SPU CO18-2021 - Boat-based visual surveys for Bottlenose dolphin in the West Connacht Coast SAC, in 2021

Descriptions

The Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (DHLGH) is responsible for the conservation of natural habitats and species and the protection of biological diversity in Ireland. It is also responsible for providing advice to Licensing Authorities in that regard. All species of Cetacea (i.e., whales, dolphins & porpoises) occurring in Ireland are protected under Irish and European legislation and through international agreements. These include the Wildlife Acts 1976 to 2012, the Habitats Directive, the OSPAR Convention, the Bonn Convention, and the International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling.As part of Ireland’s conservation obligations concerning cetaceans there is a significant requirement for the monitoring of cetacean occurrence in all Irish waters. The State also has a legal obligation through the Habitats Directive (92/43/EEC) to monitor key marine habitats and species and to report on their conservation status to the EU.West Connacht Coast is a Special Area of Conservation (SAC 2998; see https://www.npws.ie/protected-sites/sac/002998) for Common Bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus). In order to fulfil the requirements for monitoring set out within the Habitats Directive a population assessment compatible in methodology with boat-based photo-identification surveys in the Lower River Shannon SAC undertaken most recently in 2015 and 2018 (see https://www.npws.ie/publications) and using information learned from previous surveys in West Connacht Coast area and adjacent waters (Nykanen et al., 2015, Rogan et al., 2013, Oudejans et al., 2010 and Ingram et al., 2009) will be undertaken in West Connacht Coast SAC during 2021.The National Parks & Wildlife Service of DHLGH now invites tenders for the provision of ecological services to carry out boat-based visual surveys for Bottlenose dolphin in the West Connacht Coast SAC, in 2021. A detailed specification of the technical and proposal requirements is set out in the RfT document