Abstract
Cetaceans are widely distributed globally and established in a range of different habitats, including, estuarine and coastal environments, offshore oceanic waters, and deep seas (Jefferson et al. 2015; Plagányi and Butterworth 2009). These animals play key roles in the function of the marine environment, are sentinels on the health of the ecosystems, and provide multiple benefits to humans (Bowen et al. 1992; Kiszka et al. 2021; Schaeffer et al. 2008). Nevertheless, knowledge and proper data on some cetacean species are still remarkably poor.
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Acknowledgments
We appreciate all the users that shared cetacean sightings to the project, especially to Manolo Yepez, Ana Eguiguren, Dr. Hal Whitehead and his lab at the Department of Biology, Dalhousie University. We are also grateful to Sofia Green, Daniel Herrera, Martin Cox, Paulo Tobar, Caro Pesantez and all the great naturalistic guides from Lindblad expeditions, with special recognition of Lynn Fowler and Cindy Manning, for their long trajectory contributing with cetacean science in the Galapagos. In addition, we thank the Galapagos Science Center for all the support and all the staff working there, especially the Founding Directors, Carlos Mena and Steve Walsh, also to the Universidad San Francisco de Quito and the Geocentro USFQ. We want to thank Dr. Hector Guzmán and the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Panama, Jen Jones and the Galapagos Conservation Trust, and the Decanato de Investigación and the Galapagos POA grants. We also recognize the contribution of Alysa Valentine and Emily Christiansen for the organization of the database. The Galapagos National Park for all the support since the beginning off the project. The present project has been carried out under the research permit PC 54-22.
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Alarcón-Ruales, D. et al. (2023). Cetaceans of the Galapagos Archipelago: Species in Constant Change and the Importance of a Standardized and Long-Term Citizen Science Program. In: Walsh, S.J., Mena, C.F., Stewart, J.R., Muñoz Pérez, J.P. (eds) Island Ecosystems. Social and Ecological Interactions in the Galapagos Islands. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-28089-4_22
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