Our first and second projects provided an important preliminary understanding on ecology of cetaceans in the Aegean Sea on behalf of their conservation, besides providing opportunity to increase awareness of local community. Outputs of these projects and co-actions by stakeholders indicated also some serious scientific and social considerations on their conservation in Turkey. Some of these important considerations are:

1) interaction between cetaceans and fishers, which is important and required further knowledge to sustainability of cetacean species. Insufficient amounts of fishes make this interaction uphill.

2) Another remarkable observation is reflection of fishers in behavioral aspects. Decreasing demand on living marine sources and competition between humankind and cetaceans results very extreme attitudes in fishers against cetaceans. Some harmful attacks are known from the Black Sea. Therefore, detailed evaluations on the interaction and fishers’ opinions require for developing effective conservation strategies.

3) Seasonal pattern in distribution and detected ranges of the individuals of bottlenose dolphin indicates broader distribution area for residence population in İzmir Bay. Field surveys in wider area will provide important data-set for further understanding of their ecology and behavior to develop and implement management plans in Turkey.

In this project, it is aimed to evaluate the interaction between cetaceans and fishers in less developed fisheries ports of Turkey. The project will provide important preliminary information for conservation of cetacean species and will be an important baseline to decision makers for effective management plans for conservation of the species.