Animals that establish new sites near the edge of the species' range may be vulnerable to disturbance as they are low in numbers and are not tied to the sites. Pinniped distributions world‐wide are changing as many species are recolonizing areas of their former ranges and establishing new colonies. Little research is available on the impact that vessel presence may pose on pinnipeds at such sites. This study documents response...

Historically, the range of the southern right whale ( SRW ) included winter calving grounds around the North and South Islands (mainland) of New Zealand ( NZ ) and in the NZ subantarctic Auckland and Campbell Islands. Due to extensive whaling in the 19th and 20th centuries, no SRW was seen around mainland NZ for nearly four decades (1928–1963). Here we present evidence for the regular use of the mainland NZ wintering ground, p...

The identification and characterization of reproductively isolated subpopulations or ‘stocks’ are essential for effective conservation and management decisions. This can be difficult in vagile marine species like marine mammals. We used paternity assignment and ‘gametic recapture’ to examine the reproductive autonomy of southern right whales ( Eubalaena australis ) on their New Zealand (NZ) calving grounds. We derived DNA prof...

An increased number of tourists viewing animals in the wild have increased stress on these animals (hereafter wildlife). Many wildlife‐viewing locations rely on voluntary compliance with posted regulations to protect animals from tourists because of the expense of employing on‐site enforcement personnel. Voluntary compliance, however, is ineffective. The presence of official‐looking volunteers may decrease the incidence of wil...