SSU · Marine and Environmental Sciences
Robin Perrtree
M.S. Marine Sciences
About
11
Publications
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Introduction
Robin Perrtree currently manages the Savannah State University Dolphin Science Lab (SSUDS Lab) in the department of Marine and Environmental Sciences. Robin does research on Tamanend's bottlenose dolphins, primarily using photo-identification data from the inshore waters near Savannah, Georgia. The SSUDS lab has a long-term photo-ID dataset spanning over 15 years and 700 individual dolphins.
Education
January 2009 - December 2011
August 1998 - May 2002
Publications
Publications (11)
Bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops spp.) inhabit bays, sounds, and estuaries (BSEs) throughout the southeast region of the U.S.A. and are sentinel species for human and ecosystem-level health. Dolphins are vulnerable to the bioaccumulation of contaminants through the coastal food chain because they are high-level predators. Currently, there is limited i...
Many marine mammal species exhibit complex patterns of population structure. Specifically, common bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) populations in the southeastern United States display varying degrees of spatial overlap and residency, including some that have year-round site fidelity to localized bays, sounds, and estuaries. Evidence of resi...
Both natural and human-related foraging strategies by the common bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) have resulted in social segregation in several areas of the world. Bottlenose dolphins near Savannah, Georgia beg at an unprecedented rate and also forage behind commercial shrimp trawlers, providing an opportunity to study the social ramificati...
Data used in all analyses.
All sighting data including sighting locations and human-interaction behaviors observed and dolphin group size; sighting data by individual dolphins; beg and trawler status for each dolphin; and social clusters with beg and trawler status.
(XLSX)
Discovery curve indicating the number of sightings until each individual was observed begging.
Previous research in Savannah indicated that 90% of cataloged beggars displayed begging behavior by their 4th sighting [31]. These data were used to determine that 6 sightings on separate days were sufficient to determine if an individual was a beggar. Th...
Common bottlenose dolphins, Tursiops truncatus, live in complex fission-fusion societies in which the groups they associate with change frequently. However, these dolphins can also form lifelong relationships with one another; the strongest associations reported in several populations (e.g., Sarasota Bay, FL and Shark Bay, Australia) were between m...
Female distribution in mammals is largely driven by use of resources, and male distribution is driven by distribution of females. The interaction of ecology and social systems of mammals is complex and not well understood. Common bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) have a fission-fusion society; however, patterns of social structure including...
Human-interaction behaviors by dolphins have been reported worldwide and can have detrimental effects on individuals and populations. In 2009, the world’s highest rate of human-interaction behaviors by common bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) as well as the highest number of individuals and highest percentage of a photo-identification catalo...
We observed the birth of a common bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) followed immediately by a possible infanticide attempt in the estuary near Savannah, Georgia. Our report is unique in several ways: first, we witnessed the birth of the calf; second, we observed infanticidal behavior almost immediately afterward; and third, we obtained acoust...
The conditioning of dolphins to human-interaction behaviors has been documented in several areas worldwide. However, the metrics used to report human-interaction behaviors vary among studies, making comparison across study areas difficult. The purpose of this study was to develop standard metrics for reporting human-interaction behaviors and utiliz...
Information characterising site fidelity and abundance for common bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) along the southwest coast of Florida is important for defining stock structure for management purposes. Long-term site fidelity and ranging patterns of bottlenose dolphins in Charlotte Harbor and Pine Island Sound, Florida were investigated us...