South Australian Museum - North Terrace, Adelaide, South Australia 5000

Biography

Peter Shaughnessy has studied the ecology of several seal species for more than 40 years in Australia, South Africa, Namibia, Alaska, the subantarctic islands of Macquarie, Heard, and on the Antarctic pack ice. His research fields have included population identity and taxonomy of fur seals and harbour seals, distribution, abundance and population trends of fur seals and sea lions, interactions between seals and fisheries, and interactions between seals and tourism.

In South Australia, he has demonstrated that populations of New Zealand fur seals have been increasing in recent decades, based primarily on mark-recapture estimates of abundance at breeding colonies on Kangaroo Island and at the Neptune Islands. That work over 18 years has contributed to the training of many National Parks and Wildlife staff on Kangaroo Island. He has also contributed to knowledge on the distribution and abundance of Australian sea lions on the west coast of Eyre Peninsula. For example, in 2003 he made known the sea lion colony on Nicolas Baudin Island, and assisted in having that island placed on the map of South Australia and recognised as a Conservation Park. He is currently a co-supervisor of three PhD students and has assisted with supervision of another seven graduate students. In 2002 he retired from CSIRO Sustainable Ecosystems (formerly CSIRO Wildlife and Ecology).

Major Publications: (Top 5)

Shaughnessy, P. D., Goldsworthy, S. D., and Libke, J. A. (1995). Changes in the abundance of New Zealand fur seals, Arctocephalus forsteri, on Kangaroo Island, South Australia. Wildlife Research 22: 201-215.

Shaughnessy, P. D. (1999). 'The Action plan for Australian Seals.' (Environment Australia, Canberra, Australia.) 116 pp.

Shaughnessy, P., Kirkwood, R., Cawthorn, M., Kemper, C., and Pemberton, D. (2003). Pinnipeds, cetaceans and fisheries in Australia: a review of operational interactions. In 'Marine Mammals: Fisheries, Tourism and Management Issues'. (Eds N. Gales, M. Hindell and R. Kirkwood.) pp. 136-152. (CSIRO Publishing: Melbourne.)

Shaughnessy, P. D., Dennis, T. E. and Seager, P. G. (2005). Status of Australian sea lions, Neophoca cinerea, and New Zealand fur seals, Arctocephalus forsteri, on Eyre Peninsula and the far west coast of South Australia. Wildlife Research 32: 85-101.

Shaughnessy, P. D., McIntosh, R. R., Goldsworthy, S. D., Dennis, T. E., and Berris, M. (2006). Trends in abundance of Australian sea lions, Neophoca cinerea, at Seal Bay, Kangaroo Island, South Australia. In 'Sea Lions of the World'. (Eds A. W. Trites, S. K. Atkinson, D. P. DeMaster, L. W. Fritz, T. S. Gelatt, L. D. Rea and K. M. Wynne ). pp 37-63. (Alaska Sea Grant College Program, University of Alaska: Fairbanks, Alaska).