Thesis Project: Do El Niño-Southern Oscillation events positively affect the diet of the Hawaiian monk seal (Monachus schauinslandi)
Supervisors: Dr. Andrew Trites and Dr. Dominic Tollit

I started working with the Marine Mammal Research Unit in 2000 as a Research Technician with the captive Steller sea lion research program at the Vancouver Aquarium. After graduation, I returned to the Marine Mammal Research Unit as a Predator/Prey Research Technician, examining the diet of Steller sea lions in southeast Alaska. Following this study, I moved to Hawaii for a year to begin analysis of the diet of Hawaiian monk seals.

My graduate thesis will determine the diet of Hawaiian monk seals and examine the effect of El Niño Southern Oscillation events on diet. Hawaiian monk seals are one of the most endangered marine mammals in the world. The population in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands is decreasing at a rate of 3.9% per year. In 2006, the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands were declared a national monument in response to the drastic decline in the population of Hawaiian monk seals. Many of the hypothesized reasons for decline can be linked to diet, and therefore, understanding of diet is critical to the conservation of this species. Recent studies have shown improved body condition of Hawaiian monk seal pups and increased survivorship of juvenile seals following El Niño years. It is possible that cooler water temperatures in that region associated with El Niño-Southern Oscillation events may increase productivity, with subsequent increases in prey availability and quality. However, no studies have attempted to link the diet of Hawaiian monk seals with El Niño events. My study will examine the diet of Hawaiian monk seals at French Frigate Shoals from 2001 to 2007. I will use scat sample analysis and identification of diagnostic hard remains to determine prey species occurrence and number of prey being consumed by Hawaiian monk seals.

Peer Reviewed Publications:

Tollit, D.J., M. Wong, A.J. Winship, D.A.S. Rosen, and A.W. Trites. 2003. Quantifying errors associated with using prey skeletal structures from fecal samples to determine the diet of the Steller sea lion (Eumetopias jubatus). Marine Mammal Science 19(4): 724-744.

Publications in Preparation:

Tollit, D.J., M.A. Wong, and A.W. Trites. Diet of Steller sea lions (Eumetopias jubatus) in Frederick Sound, Southeast Alaska, 2001-2004: Choice of dietary index and sampling protocol matter.

Sigler, M.F., D.J. Tollit, J.J. Vollenweider, J.F. Thedinga, J.N. Womble, M.A. Wong, D.J. Csepp, and A.W. Trites. Foraging response of a marine predator to prey availability.