dolphinDepartment of Zoology, Universty of Hawai'i
Dr. Whitlow Au

Whitlow Au
PhD Washington State University (Electrical Sciences), 1970
Researcher, Hawai'i Institute of Marine Biology
Marine Mammal Research Program
Hawai'i Institute of Marine Biology
P.O. Box 1106
Kailua, HI 96734
phone: (808) 247-5026
fax: (808) 247-5831
wau@hawaii.edu

Current students
Kim Andrews (PhD) population biology of spinner dolphins
Stuart Ibsen (MS) Echolocation of dolphins and whales
Michael Richlen (PhD)
Marine mammal acoustic behavior
Alison Stimpert (PhD)
Marine Mammal acoustic behavior



echolocation diagram

Dr. Au and student transporting dolphin

Echolocation, hearing and acoustics of marine mammals
My primary research interest is in marine bioacouistics, especially dealing with dolphins and whales but including other species. Within the field of bioacoustics, my interest includes hearing processes, sound production mechanisms, sound characterization, remote acoustic sensing and hearing capabilities.

Representative publications
Au, W. W. L., Ford, J. K. B., Horne, J. K., and Newman-Allman, K. A. (2004). Echolocation signals of free-ranging killer whales (Orcinus orca) and modeling of foraging for chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha),J. Acoust. Soc. Am., 56, 1280-1290.

Au, W. W. L. and Würsig, B. (2004). Echolocation signals of dusky dolphins (Lagenorhynchus obscurus) in Kaikoura, New Zealand,J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 115, 2307-2313.

Au, W. W. L. (2004). Echolocation Signals of Wild Dolphins,Acoustical Physics (Russia),50, 454-462.

Benoit-Bird, K.J. and Au, W.W.L. (2004). Diel migration dynamics of an island-associated sound scattering layer, Deep-Sea Res. I 51, 707-719.

Au, W. W. L., and Benoit-Bird, K. (2003). Automatic gain control in the echolocation system of dolphin, Nature 423, 861-863.

Au, W. W. L. and Herzing, D. (2003). Echolocation signals of wild Atlantic spotted dolphin (Stenella frontalis),J. Acoust. Soc. Am., 113, 598-604.

Benoit-Bird, K.J. & Au, W.W.L. (2003). Prey dynamics affect foraging by a pelagic predator (Stenella longirostris) over a range of spatial and temporal scalesBehavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, 53:364-373.

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