scholarly journals Segregation of migration by feeding ground origin in North Atlantic humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae)

2003 ◽  
Vol 259 (3) ◽  
pp. 231-237 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter T. Stevick ◽  
Judith Allen ◽  
Martine Bérubé ◽  
Phillip J. Clapham ◽  
Steven K. Katona ◽  
...  
2018 ◽  
Vol 28 (4) ◽  
pp. 810-820 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jacopo Di Clemente ◽  
Fredrik Christiansen ◽  
Enrico Pirotta ◽  
Dave Steckler ◽  
Magnus Wahlberg ◽  
...  

2016 ◽  
Vol 94 (7) ◽  
pp. 517-527 ◽  
Author(s):  
M.M. MacKay ◽  
B. Würsig ◽  
C.E. Bacon ◽  
J.D. Selwyn

North Atlantic humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae (Borowski, 1781)) are increasing in number, necessitating current data from winter areas for assessing potential interactions with humans. Occurrence patterns of humpback whales wintering off Puerto Rico were investigated to predict where whales aggregate in nearshore areas. Here we describe the relationship between group associations of humpback whales and bathymetric features off western Puerto Rico. Data were collected from 2011 to 2014. Effort consisted of 240.9 vessel h, 13.0 aerial h, and 303.6 h of land observations conducted over 165 days. A total of 197 humpback whale groups were observed with n = 331 individuals: 91 (46.2%) singletons, 67 (34%) dyads, 17 (8.6%) mother–calf pairs, 8 (4.1%) competitive groups, 8 (4.1%) mother–calf–escort groups, and 6 (3.1%) mixed-species associations. A linear regression model supported that group composition correlated with hotspots associated with four bathymetric features. Dyads and competitive groups were dispersed among features in deeper water. Singletons were observed farther from a shelf edge, whereas singing males were closely associated with a shelf edge. Mother–calf pairs occurred nearshore in shallow water; however, when mother–calf pairs were sighted with an escort, they were offshore. This study is especially important ahead of possible removal from the Endangered Species list.


2014 ◽  
Vol 92 (1) ◽  
pp. 9-18 ◽  
Author(s):  
A.S. Kennedy ◽  
A.N. Zerbini ◽  
O.V. Vásquez ◽  
N. Gandilhon ◽  
P.J. Clapham ◽  
...  

North Atlantic humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae (Borowski, 1781)) migrate from high-latitude summer feeding grounds to low-latitude winter breeding grounds along the Antillean Island chain. In the winters and springs of 2008 through 2012, satellite tags were deployed on humpback whales on Silver Bank (Dominican Republic) and in Guadeloupe (French West Indies) breeding areas. Whales were monitored, on average, for 26 days (range = 4–90 days). Some animals remained near their tagging location for multiple days before beginning their northerly migration, yet some visited habitats along the northwestern coast of the Dominican Republic, northern Haiti, the Turks and Caicos islands, and off Anguilla. Individuals monitored during migration headed towards feeding grounds in the Gulf of Maine (USA), Canada, and the eastern North Atlantic (Iceland or Norway). One individual traveled near Bermuda during the migration. This study provides the first detailed description of routes used by North Atlantic humpback whales towards multiple feeding destinations. Additionally, it corroborates previous research showing that individuals from multiple feeding grounds migrate to the Antilles for the breeding season. This study indicates that North Atlantic humpbacks use an area broader than the existing boundaries of marine mammal sanctuaries, which should provide justification for their expansion.


1984 ◽  
Vol 41 (3) ◽  
pp. 533-536 ◽  
Author(s):  
Judith S. Perkins ◽  
Kenneth C. Balcomb III ◽  
George Nichols Jr. ◽  
Marisa DeAvilla

Using photoidentification of individual humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) and mark–recapture calculations in 1981 (mark) and 1982 (recapture), the population of this species that occurs in summer along the West Greenland coast between 63 and 70°N was estimated to be less than 200 whales. Whale distribution, however, was not random. Humpbacks were found clustered on Fyllas Banke (Godthaab District) during July and August in both years. Only a few individuals were scattered within a 240-km radius of this location. No West Greenland humpbacks have been seen in other known western North Atlantic feeding areas and vice versa.


2009 ◽  
Vol 35 (4) ◽  
pp. 502-510 ◽  
Author(s):  
Frederick W. Wenzel ◽  
Judith Allen ◽  
Simon Berrow ◽  
Cornelis J. Hazevoet ◽  
Beatrice Jann ◽  
...  

2020 ◽  
Vol 46 (6) ◽  
pp. 584-602
Author(s):  
Charla J. Basran ◽  
Benno Woelfing ◽  
Charlotte Neumann ◽  
Marianne H. Rasmussen

2011 ◽  
Vol 82 (4) ◽  
pp. 901-909 ◽  
Author(s):  
Claire Canning ◽  
Danielle Crain ◽  
T. Scott Eaton ◽  
Kathryn Nuessly ◽  
Ari Friedlaender ◽  
...  

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