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Wildlife
- Close
- - We protect wildlife in Britain and around the world by bringing our most threatened species back from the brink of extinction. We do this through ground-breaking research, practical conservation and education, all with the help of our supporters.
Wild places
- Close
- - Some habitats contain such a richness of life that we need to protect them at all odds. We are working to preserve ancient woodlands, orchards and wood pastures and parklands, as well as the countless species they support.
What we do
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- - Everything we do is based on scientific evidence. We gather this through surveys, which you can take part in, and by awarding research grants to the most inspiring scientists worldwide. This evidence guides our conservation efforts and is shared through our events and publications.
Who we are
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- - People’s Trust for Endangered Species was set up in 1977 to save our wildlife. We are governed by a board of volunteer trustees and our team of staff are passionate about protecting endangered species and places.
Success stories
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- - We strive to bring our most threatened species in the UK and around the world back from the brink of extinction. Our successes come from ground-breaking research, practical conservation and education, all with the help of our supporters.
Get involved
- Close
- - There are so many ways you can help save endangered species. Fancy taking part in a survey, joining us on a wildlife event or becoming a regular supporter?
Shop
- Close
- - Support our work in our shop with a range of charity gifts, home-ware, cards and more. 100% of the profits go directly to help wildlife both in the UK an overseas.
Donate
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- - There is nothing natural about the alarming rate at which we are losing animals and their homes. It is absolutely avoidable. We can stop the loss of our wildlife – but we need your support. You can act now by choosing to give to our cause. Thank you.

Home // Research grants // Our internship projects // Snapping dolphins off the coast of Wales

Snapping dolphins off the coast of Wales

Bottlenose dolphins are one of, if not the most, recognised, and charismatic marine species, yet they’re classed as data deficient by the IUCN. That means we don’t have enough data about them to fully understand their population dynamics. However, sadly, we do know that their numbers are dropping and that a better understanding of their population dynamics is now vital in order for us to monitor and protect these incredible animals.

A haven in Wales

Cardigan Bay Special Area of Conservation (SAC), off the coast of Wales, is home to the largest population of bottlenose dolphins in the UK. It’s here that the Sea Watch Foundation has been developing a large catalogue of over 1000 photos of around 450 individual dolphins.

These photos are hugely important. The dorsal fin of a bottlenose dolphin is as unique to each animal as a fingerprint is to a human. Dolphins are social creatures – and not always in the most friendly way. Interacting with other dolphins leads to lots of scarring and knicks and notches. Luckily, we can use this information, as well as naturally occurring colouration and markings, to identify individual dolphins through photographs. This allows us to track their movements, life history and family relations in a non-invasive way.

dolphin dorsal fin — Claudia is photographing the dorsal fins of bottlenose dolphins to track their movements and life history (Claudia Afeltra).

Claudia photographing dolphins — Claudia is photographing the dorsal fins of bottlenose dolphins to track their movements and life history (Claudia Afeltra).

Cataloguing and cooperation

PTES’s new intern, Claudia Afeltra, is working at the Sea Watch Foundation to update the catalogue with new images and is developing a user friendly version to share with other organisations and scientists around the UK. This new version will include more photographs of the dolphins and a map of their individual home ranges, the first and last dates each one was sighted, as well as any familial relationships with other dolphins.

Reaching out to other organisations and individuals around the UK is enabling Claudia to gather even more detail about the movements of individual animals, by matching fins with animals spotted in the waters outside Cardigan Bay. Claudia is also running a ‘photo-a-fin’ campaign to encourage members of the public to the get involved as citizen scientists, sending in photographs of dolphins that they’ve spotted.

With the help of PTES, Claudia’s project will achieve two main aims. Bottlenose dolphins are protected within the SAC, but we know they travel during winter into unprotected waters. If we can learn more about their movements, we can make recommendations for further management and protection of the dolphins. Making the photo-ID catalogue user friendly and more easily accessible will encourage cooperation between NGOs throughout the UK, and it will help citizen scientists to become involved with the conservation of bottlenose dolphins through a better understanding of their population dynamics and movement.

This project is only possible thanks to our generous donors. Can you help by donating today?

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