NACOGDOCHES, Texas — Two Stephen F. Austin State University biology students were a part of groundbreaking, first-of-its-kind research involving collecting dolphins breath.
This summer Rachel Moore and Callie Lynn, traveled to the Big Island of Hawaii to take part in research that requires flying drones closely over the blowhole of a dolphin and collecting their breath which is a new, innovative way for researchers to monitor the health of whales, dolphins and porpoises.
Moore and Lynn, both senior biology majors, were chosen by associate biology professor Dr. Jason Bruck, to assist in the project PHASM – Passive Health Assessment in Sea Mammals as well as help conduct a project to understand how noise impacts the transmission of specific dolphin whistles, according to a press release from SFA.
“My time doing research at Dolphin Quest Hawaii was an incredible experience,” Lynn said. “The acoustic project I had the privilege of working on is something a limited number of people around the world have the ability to do. Not only was I able to participate in the project, but I was empowered to execute each phase on my own, which is a skill that will set me apart from others in my field upon graduation.”
According to release, the pair got to collaborate with drone specialists and instructors from the Oklahoma Aerospace Institute for Research and Education at Oklahoma State University, as well as veteran animal care specialists at Dolphin Quest Hawaii.
“Dolphin Quest was thrilled to host Dr. Jason Bruck and his team from SFA and Dr. Jamey Jacob along with his team from Oklahoma State University’s Oklahoma Aerospace Institute for Research and Education to further their cutting-edge conservation research,” said officials from Dolphin Quest’s leadership team. “These scientific studies introduce novel and enriching experiences for our dolphins. Our crew members find collaborating with visiting scientists rewarding, and seeing science in action gets our guests jazzed about marine mammal conservation too.”
Dolphin Quest said scientific discoveries like these are possible because of the incredible trust that exists between its dolphins and their caregivers. This relationship, coupled with large natural saltwater habitats, creates an ideal setting to develop and test new technologies that will help scientists better understand how to protect threatened and endangered dolphin species in the wild, according to the release.
The goal of the PHASM project was to develop a drone that could allow for a health assessment on dolphins and porpoises without causing handling stress by gathering information through the animals' blow or breath rather than their blood.
According to the release, these types of blow samples can only be obtained from large whales using standard propeller drones. The PHASM project uses a quieter airplane-style drone that acts as a vacuum syphon to pull in dolphin mucus from the air, which can later be analyzed for pathogens, DNA and hormones.
“Our training included getting our Part 107 - Small Unmanned Aircraft pilot's license and spending time in drone simulator system to get familiar with flying a fixed-wing drone system, like PHASM,” Lynn said. “During our month in Hawaii, we also worked on an acoustic project using underwater speakers and hydrophones to learn more about the effect of anthropogenic (human) noise on dolphin communication.”
These assessments will give insight to a dolphin’s stress levels and help biologists recognize what human-caused factors cause stress on aquatic mammals.
Students from SFA and Oklahoma State had the first successful PHASM collection on June 4 after years of collecting data and creating test models.
According to the release, Lynn is a veteran dolphin researcher, having gone to Bermuda in spring of 2023 to begin the early stages of testing the PHASM drone system and work with Bruck Lab graduate students on their research.
Moore, who is new to the world of dolphin research, was excited to gain experience in the field of marine biology.
“I have always had a love for animals. Through my studies at SFA and my experience of scuba diving, that love has only grown,” Moore said. “I have gained a stronger understanding for the importance of conservation and devotion to our fellow creations. For that reason, I am very thankful for the work that biologists like Dr. Bruck do and want to continue working beside them.”