Taxon name
Steno bredanensis
(Lesson, 1828)
Uploaded by
National Red List Database
Taxonomic information
Scientific name
Steno bredanensis
(Lesson, 1828)
Assessed taxon level
Species
Higher level taxonomic groupings
Vertebrates
Mammals
Species authority
(Lesson, 1828)
Taxonomic notes and synonyms listed
No subspecies of the Rough-toothed Dolphin (Steno bredanensis) are currently recognized (Committee on Taxonomy 2017). However, based on genetics there is evidence of population structuring, both within and between ocean basins, and even within specific archipelagos (Oremus et al. 2012, Da Silva et al. 2015, Albertson et al. 2016). Analyses of photo-identification and satellite tag data indicate population structuring within the Hawaiian archipelago (Baird et al. 2008, Baird 2016), and similar population structuring has been identified in the Society Islands, French Polynesia, based on photo-identification data (Oremus et al. 2012). It is likely that subpopulation structure exists throughout the species' range. Many current publications erroneously attribute the name Steno (Delphinus) bredanensis to G. Cuvier in Lesson (1828), rather than to Lesson (1828) (Smeenk 2018), and this latter attribution is now followed by the Committee on Taxonomy (2020).
Location and scope
Specific locality or subnational name or regional name
United Arab Emirates (the)
Scope (of the Assessment)
National
Countries included within the scope of the assessment
United Arab Emirates (the)
Does the assessment cover a marine EEZ area(s)?
Not_assigned
Conservation Status
Assessed as
Data deficient
Criteria system used
IUCN
(see Assessment details)
Assessment rationale/justification
This species was first recorded for the UAE in March 2018 off the east coast of Fujairah and no further information is available on population size or trends. There is also no data on any threats to the species, hence it is assessed as Data Deficient. No regional adjustment is made to the Data Deficient assessment.
Assessment details
Assessors/contributors/reviewers listed
UAE National Red List Workshop
Criteria system used
IUCN
Reference for methods given
IUCN. 2012. IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria: Version 3.1, Second edition. IUCN, Gland, Switzerland and Cambridge, UK. iv + 32pp pp. And IUCN. 2012. Guidelines for Application of IUCN Red List Criteria at Regional and National Levels: Version 4.0. Gland, Switzerland and Cambridge, UK: IUCN. iii + 41pp.
URL (link) of redlist assessment or publication
https://www.moccae.gov.ae/assets/download/b352eff1/UNRL%20of%20Mammals%20-%20Report%202019.pdf.aspx?view=true
Further information
Endemism (according to assessment)
Endemic to region
Not assigned
Taxon distribution as listed in assessment
The first record for the UAE was in March 2018 when individuals were observed amongst a pod of Bottlenose Dolphins some 60 km east of Fujairah Port during a survey by the Fujairah Whale and Dolphin Project (Baldwin and Willson 2018).This is a tropical to subtropical species, which generally inhabits deep, oceanic waters of all three major oceans, rarely ranging north of 40'°N or south of 35'°S (Hammond et al. 2012b).
Is there a map available in assessment?
Yes
Habitat and systems
Ecological system type
Habitat
Habitat details as listed in assessment
Usually found in deep offshore waters (Hammond et al. 2012b).
Threats and conservation measures listed
Threats listed in assessment
The main threats to cetaceans in UAE waters include: incidental mortality in trawl, drift and anchored gill nets, depletion of prey populations (due in part to commercial overfishing); ship and boat strikes, disturbance due to underwater noise (including that from vessel traffic, drilling, piling, military operations and seismic activity related to offshore oil and gas exploration). Inshore and shallow-water species are further potentially threatened by entanglement in abandoned fishing gear, coastal development including port and harbour construction, dredging, land reclamation, residential and tourist development, and pollution (especially hydrocarbons). A lack of information (e.g. population size and trend, the location of critical habitats, and feeding ecology) hinders the development of appropriate conservation actions, but this should be used as an excuse for inaction.
History
The backcasted 1996 assessment for this species is Data Deficient.
Publication
Mallon, D., Hilton-Taylor, C., Allen, D., & Harding, K. (2019). UAE National Red List of Mammals: Marine and Terrestrial. A report to the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, United Arab Emirates (p. 41). IUCN Global Species Programme. https://bit.ly/2RdZCQR
