Intensive photo-identification and radio tracking studies during 2004-2007 have provided insight into the potential effects of multiple Unusual Mortality Events in and around St. Joseph Bay. However, the recovery rate of bottlenose dolphin populations along the Florida Panhandle cannot be determined without long-term photo-identification surveys in this region. In collaboration with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection and the St. Joseph Bay State Buffer Preserve, photo-identification surveys were conducted in and around St. Joseph Bay to monitor site-fidelity of bottlenose dolphins within this region. Surveys were conducted for five days during June 2008, in which 71 previously known individuals and 14 new individuals were identified. In addition, 18 calves and 7 young-of-the-year were also identified. Of the 23 individuals handled during the 2005 and 2006 St. Joseph Bay health assessments, seven freezebranded individuals were resighted during this survey period.
        All transects in the St. Joseph Bay photo-identification region were completed once during the five days of this study. Previous abundance estimates in this area have been generated utilizing a survey design where each transect was completed twice. Although not as robust as the earlier estimates, the June 2008 surveys estimated abundance between 113 and 182 individuals. This estimate is comparable to the June/July 2007 abundance estimate of 140 to 164 individuals in the St. Joseph Bay region. Continuation of these seasonal, mark-recapture, photo-identification surveys is crucial to identify changes in abundance, survivorship, and site-fidelity of bottlenose dolphins following multiple mortality events along the Florida Panhandle.
        This research would not have been possible without the logistical support from Kim Wren, Jean Huffman, and Neil Jones. The funding for this project was provided by NOAA Fisheries Service, Florida Department of Environmental Protection, the St. Joseph Bay State Buffer Preserve, and the Chicago Zoological Society

Dolphin X22, a known resident of St. Joseph Bay that was radio tracked during July-October 2005.