Finn has been examining the behaviour and habitat use of 150 regular dolphin inhabitants of the Sound.

“A previous study by postgraduate student Bec Donaldson discovered about 20 per cent of the dolphins in Cockburn Sound were adult females with dependent calves, which is an unusually large percentage for bottlenose dolphin populations,” said Finn.

“This means the protected waters of the Sound may provide a unique habitat for dolphins, perhaps offering them safety from sharks. Sheltered water is rare in Western Australia.”

Finn’s research has expanded these findings, focusing on how the dolphins were adapting to their increasingly industrialised environment.

By tracking the dolphins across the bay and where and when they were feeding, Finn has painted a grim picture for dolphin survival in the bay.

“The animals use areas that have been seriously affected by pollution and maintaining fish stocks seems to be a key factor in dolphin conservation.

“Now more than 50 per cent of the dolphins’ time is spent foraging for food, because the declining seagrass has caused the fish stocks to change to smaller plankton feeding species.

“The huge time commitment to finding food suggests the life of a dolphin in Cockburn Sound can be a delicate balancing act.

“Dolphins are very flexible, but they may have reached the point of maximum tolerance. Future development in Cockburn Sound could have detrimental effects on the population, even by simply allowing dolphins to beg from boats.

“Dolphin population decline is hard to detect and they are a very difficult species to rehabilitate.”

Finn worked closely with First Class Honours student Paula Watterson, who examined the feeding ecology of seabirds in the Sound over the past year.

The two studies were principally supported by the Ian Potter Foundation and Orbital Engine Corporation.