NOAA Awards More Than $1.1 Million To The Institute For Marine Mammal Studies To Support Dolphin Research

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration awarded a $1,104,962 grant to the Institute for Marine Mammal Studies in Gulfport, Miss., to fund Bottlenose Dolphin research. NOAA is an agency of the U.S. Department of Commerce.

The grant continues the third phase of the Atlantic Bottlenose Dolphin Research project off Mississippi and in the North Central Gulf of Mexico that studies both wild and captive dolphins. The research will study many aspects of the dolphins, including their biology and natural history, ecology, behavior, physiology and taxonomy. Researchers will also examine the incidence and affects of parasites and diseases on wild and captive dolphins. IMMS will also develop materials designed to enhance the public's knowledge of dolphins and the continuing need for conservation efforts.

“I am pleased the Department of Commerce has provided these funds to the Institute for Marine Mammal Studies to continue their important work in the Gulf of Mexico. I am hopeful that these funds will continue to aid in our responsibility to conserve our nation’s coastal and marine resources,” said Senator Thad Cochran, R-Miss.

“This grant allows local organizations like the Institute for Marine Mammal Studies to manage its coastal resources while actively supporting efforts that reinforce NOAA and the Bush Administration’s commitment to the environment,” said retired Navy Vice Adm. Conrad C. Lautenbacher, Ph.D., under secretary of commerce for oceans and atmosphere and NOAA administrator.

The Institute for Marine Mammal Studies is a non-profit organization founded in 1984. It supports innovative and important research regarding marine mammals and the environments in which they live and to better understand the role and responsibility humans have in the management of marine mammals both in captivity and in the wild.

Each year, NOAA awards approximately $900 million in grants to members of the academic, scientific and business communities to assist the agency in fulfilling its mission to study the Earth’s natural systems in order to predict environmental change, manage ocean resources, protect life and property, and provide decision makers with reliable scientific information. NOAA’s goals and programs reflect a commitment to these basic responsibilities of science and service to the nation for the past 34 years.

NOAA is dedicated to enhancing economic security and national safety through the prediction and research of weather and climate-related events and providing environmental stewardship of our nation’s coastal and marine resources. To learn more about NOAA, please visit http://www.noaa.gov.