Dolphin Research Institute Ltd

The following summarises the progress made in our four impact areas. Dolphins and Whales We delivered updated editions of the Catalogues for the Port Phillip Common Dolphins, Bass Coast Region Common Dolphins, and Victorian Humpback Whales. Key insights include the confirmation of over 160 common dolphins using Port Phillip and eight thirdgeneration calves born since 2005. This information is shared widely with environmental managers to inform decisionmaking. DRI's leading citizen science role was strengthened through improvements in PodWatch, Two Bays Tracker, Western Port Pod Surveyor and Port Phillip Pod Surveyor apps. These tools support interns and trained citizen scientists to work on the Two Bays Whale Project, the Western Port Project, the Port Phillip Project and our longterm Dolphin and Whale Sighting Project. During the year, a project to expand the Two Bays Whale Project to seven additional segments across the Victorian Coastline continued. We committed to hosting the Killer Whales Australia Project to ensure the longterm success of this national citizen science project. The Marine Environment Our researchers reviewed 19 years of common dolphin data to develop a time series to present the growth and health of the common dolphin community to inform the annual Port Phillip Environmental Management Plan report and the fiveyearly State of the Coast and Marine Environment Report. Two Bays Whale Project data are submitted to the Southern Hemisphere Whales and Climate Project. Stormwater education and behaviour change are vital parts of all education programs. Beach litter surveys are part of the i sea, i care Ambassador Program. The Community The huge success of the Research Fellowship program trial in 2022 was extended into 2024, delivering significant research outcomes and providing a crucial experience for early career scientists. The Hugh D.T. Williamson Foundation recognised the program's significance with its commitment of $240,000 to establish it, securing Fellowships for 2025 and 2026. Our university intern program supported more than 12 students from three universities. We provided formal education programs for more than 4157 children and 144 adults (still down from the prepandemic number but improving by 10% over FY2023). Maintained i sea, i care Ambassador Program in partnership with five councils and nearly 90 schools, with 550 Ambassadors. Ambassadors contributed over 40,000 hours of volunteer time and peertaught more than 44,000 children during the period.