Abstract
Glacier Bay, southeast Alaska, normally a summer feeding ground for humpback whales, was abruptly abandoned in midsummer 1978, prompting charges by environmentalists that increased vessel traffic had driven them out. Subsequent research focused on whale-prey relationships, vessel effects on whales, and the overall acoustic environment of Glacier Bay compared to nearby areas where whales continue to feed in undiminished numbers. Prey studies showed a high correlation between whale distribution and prey abundance; in 1982 a group of whales chose to spend most of the summer feeding in the busiest, noisiest part of the Bay. Behavior studies showed whales are affected by vessels up to 3-km away, but reactions were of short duration, and meaning in terms of possible physiological stress and cumulative effect is unknown. Acoustic studies revealed minor differences between the Bay and comparison areas (e.g., “white sound” from effervescence of melting glacier ice, and sporadic seismic noise), which presumably are longstanding phenomena that do not explain the recent reduction of whales. Humpbacks are gradually reoccupying the Bay, possibly the result of current traffic regulations and restrictions on numbers of vessels allowed entrance. However, a “crash” of whale prey stocks in 1978 still cannot be discounted. [Work supported by National Park Service, National Marine Fisheries Service, and Alaska cruise ship industry.]
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