Stephen F. Austin State University continues its leading role in dolphin health research using the codeveloped Passive Health Assessment in Sea Mammals, or PHASM, system, a drone capable of collecting dolphin breath for health assessment. Pictured aboard the Iwa Bailey, from left to right, are Sean Murphy, political science senior from Nacogdoches; Ryleigh Wilson, biology senior from Dallas; Kristi Fazioli, scientist with the Galveston Bay Dolphin Research Program; Ellie Maus, intern with the Galveston Bay Dolphin Research Program; Dr. Jason Bruck, associate professor of biology at SFA; Callie Lynn, biology graduate student from Rusk; Daniel Gassen, PHASM pilot and aerospace engineer at the Oklahoma Aerospace Institute for Research and Education at Oklahoma State University; and Carson Rutherford, OAIRE mission specialist. Images taken under NOAA/NMFS permit 28894.
Stephen F. Austin State University continues its leadership role in drone-based dolphin health research using the Passive Health Assessment in Sea Mammals, or PHASM, platform in Galveston.
PHASM is a one-of-a-kind airplane-style drone that can stealthily approach dolphins in the wild and vacuum in breath samples when the animals come up to breathe. Those snotty breath samples can be used to study genetics, disease risk, pathogen presence and hormones tied to stress and reproductive health. Sampling dolphins this way can help illuminate issues affecting human health where water resources are shared between people and dolphins.
The PHASM project was created through a partnership between SFA, Oklahoma State University and Dolphin Quest, an organization that offers interactive, educational marine encounters in Bermuda and Hawaii. Now that the project has shifted from system testing with animals under managed care to wild deployment, SFA has also partnered with the Galveston Bay Dolphin Research Program to leverage their expertise in identifying and cataloging the dolphins of Galveston Bay. SFA biology students have been a part of the platform’s development throughout the process.
“Projects like PHASM show that SFA can stand shoulder to shoulder with big R1 university partners, globally accredited marine animal facilities and influential nongovernmental organizations to drive meaningful change for animal and human health monitoring,” said Dr. Jason Bruck, associate professor of biology at SFA and a principal investigator for the PHASM project. “Partnerships like these help our undergraduate and graduate students experience SFA not just as a great teaching institution but also as the best place to get the real research experience needed to be successful in marine mammalogy, including marine drone operation and retrieval, ocean sampling, and acoustic monitoring.”
Researchers are conducting these drone launch and recovery operations aboard SFA’s purple-emblazoned 25-foot marine research vessel, the Iwa Bailey. The vessel was funded through The University of Texas System’s Science and Technology Acquisition and Retention, or STARs, program that allows SFA faculty members to purchase state-of-the-art research equipment.
The first in a series of articles about PHASM’s development will be published in the September issue of the Aquatic Mammals journal and will discuss the new technology of the system as well as how animals react to the drone.
PHASM swoops in to collect the breath of a wild dolphin in Galveston Bay. As the dolphin surfaces to breathe, PHASM silently collects the breath in a syphon mounted to the nose of the plane. After collection, the nose closes a protective iris to preserve the breath sample, and the plane returns to land on the boat in a specialized net called the Marine Aerial Recovery Kit. Images taken under NOAA/NMFS permit 28894.
“What makes PHASM different is that it is stealthy and it doesn’t blow away samples like traditional quadcopter drones do,” Bruck said. “Because of our testing at Dolphin Quest, we know we have the least invasive and most effective solution for passive health assessment for small whales and dolphins.”
Bruck and PHASM team members are also scheduled to demonstrate the system at the International Society for Atmospheric Research Using Remotely Piloted Aircraft conference in August at Daytona Beach, Florida, and at the Society for Marine Mammalogy meeting in October in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
“PHASM is a project that spans air and sea, aerospace engineering, and biology and health,” Bruck said. “It is important to speak to diverse audiences to foster the types of collaborations needed for a project of this broad scope.”
To learn more about SFA’s Department of Biology, visit sfasu.edu/biology. To view the video “We Steal Dolphin Snot,” visit gosfa.com/dolphinsnot.
ABOUT STEPHEN F. AUSTIN STATE UNIVERSITY
Stephen F. Austin State University, the newest member of The University of Texas System, began a century ago as a teachers’ college in Texas’ oldest town, Nacogdoches. Today, it has grown into a regional institution comprising six colleges — business, education, fine arts, forestry and agriculture, liberal and applied arts, and sciences and mathematics. Accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, SFA enrolls approximately 11,000 students while providing the academic breadth of a state university with the personalized attention of a private school. The main campus encompasses 421 acres that include 40 academic facilities, 11 residence halls, and 68 acres of recreational trails that wind through its six gardens. The university offers more than 80 bachelor’s degrees, more than 40 master’s degrees and four doctoral degrees covering over 120 areas of study. Learn more at sfasu.edu.
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