Photo Identification Catalogues

The IWDG uses photo-identification to monitor various species as they appear and are photographed around Ireland. Catalogues are maintained for bottlenose dolphins within the Shannon Estuary and within coastal waters which have shown dolphins to travel up to 650km around Ireland and even 1,277 km from Cork to Scotland’s Moray Firth!

Humpback, fin and minke whales along with Risso’s dolphins, killer and pilot whale catalogues are also kept. Killer whale matches are frequently made to the “Scottish West Community” which currently numbers 8 individuals as they pass through our waters.

The catalogues have shown that some fin whales returned annually from 2003 to 2008 along with humpback whales that have been recorded since 1999. International humpback whale matches have been made between Gibraltar, the Netherlands, Norway and Iceland which demonstrates how important information on the movements of these animals can be collected easily without interfering with the animals.