Double-difference tracking of migrating Bowhead Whales using autonomous vector sensors in the Beaufort Sea

2018 ◽  
Vol 144 (3) ◽  
pp. 1695-1696
Author(s):  
Ludovic Tenorio-Hallé ◽  
Aaron Thode ◽  
Alexander Conrad ◽  
Susanna B. Blackwell ◽  
Katherine H. Kim
2017 ◽  
Vol 142 (4) ◽  
pp. 2587-2587
Author(s):  
Ludovic Tenorio-Hallé ◽  
Aaron Thode ◽  
Susanna B. Blackwell ◽  
Katherine H. Kim

ARCTIC ◽  
1987 ◽  
Vol 40 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
W. John Richardson ◽  
Rolph A. Davis ◽  
C. Robert Evans ◽  
Donald K. Ljungblad ◽  
Pamela Norton

PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (6) ◽  
pp. e0253929
Author(s):  
Kathleen M. Stafford ◽  
John J. Citta ◽  
Stephen R. Okkonen ◽  
Jinlun Zhang

The Distributed Biological Observatory (DBO) was established to detect environmental changes in the Pacific Arctic by regular monitoring of biophysical responses in each of 8 DBO regions. Here we examine the occurrence of bowhead and beluga whale vocalizations in the western Beaufort Sea acquired by acoustic instruments deployed from September 2008-July 2014 and September 2016-October 2018 to examine inter-annual variability of these Arctic endemic species in DBO Region 6. Acoustic data were collected on an oceanographic mooring deployed in the Beaufort shelfbreak jet at ~71.4°N, 152.0°W. Spectrograms of acoustic data files were visually examined for the presence or absence of known signals of bowhead and beluga whales. Weekly averages of whale occurrence were compared with outputs of zooplankton, temperature and sea ice from the BIOMAS model to determine if any of these variables influenced whale occurrence. In addition, the dates of acoustic whale passage in the spring and fall were compared to annual sea ice melt-out and freeze-up dates to examine changes in phenology. Neither bowhead nor beluga whale migration times changed significantly in spring, but bowhead whales migrated significantly later in fall from 2008–2018. There were no clear relationships between bowhead whales and the environmental variables, suggesting that the DBO 6 region is a migratory corridor, but not a feeding hotspot, for this species. Surprisingly, beluga whale acoustic presence was related to zooplankton biomass near the mooring, but this is unlikely to be a direct relationship: there are likely interactions of environmental drivers that result in higher occurrence of both modeled zooplankton and belugas in the DBO 6 region. The environmental triggers that drive the migratory phenology of the two Arctic endemic cetacean species likely extend from Bering Sea transport of heat, nutrients and plankton through the Chukchi and into the Beaufort Sea.


2004 ◽  
Vol 116 (4) ◽  
pp. 2588-2588
Author(s):  
Susanna B. Blackwell ◽  
Robert G. Norman ◽  
Charles R. Greene ◽  
Miles W. McLennan ◽  
Trent L. McDonald ◽  
...  

2016 ◽  
Vol 140 (4) ◽  
pp. 3021-3022
Author(s):  
Katherine H. Kim ◽  
Susanna B. Blackwell ◽  
Aaron M. Thode

2000 ◽  
Vol 78 (7) ◽  
pp. 1168-1181 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bruce R Mate ◽  
Gregory K Krutzikowsky ◽  
Martha H Winsor

From 30 August to 6 September 1992, we tagged 12 juvenile bowhead whales (Balaena mysticetus) with Argos satellite-monitored radio tags in the Canadian Beaufort Sea off the Mackenzie River Delta. Eight tags documented [Formula: see text]9820 km of movements between 392 locations during 111 whale-tracking days. The whales did not move in unison. Individual movements and average speeds (1.1-5.8 km/h) varied widely. One whale stayed in Mackenzie Bay for 23.5 d, while the rest stayed an average of only 2.4 d. The majority of locations for all whales were in shallow water: 65% at <50 m depth and 87% at <100 m depth. Seven whales went into water >100 m deep and four were in water >500 m deep. The whale with the longest record traveled [Formula: see text]3886 km to Siberia in 32.5 d, averaging 5.0 km/h. Its westerly route through the Beaufort and Chukchi seas was between 70° and 72°N and primarily in heavy ice ([Formula: see text]90% coverage), which was continuous west of 151°W. This whale's speed was faster, though not significantly, in heavy ice than in more open water. This is the first detailed documentation of the route and speed of a bowhead whale during its fall migration from Canadian to Russian waters.


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