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Your donation will help us continue our ground-breaking efforts to understand the behavior and communication of humpback whales and dolphins, to present our findings to the public, to educate people at all levels about dolphins and whales, and to ultimately help protect these marine mammals and their fragile marine habitats.

You can also make a directed donation to help support some of our current efforts described below.

Click the button below to make a secure online contribution

If you prefer to donate by check, they can be made out to The Dolphin Institute and can be mailed to:
The Dolphin Institute, P.O. Box 6279, Hilo, Hawaii 96720

I. Louis M. Herman Research Scholarship Fund

In 2017, Dr. Herman’s family, colleagues and friends established the Louis M. Herman Research Scholarship to honor his legacy by promoting the type of research that was the focus of his groundbreaking studies. The scholarship, administered by the Society for Marine Mammalogy and given every two years, will be for US$5000. The scholarship will support a research project that contributes to our understanding of cetacean cognition and sensory perception (laboratory or field studies), or humpback whale behavioral ecology or communication. Work with other marine mammals that especially enhances our understanding of their cognitive abilities will also be considered. Eligible candidates include graduate students and those students who have completed their Masters or PhD within the past three years. Please help us continue to honor Dr. Louis M. Herman’s legacy.

II. Computer-based Whale Tail Fluke Matching Program

Individual humpback whales can be identified by the unique pigmentation patterns on the ventral surface of their tail flukes and the unique serrated patterns on the trailing edge of the tail. In 1976, Lou Herman began photographing individual humpback whales in Hawaiian waters and he and his continued this enterprise every year since. Now, with over 22,000 photographs of well over 5,000 whales, this precious archive has become one of the largest catalogs of individuals of any whale species, and is a vital resource for establishing individual life histories, reproductive parameters, migratory trends, habitat use, and behavioral patterns. However, achieving these objectives requires matching fluke images to each other, a task that has relied for years on the human eye, a time-consuming endeavor. We now have an exciting opportunity to purchase a computer-based matching program that would automatically match the flukes within TDI’s catalog as well as match new flukes as they come in. The cost for the program and its associated customized databases is $10,000. Please help us make the jump to a digital matching program.

III. Passive Acoustic Recorders (SoundTraps) for Mapping Spinner Dolphin Habitat

In Fall 2018, TDI launched a new effort to identify important habitat for spinner dolphins found off east Hawaii Island to learn how they use these often rougher coastal areas, and the degree to which the spinner dolphins found in bays and along the east (windward) Hawaii Island are different from those found off the west (leeward) coast. Hawaiian spinner dolphins are nocturnal feeders. To sustain themselves, they spend evening and early morning hours hunting offshore, and then return during daylight to shallow bays, coves and shorelines to rest and socialize. Daytime rest is critical to a spinner dolphin’s overall health and fitness, and may be compromised by chronic disturbance. Unfortunately, in recent years, Hawaiian spinner dolphins have faced increasing pressures in their resting areas from an increase in the number of people seeking close encounters. Understanding how spinner dolphins use the windward shores of Hawaii Island is critical, especially given that starting in May 2018, lava flows into the sea off east Hawaii dramatically altered the coastline including eliminating some shallow bay areas. TDI will be monitoring dolphin presence and activities using long-term using autonomous underwater acoustic recording devices called “Sound-traps.” These devices sit on the sandy bottom and record the acoustic soundscape. Thus, our goals are to monitor long-term the daily, seasonal and yearly trends in acoustic behavior of Hawaiian spinner dolphins along east Hawaii, and to learn about which bays, coves and coastlines serve as the most important habitat for these animals. The cost of each SoundTrap with extended battery pack is $4,300.00. In order to have ample acoustic coverage along east Hawaii Island, we are hoping to raise funds to purchase three SoundTraps.

IV. New TDI Research Boat

Since its establishment, TDI’s research has been carried out aboard two small outboard research boats, Kohola I and Kohola II. However, over the years both boats have aged and are no longer functional. In order to continue TDI’s long-term studies of humpback whales in Hawaiian waters, as well as to expand its research to other cetacean species, it is vital that we purchase a new outboard boat. The cost of the boat we have targeted that we would aptly name the “Louis M. Herman” is $100,000. We are excited to inform you that we have so far raised $45,000 and hope you can help us complete our boat fundraising campaign.