JENS CURRIE
PhD STUDENT
Broadly, my interest is in applied research and the role findings can have in limiting the impacts humans have on natural systems. I am particularly interested in free-ranging cetaceans and using innovative technology such as Unoccupied Aerial Systems (UAS or drones) and Customized Animal Tracking Solutions (CATS) suction cup tags to gain new perspectives on long-studied species. My Ph.D. project aims at using these technologies to gather new insights into the foraging ecology of the endangered population of false killer whales in Hawai'i and contribute to the ongoing recovery efforts.
email: curriej@hawaii.edu
For publication pdfs, please visit the following links:
Biography
Jens Currie is the principal investigator for Pacific Whale Foundation’s Hawaiʻi research studies and directs their domestic research activities. He is also enrolled in a Ph.D. Program at the University of Hawaiʻi with a focus on studying the foraging ecology of various odontocete, particularly false killer whales, with the Marine Mammal Research Program. His research focuses on modeling anthropogenic and environmental impacts on cetacean populations. Recent research has been focused on developing guidelines for the whale watching industry to minimize disturbance and using UAS (drones) to better understand the health of various species of dolphins. Jens has a wide and varied background including studying lobster fecundity in the Northwest Atlantic Ocean, modeling the impacts of aquaculture pens on the surrounding marine environment, evaluating ecosystem goods and services in coastal South Africa, and determining the impacts of vessel traffic on Hawaiʻi’s humpback whales.
Publications
2022
. Olson, G.L., Stack, S.H., Machernis, A.F., Sullivan, F.A., and Currie, J.J.* 2022. Mapping the Exposure of Pantropical Spotted Dolphins and Common Bottlenose Dolphins to Different Categories of Vessel Traffic in Maui Nui, Hawai‘i. Aquatic Mammals 48(2): 167-181.
. Machernis, A.F., Stack, S.H., Olson, G.L., Sullivan, F.A., and Currie, J.J.* 2022. External scarring as an indicator of fisheries interactions with bottlenose (Tursiops truncatus) and pantropical spotted (Stenella attenuata) dolphins in Maui Nui, Hawai‘i. Aquatic Mammals 47(5): 482-498.
2021
. Currie, J.J. and Stack, S.H. 2021. Getting butts off the beach: Policy alone is not effective at reducing cigarette filter litter on beaches in Maui, Hawai’i. Marine Pollution Bulletin 173: 112937.
. Currie, J.J., van Aswegen, M., Stack, S.H., West, K.L., Vivier, F., & Bejder, L. 2021. Rapid weight loss in free ranging pygmy killer whales (Feresa attenuata) and the implications for anthropogenic disturbance of odontocetes. Scientific Reports 11: 8181.
. Stack, S.H., Sprogis, K.R., Olson, G.L., Sullivan, F.A., Machernis, A.F. and Currie, J.J. 2021. The behavioural impacts of commercial swimming with whale tours on humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) in Hervey Bay, Australia. Frontiers in Marine Science. DOI 10.3389/fmars.2021.696136.
. Van Cise, A.M., Baird, R.W., Harnish, A.E., Currie, J.J., Stack, S.H., Cullins, T., & Gorgone, A.M. 2021. Mark−recapture estimates suggest declines in abundance of common bottlenose dolphin stocks in the main Hawaiian Islands. Endangered Species Research 45: 37-53.
. Currie, J.J., McCordic, J.A., Olson, G.L., Machernis, A.F., & Stack, S.H. 2021. The Impact of Vessels on Humpback Whale Behavior: The Benefit of Added Whale Watching Guidelines. Frontiers in Marine Science 8: 601433.
. Self, H., Stack, S.H., Currie, J.J., Lusseau, D. 2021. Tourism informing conservation: The distribution of four dolphin species varies with calf presence and increases their vulnerability to vessel traffic in the four-island region of Maui, Hawai‘i. Ecological Solutions and Evidence, 2:e12065.
2020
. Stack, S.H., Olson, G.O., Neamtu, V., Machernis, A.F. Baird, R.W., and Currie, J.J., 2020. Identifying spinner dolphin movement and behavioral patterns to inform conservation strategies in Maui Nui, Hawaiʻi. Marine Ecology Progress Series 644: 187-197.
2019
. Stack, S.H., Currie, J.J., McCordic, J.A., and Olson, G.O. 2019. Incidence of Odontocetes with Dorsal Fin Collapse in Maui Nui, Hawaii. Aquatic Mammals 45(3), 257-265.
. Stack, S.H., Currie, J.J., McCordic, J.A., Machernis, A.F. and Olson, G.O. 2019. Distribution patterns of east Australian humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) in Hervey Bay, Queensland: a historical perspective. Australian Mammalogy. Australian Mammalogy. https://doi.org/10.1071/AM18029.
2018
. Currie, J.J., Stack, S.H., Brignac, K.C., & Lynch, J.M. 2018. Nearshore sea surface macro marine debris in Maui County, Hawaii: Distribution, drivers, and polymer composition. Marine Pollution Bulletin 138: 70-83.
. Currie, J.J., Stack, S.H. and Kaufman, G.D. 2018. Conservation and Education Through Ecotourism: Using Citizen Science to Monitor Cetaceans in the Four-Island Region of Maui, Hawaii. Tourism in Marine Environments, 13(2): 65-71.
. Currie, J.J., Stack, S.H. McCordic, J.A. Roberts, J. 2018. Utilizing occupancy models and platforms-of- opportunity to assess area use of mother-calf humpback whales Open Journal of Marine Science 8: 276-292.
. Currie, J. J., Stack, S. H., Kaufman, G. D. 2018. Conservation and education through ecotourism: using citizen science to monitor cetaceans in the 4-island region of Maui, Hawaii Tourism in Marine Environments. DOI: 10.3727/154427318X15270394903273.
2017
. Currie, J.J., Stack, S.H. Kaufman, G.D. 2017 Modeling whale-vessel encounters: the role of speed in mitigating collisions with humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae). Journal of Cetacean Research and Management 17: 57–64.
. Currie, J.J., Stack, S.H., McCordic, J.A., Kaufman, G.D. 2017. Quantifying the risk that marine debris poses to cetaceans in coastal waters of the 4-island region of Maui. Marine Pollution Bulletin 121: 69–77.
2016
. Blickley, L.C., Currie, J.J., Kaufman, G.D. 2016. Trends and drivers of debris accumulation on Maui shorelines: Implications for local mitigation strategies. Marine Pollution Bulletin 105: 292–298.
2014
. Currie, J.J., Ratsimandresy A.W, and Goulet, P.J. 2014. Wind Conditions in a Fjordlike Bay and Predictions of Wind Speed Using Neighboring Stations Employing Neural Network Models. Journal of Applied Meteorology and Climatology, 53(6): 1525-1537.
2013
. Currie, J.J., Ratsimandresy A.W., Mabrouk, G., Bungay, T., Sheppard, L., Drover, D. and Losier, R. 2013. Validation of DEPOMOD for estimating carbon accumulation from finfish farms on the South Coast of Newfoundland: a tool for site assessments. Canadian Technical Report of Fisheries Aquatic Sciences 3027: v + 23 pp.
2011
. Currie, J.J., and Schneider, D.C. 2011. Spatial scaling from latitudinal gradients: size-specific fecundity in the American lobster Homarus americanus. Marine Ecology Progress Series 439: 193-201.
2010
. Currie, J.J., Schneider, D.C., and Wilke, K.M. 2010. Validation of a noninvasive technique for estimating fecundity in the American Lobster Homarus americanus. Journal of Shellfish Research, 29(4): 1021-1024.