Tracking Whales w/ DNA:
By Liz Alter      Awards: Giese, Myers, Miller

Baleen whales are among the most mysterious animals on the planet. Though whales are icons of ocean conservation, we still know relatively little about the way they live and what their populations were like in the past. This information is crucial to restoring populations that were decimated by whaling, particularly for those that continue to experience threats from climate change, pollution, and fisheries bycatch. In my doctoral research at Hopkins Marine Station, I use genetic information to understand the historical dynamics of whale populations. Genetic data provide us with a window into the past, allowing us to construct a picture of what the oceans looked like before large-scale whaling.

Studying whale populations presents many logistical challenges, starting with getting samples for DNA analysis. My samples have come from a variety of sources including biopsies from live animals, tissue samples from stranded or hunted animals, fisheries bycatch, and most recently, from archaeological excavations. Obtaining samples from individuals spread out across space and time allows us to ask questions at many spatial and temporal scales, ranging from population structure in the present to understanding historic and ancient population bottlenecks.

Much of my thesis focuses on the eastern North Pacific gray whale and pre-whaling population dynamics in this species. Recently I developed a suite of genetic markers to test whether the amount of genetic diversity in eastern gray whales is concordant with our knowledge of past population trends from historical records (e.g. whaling logbooks). In collaboration with Sergio Flores Ramirez and Jorge Urban (Universidad Autonomica de Baja California Sur), I am also conducting a genetic study using microsatellites to determine the extent of fidelity to breeding lagoons in Baja California, Mexico. Finally, I am working with the Makah tribe of Washington State to determine the species composition of baleen whales found in historical middens, and to investigate historical dynamics in gray and humpback whales. In this study I have been collaborating with Liz Hadly’s lab group on main campus, and benefiting from their expertise in ancient DNA techniques and facilities.

One of the best things about working at Hopkins has been being surrounded by a lively, close-knit and supportive research community. Whether participating in a journal club, getting feedback on a talk or paper, or collaborating on a research project, these interactions with faculty, postdocs and fellow grad students have been critical to shaping my doctoral research on historical population dynamics in baleen whales.