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Abundance and distribution of cetaceans in the Gulf of Alaska

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Abstract

To effectively protect and manage marine mammals, contemporary information on their abundance and distribution is essential. Several factors influence present-day insight including the accessibility of the study area and the degree of difficulty in locating and studying target species. The offshore waters of the Gulf of Alaska are important habitat to a variety of cetaceans yet have remained largely unsurveyed due to its remote location, vast geographic area, and challenging environmental conditions. Between 2009 and 2015, three vessel surveys were conducted using line-transect sampling methods to estimate cetacean abundance and density. Here, we present results on the distribution for all species encountered and density and abundance for six species, including humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae), fin whales (Balaenoptera physalus), sperm whales (Physeter macrocephalus), blue whales (B. musculus), killer whales (Orcinus orca), and Dall’s porpoise (Phocoenoides dalli). Fin whales, humpback whales, and Dall’s porpoise were the most abundant species. Beaked whales were documented only in 2015. Prior to this study, recent sightings of blue whales were rare, likely related to the lack of offshore survey coverage. No North Pacific right whales (Eubalaena japonica) were sighted, underscoring the critically endangered status of this species in a formerly populous habitat. Although these results provide the first estimates from offshore waters, additional effort is necessary to assess trends and to obtain baseline data for the rare and cryptic species in order to better inform conservation and management actions.

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Acknowledgements

We would like to thank the Commander US Pacific Fleet, the Chief of Naval Operations Environmental Readiness (OPNAV N45), the Naval Facilities Engineering Command, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Marine Fisheries Service, National Marine Fisheries Service Office of Science and Technology, National Marine Fisheries Service Office of Protected Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service Alaska Regional Office, and the Marine Mammal Commission for funding support. Thank you to the Navy Postgraduate School and HDR Environmental, Operations and Construction, Inc. for facilitating contractual arrangements. We would like to recognize K. Ampela, L. Ballance, C. Berchok, J. Calambokidis, D. DeMaster, G. Falxa, R. Fitch, G. Hart, A. Henry, J. Leonhard, T. Mequet, T. Norris, E. Rainey, F. Stone, T. Yost, for support with securing funds and equipment and assistance with survey planning and design. A very special thank you to all the participants whose tireless efforts and unparalleled enthusiasm made these surveys a success: B. Alps, A. Baldo, K. Beach, C. Boyd, A. Burke, K. Cates, C. Christman, S. Coates, J. Crance, K. Cunningham, J. Foster, G. Fulling, J. Gatzke, D. Grebner, T. Johnson, C. Keiper, A. Lang, A. Martinez, S. Martínez, K. Miller, E. Vázquez Morquecho, L. Morse, R. Pitman, M. Richlen, M. Slack, S. Suk, N. Tucker, N. Vollmer, E. Watford, B. Watts, T. Yack, S. Yin, and the officers and crew of the NOAA ships Oscar Dyson, Reuben Lasker and the R/V Aquila. Thank you to R. Angliss, N. Friday, A. Kennedy, V. Paiva, J. Waite, and one anonymous reviewer for thoughtful reviews of versions of this manuscript. Research was conducted according to regulations and restrictions specified in existing permits issued by the National Marine Fisheries Service to MML (Permit Nos. 782-1791 and 14245), CRC (Permit No. 16111), and SWFSC (Permit No. 14097).

Funding

This study was funded by Commander US Pacific Fleet, the Chief of Naval Operations Environmental Readiness (OPNAV N45), the Naval Facilities Engineering Command, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Marine Fisheries Service, National Marine Fisheries Service Office of Science and Technology, National Marine Fisheries Service Office of Protected Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service Alaska Regional Office, and the Marine Mammal Commission.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Marine Mammal Laboratory, NOAA, National Marine Fisheries Service, Alaska Fisheries Science Center, 7600 Sand Point Way NE, Seattle, WA, 98115, USA

    Brenda K. Rone, Alexandre N. Zerbini & Phillip J. Clapham

  2. Cascadia Research Collective, 218 1/2 W Fourth Avenue, Olympia, WA, 98501, USA

    Brenda K. Rone, Alexandre N. Zerbini & Annie B. Douglas

  3. Marine Mammal and Turtle Division, NOAA, National Marine Fisheries Service, Southwest Fisheries Science Center, 8901 La Jolla Shores Drive, La Jolla, CA, 92037-1022, USA

    David W. Weller

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  1. Brenda K. Rone
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Correspondence to Brenda K. Rone.

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Conflict of interest

Brenda K. Rone declares that she has no conflict of interest. Alexandre N. Zerbini declares that he has no conflict of interest. Annie B. Douglas declares that she has no conflict of interest. David W. Weller declares that he has no conflict of interest. Phillip J. Clapham declares that he has no conflict of interest.

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All applicable international, national, and/or institutional guidelines for the care and use of animals were followed.

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Responsible Editor: V. Paiva.

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Rone, B.K., Zerbini, A.N., Douglas, A.B. et al. Abundance and distribution of cetaceans in the Gulf of Alaska. Mar Biol 164, 23 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00227-016-3052-2

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