Results that inspire hope

This technology, employed in fishing activities in Brazil for the first time, is the result of nearly a decade of investigations. The recent phase, lasting two years, monitored 223 fishing sets with nets equipped with pingers and nets without pingers. The presence of franciscana dolphins near the nets was monitored with acoustic detectors, totaling more than 4,700 hours of recordings, and the results are encouraging:

• 95% reduction in the presence of franciscana dolphins near gillnets with pingers: No bycatch registered in these nets.
• Pingers do not affect fishing: The quantity, weight, and size of the fish caught showed no statistical differences between nets with and without pingers.
• Partners’ approval: The partnering fishers reported that pingers did not interfere with or complicate the handling of the nets or the fishing process.

The study also included evaluations of environmental, operational, and socioeconomic aspects, as well as research in order to better understand the fisheries chain of production. Regular meetings were held with the participating fishers to gather their opinions on the equipment. Although results are still preliminary, and further analysis is needed, they are promising and show that the use of pingers can effectively help reduce bycatch of franciscana dolphins quickly and without harming fishing activities. “We understand that partnerships and dialogue with all the social actors involved are essential for the effectiveness of conservation actions, which is why the participation of fishers is indispensable,” emphasizes Renan Paitach, the project’s research coordinator.

Next step and Public Participation

Although the results are promising, the issue of franciscana dolphin bycatch is complex. The project will continue deepening its research to improve understanding of fishing effort, franciscana dolphin distribution, and the bycatch potential of different types of nets, so that the proposed solutions are as effective as possible.

Marta Cremer, head coordinator of Toninhas do Brasil, who has been working on the conservation of this small cetacean for over 20 years, argues that as researchers gather more – and better – data, more accurate conservation strategies can be proposed. ‘Only in this way can we propose the proper use of the pingers. “In this long process, the involvement of fishing communities, public managers, and society as a whole is essential,” concludes the researcher.

What are pingers?

Pingers are small devices that emit ultrasonic sounds, above 50 kHz, which only dolphins can hear.

In comparison, humans can only hear up to 20 kHz. Widely used in other countries, they are specifically designed to be attached to fishing nets to reduce dolphin bycatch, and they are automatically activated when submerged, functioning as a sound warning (a whistle) that keeps the animals away from the nets.

It is not entirely clear why franciscana dolphins and other dolphins become entangled in the nets, but with the presence of pingers, it is expected that the franciscana dolphin will sense something unusual and avoid getting too close. With a range of approximately 100 meters, it is recommended to use one pinger every 200 meters of net. Currently, these devices are not manufactured domestically.

To discuss this technology further and the study conducted by the project, the following video has been prepared:

About the Toninhas do Brasil Project

The Toninhas do Brasil Project is an initiative focused on the research and conservation of the franciscana dolphin (Pontoporia blainvillei), one of the smallest and most endangered dolphins on the planet. Projeto Toninhas do Brasil is a project by Univille, in partnership with Petrobras, through the Petrobras Socioambiental Program, which, for over 20 years, has carried out research, communication, environmental education, and institutional coordination efforts to protect coastal ecosystems. Bringing together a multidisciplinary team of professionals committed to the conservation of biodiversity and marine ecosystems, the project collaborates with various national and international institutions engaged in the subject and is a reference in Brazil and worldwide in the field of research and conservation of small cetaceans.

Play has a crucial role in holistic development in Early Childhood and Elementary Education. More than mere pastimes, playful activities at this stage have a profound impact on cognitive, social, and emotional development, laying the groundwork for meaningful learning and comprehensive personal growth. The experience of the world through full sensory stimulation, focusing on understanding oneself, others, and the collective, was the foundation for the creation of the Treasure Chest.

Eureka! Learning with Nature

Este material pedagógico artesanal é um convite para a exploração do vasto oceano do conhecimento de maneira lúdica e envolvente, explica João Miguel Neri Camilo Moreira, coordenador de Educação Ambiental do Toninhas do Brasil. A equipe do projeto mergulhou nas metodologias Montessori, Waldorf e na abordagem Reggio Emilia para idealizar o material, orientados pela perspectiva do brincar heurístico (da expressão grega εὕρηκα  – “descobri!”). 

In the proposal, designed by Elinor Goldschmied, a British specialist in early childhood education, natural materials are presented to children in an attractive manner so they can explore them with creativity and freedom. These are the unstructured toys, without predetermined functions, that make up a learning experience where the child has autonomy and imagination is the only limit.

In the heuristic play approach, playful activities transcend mere recreation, becoming structuring elements of pedagogical practice. From this free, creative, and holistic perspective, the aim is not only to foster knowledge acquisition but also to cultivate curiosity, autonomy, problem-solving, and empathy in children, thus consolidating an education that goes beyond the limits of the classroom. The methodology is organized into three different modalities according to the children’s age.”

Exploring, playing, experimenting in all ages

In the treasure chest modality, designed for nurseries, babies use their senses to explore the materials while seated in a circle in a space organized by educators. “Taking our marine treasures to nurseries was a challenge embraced by the educators who worked with us,” says João, who highlights the success of two materials among babies: the sensory board with items found on the beach and from the Acervo Biológico Iperoba (Iperoba Biological Collection), at Univille, and the storytelling apron “Franciscana Food”, with its felt elements that interact with the apron’s scene.

For very young children, the heuristic play modality is used, in which different stations are created so that children have the freedom to move around, manipulate, and interact with the materials provided. Teachers who implemented the Franciscana Dolphin Treasure Chest in Early Childhood classrooms set up the materials at stations, organizing mediated exploration sessions, intervening minimally, and observing the children’s discoveries. In this age group, the standout materials included the tower of differently sized adhesive blocks that can be organized to form a lighthouse and various oceanic food chains, as well as a memory game with pieces made from high and low-relief plastic collected from beaches, which can be used as stamps and molds in clay and playdough activities.

Lastly, children aged four and up engage in the experimentation tray modality, where they are encouraged to create hypotheses about the materials and express them. In the Franciscana Dolphin Treasure Chest, the ecosystem tangram, a puzzle with which silhouettes of animals and other oceanic environment elements can be created, and the basket filled with natural materials (such as seeds and shells) and indigenous artisanal elements provide ample opportunities. The basket proposes even freer exploration: the idea is for children to explore their surroundings in search of their own treasures. The elements that are found then become the subject of a discussion circle mediated by the educators.

A proposal anchored in sustainability, community, and transversality

The materials in the Franciscana Dolphin Treasure Chest were crafted from sustainable, natural, or repurposed materials by artisans from the regions where the project operates, with the involvement of traditional communities (caiçaras, which are traditional coastal peoples, and Guarani indigenous peoples). These communities enriched the Treasure Chest with diverse ways of seeing and relating to the ecosystems around them. This attention to detail also allows for the intersection with other Contemporary Cross-Cutting Themes from the Brazilian National Common Core Curriculum, beyond the topic of the Environment, including Multiculturalism, Economics, Health, Citizenship, and Civics.

Tools for an oceanic journey of discovery

The Franciscana Dolphin Treasure Chest is an integral part of the extension course “Sailing with Franciscana Dolphins: Ocean Literacy in Early Childhood and Elementary Education – Early Years,” with the first group consisting of over thirty (30) educators from public schools in the cities of Ubatuba, Caraguatatuba (in the state of São Paulo), São Francisco do Sul, and Laguna (in the state of Santa Catarina). Throughout the second semester of the 2023 school year, professionals working both inside and outside the classroom charted paths for incorporating ocean literacy into these municipal education systems. They were trained to apply the Treasure Chest material in its various possibilities. The teachers went further: they replicated the materials with their students, adapted the activities for students with different educational needs, and even used them to inspire new artistic and creative activities. The journey also involved the broader school community, including families and non-formal educators from these regions.

About the Toninhas do Brasil Project

The Toninhas do Brasil Project is an initiative focused on the research and conservation of the franciscana dolphin (Pontoporia blainvillei), one of the smallest and most endangered dolphins on the planet. Projeto Toninhas do Brasil is a project by Univille, in partnership with Petrobras, through the Petrobras Socioambiental Program, which, for over 20 years, has carried out research, communication, environmental education, and institutional coordination efforts to protect coastal ecosystems. Bringing together a multidisciplinary team of professionals committed to the conservation of biodiversity and marine ecosystems, the project is a reference in Brazil and in the world when it comes to research and conservation of small cetaceans.

Contact:

Naira Albuquerque (Communication coordinator)

Phone: +55 54 99931-8004

E-mail: comunicacaoprojetotoninhas@gmail.com

The chest, built in wood and composed of ten (10) educational activities, is part of the Project’s formal environmental education actions. The materials were designed in accordance with the guidelines of the Brazilian National Common-Core Curriculum (BNCC), enabling the approach of environmental education as a transversal contemporary theme, which can be adapted to the curriculum and schedules of each teaching institution.

“The project is committed to work through partnership networks and to put ourselves at the service of the communities in which we operate”, explains João Miguel Neri Camilo Moreira, biologist, teacher and Environmental Education coordinator at Toninhas do Brasil.” In this perspective, we team up with teachers, researchers and artisans to build unique teaching materials thought out, down to the smallest details, to be valuable resources in the hands of educators inspired by our way of doing environmental education. Exclusivity, strong theoretical grounding, interdisciplinarity, creativity and socio-environmental responsibility are what make Franciscana Dolphin Treasure Chest an innovative resource”.

In addition to the principles of ocean literacy, from the UNESCO Decade of Ocean Science, the Project was inspired by Montessori and Waldorf methodologies, the Reggio Emilia approach and the characteristics of the territories in which it operates to design the teaching materials. “We sought to create versatile materials that could be used in different ways, such as a multidisciplinary stack of blocks. Based on the Montessori pink block towers and the Santa Marta Lighthouse, in Laguna, the project created a lighthouse in wooden blocks, which also addresses the theme of marine food chains. The educator can explore geometry, notions of space and proportion and environmental education simultaneously”, explains João.

The material used in the making is also sustainable, including puzzles made from plastic removed from beaches and packaging made by traditional community artisans from discarded fishing nets. The appreciation and contact with the traditional communities of the territories also guided the construction of the kit, which includes a bottle with messages from children from the Morro Alto Indigenous Land, in São Francisco do Sul, and a wooden franciscana dolphin made by artisans from this community.

Educators from 12 public educational institutions, in all four cities, will learn from the project how to apply the material from the kits in the classroom in the course “Navigating with Franciscanas: Ocean Literacy in Early Childhood and Elementary Education – Early Years”. The project also produced an e-book that presents the pedagogical proposal of each material, in addition to the BNCC skills and the principles of ocean literacy with which they are associated. The initiative is part of the project’s insertion in formal education.

About the Toninhas do Brasil Project:

The Toninhas do Brasil Project is an initiative that works on research and conservation of the franciscana (Pontoporia blainvillei), one of the smallest and most endangered dolphins on the planet. Toninhas do Brasil is carried out by Univille, which has a partnership with Petrobras, through the Petrobras Socioambiental program, and the support of Dolphin Quest. For more than 20 years, the Project has conducted activities of research, communication, environmental education, and institutional coordination in favor of the defense of coastal ecosystems. Bringing together a multidisciplinary team of professionals committed to the conservation of biodiversity and marine ecosystems, the project is a reference in Brazil and in the world when it comes to research and conservation of small cetaceans.

Contact:

Naira Albuquerque (Communication coordinator)

Phone: +55 54 99931-8004

E-mail: comunicacaoprojetotoninhas@gmail.com

To help mitigate this problem, the Toninhas do Brasil project will test the use of acoustic alarms in nets, in different artisanal fishing realities, in an unprecedented way. Bringing together researchers and institutions from the states of Santa Catarina, Paraná, and São Paulo, the project’s research and conservation efforts are focused on carrying out a pilot experiment with pingers. Pinger A pinger is a small, battery-powered device that, when attached to fishing nets, emits an ultrasonic signal that alerts dolphins of the threatening nets, thus preventing bycatch. These devices have already been tested by the project in controlled experiments and, according to research coordinator Renan Paitach, presented satisfactory results, with great potential to assist in the conservation of franciscanas. “When the pinger is turned on, the franciscanas stay at a distance of at least 100m, and when it is turned off, they return to the area only a few minutes later. Now, we have to understand how the pinger will work in real fishing contexts, considering operational and socioeconomic aspects”.

At this stage, the challenge is to monitor the experiment in different artisanal fishing realities along the coast. On an ongoing basis, fishermen from five communities will use pingers in their nets, which will be monitored over the next two years. For biologist Marta Cremer, general coordinator of the project, the experiment represents a major advance in favor of the conservation of the species. “Since its beginning, Toninhas do Brasil has focused its efforts on finding alternatives for conservation, always considering the needs of local communities. When capture is accidental, thinking about alternatives that reduce these interactions are beneficial for everyone, from animals to fishermen.”

However, the researcher considers that effective measures for the conservation of the franciscanas are not simple and must involve different strategies, such as the use of technologies to reduce bycatch, fisheries regulations and other public policy initiatives. The Project’s scope of action also includes a diagnosis of the fish production chain, dialogue meetings with fishermen and other stakeholders, a course for public school educators and a strategic communication plan. The Project is partnered with Petrobras, and is supported by Dolphin Quest through the Conservation of Threatened or Endangered Small Cetaceans Fund. In partnership with Petrobras, through the Petrobras Socioenvironmental Program, the project is expected to reach at least 14 communities through all of the aforementioned activities, across the three states, thus effectively contributing to the construction of a cooperative proposal for franciscana bycatch mitigation and for a more sustainable fishing.

Franciscana or Toninha, the invisible dolphin

The franciscana, scientifically known as Pontoporia blainvillei, is a small dolphin endemic to the Southwestern Atlantic Ocean, occurring only in the waters of Brazil, Uruguay and Argentina. With coastal habits, franciscanas are found at depths of up to 50 meters, forming small groups. This characteristic makes the species vulnerable to intense pressure exerted by human activities, especially fishing, which is more intense near the coast, with gillnet bycatch being the main risk to the conservation of the species. The franciscana is considered a Vulnerable species, according to the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (IUCN, 2017). However, in Brazil, the species went from “Vulnerable” to “Critically Endangered” in just ten years. However, in Brazil, the species went from “vulnerable” to “critically endangered of extinction” in just ten years.

Between August/2015 and October/2020, 2,696 dead franciscanas were found between the coast of the states of Santa Catarina and São Paulo. The total franciscana population estimated for this portion of the coast is less than 7,000 individuals. The high risk of its disappearance, combined with the species’ more discreet behavior, including an almost total lack of jumps to the surface, has led many researchers and supporters to call the franciscana the “invisible dolphin”. This nickname, in addition to referring to the characteristics of the species, sheds light on the discussion of how poorly known the franciscana is and the risk of its disappearance before scientists can even get to know more about them.

Follow Projeto Toninhas do Brasil on social media @toninhasdobrasil

Contact for interview:

Marta J. Cremer (General Coordinator – Toninhas Project)

Telephone: (47) 3471-3816

E-mail: projetotoninhas@yahoo.com.br

Naira Albuquerque (Assessora de Comunicação – Projeto Toninhas)

Telefone: (54) 99931-8004 E-mail: nairarosanaalbuquerque@gmail.com

To help mitigate this problem, the Toninhas do Brasil project will test the use of acoustic alarms in nets, in different artisanal fishing realities, in an unprecedented way. Bringing together researchers and institutions from the states of Santa Catarina, Paraná and São Paulo, the project’s research and conservation efforts focus on conducting a pilot project with pingers. Pinger A pinger is a small, battery-powered device that, when attached to fishing nets, emits an ultrasonic signal that alerts dolphins of the threatening nets, thus preventing bycatch. These devices have already been tested by the project in controlled experiments and, according to research coordinator Renan Paitach, presented satisfactory results, with great potential to assist in the conservation of franciscanas. “When the pinger is turned on, the franciscanas stay at a distance of at least 100m, and when it is turned off, they return to the area only a few minutes later. Now, we have to understand how the pinger will work in real fishing contexts, considering operational and socioeconomic aspects”.

At this stage, the challenge is to monitor the experiment in different artisanal fishing realities along the coast. On an ongoing basis, fishermen from five communities will use pingers in their nets, which will be monitored over the next two years. For biologist Marta Cremer, general coordinator of Toninhas do Brasil, the experiment constitutes a great advance in favor of the conservation of the species. “Since its inception, Toninhas do Brasil has focused its efforts on finding alternatives for conservation, always taking into account the needs of local communities. When captures are accidental, thinking about alternatives that reduce these interactions is beneficial for everyone, from animals to fishermen”.

However, the researcher considers that effective measures for the conservation of franciscanas are not simple and must encompass different strategies, such as the use of technologies to reduce accidental captures, fisheries management and other public policy initiatives. With this in mind, the project’s scope of action also includes a diagnosis of the fisheries value chain, holding arenas for discussion with fishermen and other stakeholders, an ocean literacy course for early childhood teachers and a strategic communication plan. In partnership with Petrobras, through the Petrobras Socioenvironmental Program, the project is expected to reach at least 14 communities through all of the aforementioned activities, across the three states, thus effectively contributing to the construction of a cooperative proposal for franciscana bycatch mitigation and for a more sustainable fishing.

The franciscana, the invisible dolphin

The franciscana, scientifically known as Pontoporia blainvillei, is a small dolphin endemic to the Southwestern Atlantic Ocean, occurring only in the waters of Brazil, Uruguay and Argentina. With coastal habits, franciscanas are found at depths of up to 50 meters, forming small family groups. This characteristic makes the species vulnerable to the intense pressure exerted by human activities, especially fishing, which is more intense close to the coast, with bycatch in gillnets being the main risk to the conservation of the species. The franciscana is categorized as “vulnerable”, according to the International List of Threatened Species (IUCN, 2017). However, in Brazil, the species went from “vulnerable” to “critically endangered of extinction” in just ten years.

Between August/2015 and October/2020, 2,696 dead franciscanas were recorded between the states of Santa Catarina and São Paulo. The estimated total population of franciscana for this portion of the coast is less than 7,000 individuals. Its high risk of disappearance, added to the more discreet behavior of the species, which does not usually jump out of water, has led many researchers and sympathizers to call the franciscana the “invisible dolphin”. This nickname, in addition to referring to the characteristics of the species, sheds light on the discussion of how little known the franciscana is and the risk of it disappearing before this situation changes.

Follow the Toninhas do Brasil project on social media: @toninhasdobrasil

This number is alarming for a species that has been on the list of endangered animals in Brazil since 2010 and that, in 2014, was classified as “critically endangered”, the highest level of threat before disappearing from nature.

Franciscanas live in areas close to the coast, where human activity is intense, and occur mainly in regions with a maximum depth of 50 meters. In a preserved environment, free of threats, these animals can live for over 20 years, but they only have one calf every two or three years. The main threat to the species is bycatch, i.e. the incidental capture in fishing nets, in which non-target species unintentionally end up tangled in the nets.

Toninhas do Brasil, which has a partnership with Petrobras, through the Petrobras Socioenvironmental Program, is seeking alternatives to contribute to the conservation of the species in Brazil. “We are expanding our area of operation to the states of Paraná and São Paulo, as well as Santa Catarina, where the project is based. At this stage, our work is focused on a pilot project using new technologies in fishing nets, acoustic alarms, in addition to mapping the fisheries value chain and various communication and environmental education activities”, explains biologist Marta Cremer, general coordinator of Toninhas from Brazil.

The fight for the conservation of franciscanas is a race against time. A little over a decade ago, the baiji (Lipotes vexillifer), a dolphin from China, was considered extinct. In Mexico, another species of dolphin, the vaquita (Phocoena sinus), is on the brink of collapse, with less than 30 individuals left in the wild, also due to gillnets. The researchers from Toninhas do Brasil emphasize that there is an urgent need for more effective public policies and, above all, the involvement of society as a whole, for the development of sustainable fishing that guarantees the conservation of fishing resources and several other species, such as the franciscana.