Collating community sightings to update the west coast bottlenose dolphin photo-identification catalogue in 2025
Scotland’s west coast is home to some of the most extraordinary and enigmatic marine life in Europe, but much still remains a mystery. New funded research aims to catalogue bottlenose dolphins sighted in west coast waters to gain new insights into their mysterious lives.
For more than two decades, the Hebridean Whale and Dolphin Trust (HWDT) has been gathering sightings and photographs of bottlenose dolphins along the west coast of Scotland; through our research expeditions aboard Silurian and with the help of the dedicated Whale Track sightings community.
Now, thanks to funding from the Royal Society of Edinburgh (RSE) and The Williamson Trust, HWDT will collate both recent and historic photographs and sightings to produce an updated bottlenose dolphin photo-identification catalogue for the west coast of Scotland, spanning 25 years.
“The Inner Hebridean Community of bottlenose dolphins are a small, wide-ranging pod regularly seen near shore in western Scotland. Photographs are a powerful tool for strengthening our understanding of bottlenose dolphin movements and the threats they face – providing vital evidence for effective conservation.
This project will create a catalogue of individually identifiable bottlenose dolphins which community members have photographed over the past quarter century. The Hebridean Whale and Dolphin Trust is delighted that the RSE is supporting the community-led efforts to monitor and protect this lesser-known pod of bottlenose dolphins.”
A CONSERVATION MILESTONE
Last published nearly a decade ago, this updated catalogue will document individual bottlenose dolphins recorded on the west coast of Scotland between 2000 and 2024. Scottish bottlenose dolphins are some of the largest of their kind in the world, living at the northernmost edge of the species' range. Our data reveals two distinct and lesser-studied populations on the west coast: the Inner Hebridean community of around 35 dolphins and a smaller group of approximately 15 animals in the Sound of Barra.
The updated and freely available online catalogue will be instrumental in guiding conservation efforts. By identifying individuals and tracking their movements, we can better understand how these dolphins use our coastal environment - crucial information for developing effective management and protection strategies.
WHY THIS CATALOGUE MATTERS
The bottlenose dolphins seen on Scotland’s west coast are wide ranging, travelling large distances throughout the region. This makes research more challenging and is only possible with the help of the public. In fact, the majority of the vast and long-term photo-identification database the Trust maintain has been submitted by volunteers and members of the public.
People getting involved is key to understanding coastal species like bottlenose dolphins in Scotland’s seas
The catalogue will consolidate photographs and sightings data from the past 25 years. Images that capture distinctive features like nicks, notches, and scars on the animals dorsal fins and bodies are assessed. This technique allows us to identify and track individual animals over time, offering deep insights into the animals’ lives allowing us to assess population size, distribution, social structures, and life history events like births and deaths. The images also provide valuable evidence to assess conservation threats like scarring from entanglement, injuries from ship strikes, and prevalence of disease and parasites.
TELLING DOLPHIN STORIES
Beyond the science, the catalogue helps us tell the stories of these incredible animals. Which dolphins have been spotted time and time again in the same area? Who tends to travel between pods? Which individuals have been sighted for over a decade? By tracking such patterns, we gain a window into their lives and behaviours and, most importantly, the knowledge to protect them.
YOUR SIGHTINGS MATTER
The updated bottlenose dolphin catalogue will be freely available online later this year. We need your bottlenose dolphin photos! Over the next few months HWDT researchers will be gathering photographs and sightings to include in the project. We are asking everyone to take part in this vital conservation effort by reporting sightings and submitting photographs of bottlenose dolphins via Whale Track. Historic sightings are valuable too, so if you have any images from previous years, please add them to Whale Track or get in touch.