Postgraduate Students
Isabel Beasley
BSc (Otago University) DipWLM (Otago University)
PhD Candidate
How to Find me
Isabel Beasley
Ph.D Candidate
School of Tropical Environment Studies and Geography James Cook
University Townsville, 4811, QLD Australia
tel: 61-7-47816939
mobile: 61-437921897
email: Isabel.Beasley@jcu.edu.au
I completed a Postgraduate Diploma in Wildlife Management in 1997 at
Otago University, New Zealand, where I studied the educational implications
of tourism for Hector's dolphins. Since then I have worked on various
marine mammal projects throughout Asia (Hong Kong, Borneo, Thailand
and Philippines) and the Pacific Ocean (San Diego, USA south to Peru
including Hawaii). I have been researching marine mammals in Cambodia
since January 2001.
I have a strong interest in marine mammal research and conservation in Asia, as it an area where very little study has currently been undertaken. The Irrawaddy dolphin population which inhabits the Mekong River is thought to number no more than 150 individuals and is declining steadily. I hope that effective conservation and management of the population will result directly from this research.
Abundance, distribution and conservation status of the Irrawaddy dolphin, Orcaella brevirostris which inhabits the Mekong River, Cambodia.
This PhD project aims to provide a biological assessment on the abundance, distribution and conservation status of the Irrawaddy dolphin population which inhabits the Mekong River of Cambodia. The aims of the project are to:
· determine the importance of the riverine Irrawaddy dolphin population in Cambodia, through a literature review and taxonomic investigations
· provide baseline data on abundance, distribution, habitat preferences and site fidelity of Irrawaddy dolphins, which will assist in the development of conservation strategies
· to provide effective recommendations towards the conservation of Irrawaddy dolphins and their riverine habitat in CambodiaThis project will consist primarily of boat and interview surveys throughout the upper reaches of the Cambodian Mekong River. It addition, it will investigate the geomorphological river features of the preferred dolphin habitat. The Irrawaddy population once ranged throughout Southern Lao, Cambodia (including Tonle Sap Great Lake) and Vietnam. It is now thought that it has been extirpated from the majority of its range and now resides primarily in the upper Cambodian Mekong from Kratie to the Lao/Cambodian border (190 linear kilometers). This research will contribute towards a comprehensive biological assessment of the Irrawaddy population and a social assessment on local riverine communities, to assist in conservation and management strategies.
