scholarly journals A dynamic approach to estimate the probability of exposure of marine predators to oil exploration seismic surveys over continental shelf waters

2020 ◽  
Vol 42 ◽  
pp. 185-199
Author(s):  
LA Hückstädt ◽  
LK Schwarz ◽  
AS Friedlaender ◽  
BR Mate ◽  
AN Zerbini ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Continental Shelf ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Markov Models ◽  
Humpback Whales ◽  
Oil Exploration ◽  
Dynamic Approach ◽  
Baleen Whales ◽  
Seismic Surveys ◽  
Marine Predators ◽  
Different Populations

The ever-increasing human demand for fossil fuels has resulted in the expansion of oil exploration efforts to waters over the continental shelf. These waters are largely utilized by a complex biological community. Large baleen whales, in particular, utilize continental shelf waters as breeding and calving grounds, foraging grounds, and also as migration corridors. We developed a dynamic approach to estimate the likelihood that individuals from different populations of blue whales Balaenoptera musculus and humpback whales Megaptera novaeangliae could be exposed to idealized, simulated seismic surveys as they move over the continental shelf. Animal tracking data for the different populations were filtered, and behaviors (transit and foraging) were inferred from the tracks using hidden Markov models. We simulated a range of conditions of exposure by having the source of noise affecting a circular area of different radii (5, 25, 50 and 100 km), moving along a gridded transect of 270 and 2500 km2 at a constant speed of 9 km h-1, and starting the simulated surveys every week of the year. Our approach allowed us to identify the temporal variability in the susceptibility of the different populations under study, as we ran the simulations for an entire year, allowing us to identify periods when the surveys would have an intensified effect on whales. Our results highlight the importance of understanding the behavior and ecology of individuals in a site-specific context when considering the likelihood of exposure to anthropogenic disturbances, as the habitat utilization patterns of each population are highly variable.

scholarly journals Protests against Oil Exploration at Sea: Lessons from the Arctic Sunrise Arbitration

2016 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 60-87 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joanna Mossop
Keyword(s):  
The Netherlands ◽  
Continental Shelf ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Law Of The Sea ◽  
Oil Exploration ◽  
Arbitral Tribunal ◽  
Safety Zone ◽  
Seismic Surveys ◽  
The Law

The decision of the Arbitral Tribunal in the Arctic Sunrise case between the Netherlands and Russia offers considerable guidance to coastal States on how to deal with protesters who violate the safety zone of installations under the Law of the Sea Convention. This article considers these lessons and applies them to another recent type of protest: against vessels conducting seismic surveys above the continental shelf. Some countries provide for a non-interference zone around these vessels to prevent protesters from getting close to the survey vessels. Although this was not directly at issue in the Arctic Sunrise case, the Tribunal’s jurisprudence gives guidance as to whether these measures by coastal states to prevent interference are consistent with the Law of the Sea Convention.

scholarly journals Protests against Oil Exploration at Sea: Lessons from the Arctic Sunrise Arbitration

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joanna Mossop
Keyword(s):  
The Netherlands ◽  
Continental Shelf ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Law Of The Sea ◽  
Oil Exploration ◽  
Arbitral Tribunal ◽  
Safety Zone ◽  
Seismic Surveys ◽  
The Law

© koninklijke brill nv, leiden, 2016. The decision of the Arbitral Tribunal in the Arctic Sunrise case between the Netherlands and Russia offers considerable guidance to coastal States on how to deal with protesters who violate the safety zone of installations under the Law of the Sea Convention. This article considers these lessons and applies them to another recent type of protest: against vessels conducting seismic surveys above the continental shelf. Some countries provide for a non-interference zone around these vessels to prevent protesters from getting close to the survey vessels. Although this was not directly at issue in the Arctic Sunrise case, the Tribunal's jurisprudence gives guidance as to whether these measures by coastal states to prevent interference are consistent with the Law of the Sea Convention.

scholarly journals Protests against Oil Exploration at Sea: Lessons from the Arctic Sunrise Arbitration

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joanna Mossop
Keyword(s):  
The Netherlands ◽  
Continental Shelf ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Law Of The Sea ◽  
Oil Exploration ◽  
Arbitral Tribunal ◽  
Safety Zone ◽  
Seismic Surveys ◽  
The Law

© koninklijke brill nv, leiden, 2016. The decision of the Arbitral Tribunal in the Arctic Sunrise case between the Netherlands and Russia offers considerable guidance to coastal States on how to deal with protesters who violate the safety zone of installations under the Law of the Sea Convention. This article considers these lessons and applies them to another recent type of protest: against vessels conducting seismic surveys above the continental shelf. Some countries provide for a non-interference zone around these vessels to prevent protesters from getting close to the survey vessels. Although this was not directly at issue in the Arctic Sunrise case, the Tribunal's jurisprudence gives guidance as to whether these measures by coastal states to prevent interference are consistent with the Law of the Sea Convention.

scholarly journals GEOGRAPHICAL AND TEMPORAL MOVEMENTS OF HUMPBACK WHALES IN WESTERN AUSTRALIAN WATERS

2001 ◽  
Vol 41 (1) ◽  
pp. 749 ◽  
Author(s):  
K.C.S. Jenner ◽  
M-N.M. Jenner ◽  
K.A. McCabe
Keyword(s):  
Continental Shelf ◽  
General Framework ◽  
Group Iv ◽  
Humpback Whales ◽  
Shark Bay ◽  
Migratory Path ◽  
Migratory Route ◽  
Temporal And Spatial ◽  
Exmouth Gulf ◽  
Western Australian

Through compilation of historical whaling data, together with recent aerial and boat-based survey data, a general framework for the overall peaks of migration has been estimated for the temporal and spatial movements of Group IV humpback whales along the Western Australian coast.The migratory paths of humpback whales along the Western Australian coast lie within the continental shelf boundary or 200 m bathymetry. Major resting areas along the migratory path have been identified at Exmouth Gulf (southern migration only) and at Shark Bay. The northern endpoint of migration and resting area for reproductively active whales in the population appears to be Camden Sound in the Kimberley. A 6,750 square km2 area of the Kimberley region, inclusive of Camden Sound, has also been identified as a major calving ground. The northern and southern migratory paths have been shown to be divergent at the Perth Basin, Dampier Archipelago and Kimberley regions. In all cases the northern migratory route is further off-shore.

New Evidence for a South Atlantic Stock of Humpback Whales Wintering on the Northwest African Continental Shelf

2013 ◽  
Vol 48 (1) ◽  
pp. 177-186 ◽  
Author(s):  
Koen Van Waerebeek ◽  
Abdoulaye Djiba ◽  
Jens-Otto Krakstad ◽  
Abdellahi Samba Ould Bilal ◽  
Idrissa L. Bamy ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Continental Shelf ◽  
South Atlantic ◽  
Humpback Whales ◽  
New Evidence

scholarly journals Social survival: humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) use social structure to partition ecological niches within proposed critical habitat

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Janie Wray ◽  
Eric Keen ◽  
Éadin N. O’Mahony
Keyword(s):  
Habitat Use ◽  
Social Structure ◽  
Niche Partitioning ◽  
Megaptera Novaeangliae ◽  
Humpback Whales ◽  
Baleen Whales ◽  
Fjord System ◽  
The Social ◽  
Social Niche

ABSTRACTAnimal culture and social bonds are relevant to wildlife conservation because they influence patterns of geography, behavior, and strategies of survival. Numerous examples of socially-driven habitat partitioning and ecological-niche specialization can be found among vertebrates, including toothed whales. But such social-ecological dynamics, described here as ‘social niche partitioning’, are not known among baleen whales, whose societies -- particularly on foraging grounds -- are largely perceived as unstructured and incidental to matters of habitat use and conservation. However, through 16 years of behavioral and photo-identification observations of humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) feeding within a fjord system in British Columbia, Canada, we have documented long-term pair bonds (lasting up to 12 years) as well as a complex societal structure, which corresponds closely to persistent patterns in feeding strategy, long-term site fidelity (extended seasonal occupancy and annual rate of return up to 75%), specific geographic preferences within the fjord system, and other forms of habitat use. Randomization tests of network congruency and clustering algorithms were used to test for overlap in patterns of social structure and habitat use, which confirmed the occurrence of social niche partitioning on the feeding grounds of this baleen whale. In addition, we document the extensive practice of group bubble net feeding in Pacific Canada. This coordinated feeding behavior was found to strongly mediate the social structure and habitat use within this humpback whale society. Additionally, during our 2004 – 2019 study, we observed a shift in social network structure in 2010 – 2012, which corresponded with environmental and demographic shifts including a sudden decline in the population’s calving rate. Our findings indicate that the social lives of humpback whales, and perhaps baleen whales generally, are more complex than previously supposed and should be a primary consideration in the assessment of potential impacts to important habitat.

scholarly journals ‘Megapclicks’: acoustic click trains and buzzes produced during night-time foraging of humpback whales ( Megaptera novaeangliae )

2007 ◽  
Vol 3 (5) ◽  
pp. 467-470 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alison K Stimpert ◽  
David N Wiley ◽  
Whitlow W.L Au ◽  
Mark P Johnson ◽  
Roland Arsenault
Keyword(s):  
Megaptera Novaeangliae ◽  
Humpback Whales ◽  
Baleen Whale ◽  
Night Time ◽  
Baleen Whales ◽  
Acoustic Behaviour ◽  
Suction Cup ◽  
Form Part ◽  
Acoustic Tags ◽  
Feeding Area

Humpback whales ( Megaptera novaeangliae ) exhibit a variety of foraging behaviours, but neither they nor any baleen whale are known to produce broadband clicks in association with feeding, as do many odontocetes. We recorded underwater behaviour of humpback whales in a northwest Atlantic feeding area using suction-cup attached, multi-sensor, acoustic tags (DTAGs). Here we describe the first recordings of click production associated with underwater lunges from baleen whales. Recordings of over 34 000 ‘megapclicks’ from two whales indicated relatively low received levels at the tag (between 143 and 154 dB re 1 μPa pp), most energy below 2 kHz, and interclick intervals often decreasing towards the end of click trains to form a buzz. All clicks were recorded during night-time hours. Sharp body rolls also occurred at the end of click bouts containing buzzes, suggesting feeding events. This acoustic behaviour seems to form part of a night-time feeding tactic for humpbacks and also expands the known acoustic repertoire of baleen whales in general.

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