Abstract
Given new distribution patterns of the endangered North Atlantic right whale (NARW; Eubalaena glacialis) population in recent years, an improved understanding of spatio-temporal movements are imperative for the conservation of this species. While so far visual data have provided most information on NARW movements, passive acoustic monitoring (PAM) was used in this study in order to better capture year-round NARW presence. This project used PAM data from 2004 to 2014 collected by 19 organizations throughout the western North Atlantic Ocean. Overall, data from 324 recorders (35,600 days) were processed and analyzed using a classification and detection system. Results highlight almost year-round habitat use of the western North Atlantic Ocean, with a decrease in detections in waters off Cape Hatteras, North Carolina in summer and fall. Data collected post 2010 showed an increased NARW presence in the mid-Atlantic region and a simultaneous decrease in the northern Gulf of Maine. In addition, NARWs were widely distributed across most regions throughout winter months. This study demonstrates that a large-scale analysis of PAM data provides significant value to understanding and tracking shifts in large whale movements over long time scales.
Highlights
Given new distribution patterns of the endangered North Atlantic right whale (NARW; Eubalaena glacialis) population in recent years, an improved understanding of spatio-temporal movements are imperative for the conservation of this species
A total of 35,600 days of acoustic recordings were processed with the Low Frequency Detection and Classification System (LFDCS)[43], and subsequent NARW upcall detections were manually reviewed, resulting in 2,527 days (7%) with confirmed NARW acoustic presence
This study on acoustic presence of NARWs demonstrates this species’ high mobility and broad geographic range. It shows that the habitats NARWs frequent can change over time and that they are often distributed widely across their entire range
Summary
Given new distribution patterns of the endangered North Atlantic right whale (NARW; Eubalaena glacialis) population in recent years, an improved understanding of spatio-temporal movements are imperative for the conservation of this species. The NARWC curates an extensive catalog of geo-referenced photo identifications of individual whales, coupled with genetic, fisheries entanglement, and health-related data, that provides a detailed understanding of the status of the individuals comprising this species[19] These data come primarily from decades of research that has been focused in areas that NARWs are known to use, including winter calving grounds off the coasts of Florida and Georgia, and more northerly feeding grounds off the coasts of New England and Atlantic Canada[15]. The general distribution of NARWs seemed fairly well known, recent surprises included discovering a potential mating ground in the Gulf of Maine in the winter[20,21]; acoustic detections and visual observations of whales in their historically-recorded habitats off Greenland and Iceland[15,22]; or year-round presence in locations previously thought of as migratory corridors[23,24,25]. Sporadic sightings of solitary NARWs in European waters[26,27,28], such as the 131 day round-trip made by one individual from U.S waters to an old whaling ground off northern Norway[29], demonstrate that our understanding of their movement patterns remains incomplete
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
