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.

scholarly journals Exploring the assumptions of multi-stock assessment models for humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) in the Southern Hemisphere: using Breeding Stocks D and E as an example

2020 ◽  
pp. 119-128
Author(s):  
Rebecca Leaper ◽  
Samantha Peel ◽  
David Peel ◽  
Nick Gales
Keyword(s):  
Density Dependence ◽  
Population Model ◽  
Stock Assessment ◽  
Simulated Data ◽  
Megaptera Novaeangliae ◽  
Humpback Whales ◽  
Simulation Approach ◽  
Potential Value ◽  
Simple Simulation ◽  
Feeding Area

There is potential value in exploring multi-stock models to address situations where humpback stocks are mixing. However, sensitivity to the assumptions underlying these models has yet to be fully explored. Using a simple simulation approach, the assumptions of a population model that allows for mixing of humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) stocks D and E on feeding areas has been explored by relaxing the assumptions of the original Johnston and Butterworth model in a number of plausible ways. First the ability of the model to estimate parameters was checked for a situation where simulated data are generated from an underlying model of exactly the same form for which the actual values of these parameters are known (Scenario 1). Then the ability of the model to estimate these parameters when alternative forms and assumptions were used for the underlying model generating the data was investigated. Specifically, stocks were allowed to mix non-uniformly across each feeding area and catch was non-uniformly distributed across each feeding area (Scenario 2). The consequences of density dependence implemented on feeding rather than breeding areas (Scenario 3) were also examined. The original mixing model was robust to alternate mixing and catch allocation scenarios in all but one of the simulations, but when density dependence acted at the level of the feeding rather than the breeding areas, the model produced estimates that were quite different from the underlying population. It is recommend that the inclusion of density dependence on feeding areas in models that allow for mixing of whales on these grounds be investigated further.

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

PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (6) ◽  
pp. e0245409
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

Animal 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 observations and photo-identifications of humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) feeding within a fjord system in the Canadian Pacific (primarily within Gitga’at First Nation waters), we have documented long-term pair bonds (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 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 species. 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.

Net Entanglements of Baleen Whales in the Inshore Fishery of Newfoundland

1979 ◽  
Vol 36 (5) ◽  
pp. 521-528 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. S. Perkins ◽  
P. C. Beamish
Keyword(s):  
Key Words ◽  
Newfoundland And Labrador ◽  
Megaptera Novaeangliae ◽  
Humpback Whales ◽  
Balaenoptera Acutorostrata ◽  
Balaenoptera Physalus ◽  
Baleen Whales ◽  
Minke Whales ◽  
Capelin Mallotus Villosus ◽  
Inshore Waters

This paper documents net entrapments of baleen whales in the inshore waters of Newfoundland and Labrador. The species involved are principally minke whales (Balaenoptera acutorostrata) and humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae). Finback whales (Balaenoptera physalus) are also caught in nets but far less frequently. The timing of these entrapments corresponds with the spawning season for capelin (Mallotus villosus) on the beaches around the province. The magnitude and implications of this problem, both to the whales and the fisherman, are assessed. Key words: baleen whales, net entrapments, mortality assessment, capelin, Balaenoptera acutorostrata, B. physalus, Megaptera novaeangliae

scholarly journals Scaling of oscillatory kinematics and Froude efficiency in baleen whales

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
William T. Gough ◽  
Hayden J. Smith ◽  
Matthew S. Savoca ◽  
Max F. Czapanskiy ◽  
Frank E. Fish ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Body Size ◽  
Swimming Speed ◽  
High Efficiency ◽  
Inertial Sensors ◽  
Hydrodynamic Performance ◽  
Humpback Whales ◽  
Baleen Whale ◽  
Baleen Whales ◽  
Fin Whale ◽  
Locomotor Strategy

High efficiency lunate-tail swimming with high-aspect-ratio lifting surfaces has evolved in many vertebrate lineages, from fish to cetaceans. Baleen whales (Mysticeti) are the largest swimming animals that exhibit this locomotor strategy and present an ideal study system to examine how morphology and the kinematics of swimming scale to the largest body sizes. We used data from whale-borne inertial sensors coupled with morphometric measurements from aerial drones to calculate the hydrodynamic performance of oscillatory swimming in six baleen whale species ranging in body length from 5-25m (fin whale, Balaenoptera physalus; Bryde's whale, Balaenoptera edeni; sei whale, Balaenoptera borealis; Antarctic minke whales, Balaenoptera bonaerensis; humpback whales, Megaptera novaeangliae; and blue whales, Balaenoptera musculus). We find that mass-specific thrust increases with both swimming speed and body size. Froude efficiency, defined as the ratio of useful power output to the rate of energy input (Sloop, 1978), generally increased with swimming speed but decreased on average with increasing body size. This finding is contrary to previous results in smaller animals where Froude efficiency increased with body size. Although our empirically-parameterized estimates for swimming baleen whale drag was higher than that of a simple gliding model, oscillatory locomotion at this scale exhibits generally high Froude efficiency as in other adept swimmers. Our results quantify the fine-scale kinematics and estimate the hydrodynamics of routine and energetically expensive swimming modes at the largest scale.

scholarly journals Norrisanima miocaena, a new generic name and redescription of a stem balaenopteroid mysticete (Mammalia, Cetacea) from the Miocene of California

PeerJ ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 7 ◽  
pp. e7629 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew S. Leslie ◽  
Carlos Mauricio Peredo ◽  
Nicholas D. Pyenson
Keyword(s):  
Phylogenetic Analyses ◽  
Original Description ◽  
Type Specimen ◽  
Megaptera Novaeangliae ◽  
Morphological Data ◽  
Humpback Whales ◽  
Phylogenetic Position ◽  
Data Sets ◽  
Baleen Whales ◽  
Size Evolution

Rorqual whales are among the most species rich group of baleen whales (or mysticetes) alive today, yet the monophyly of the traditional grouping (i.e., Balaenopteridae) remains unclear. Additionally, many fossil mysticetes putatively assigned to either Balaenopteridae or Balaenopteroidea may actually belong to stem lineages, although many of these fossil taxa suffer from inadequate descriptions of fragmentary skeletal material. Here we provide a redescription of the holotype of Megaptera miocaena, a fossil balaenopteroid from the Monterey Formation of California, which consists of a partial cranium, a fragment of the rostrum, a single vertebra, and both tympanoperiotics. Kellogg (1922) assigned the type specimen to the genus Megaptera Gray (1846), on the basis of its broad similarities to distinctive traits in the cranium of extant humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae (Borowski, 1781)). Subsequent phylogenetic analyses have found these two species as sister taxa in morphological datasets alone; the most recent systematic analyses using both molecular and morphological data sets place Megaptera miocaena as a stem balaenopteroid unrelated to humpback whales. Here, we redescribe the type specimen of Megaptera miocaena in the context of other fossil balaenopteroids discovered nearly a century since Kellogg’s original description and provide a morphological basis for discriminating it from Megaptera novaeangliae. We also provide a new generic name and recombine the taxon as Norrisanima miocaena, gen. nov., to reflect its phylogenetic position outside of crown Balaenopteroidea, unrelated to extant Megaptera. Lastly, we refine the stratigraphic age of Norrisanima miocaena, based on associated microfossils to a Tortonian age (7.6–7.3 Ma), which carries implications for understanding the origin of key features associated with feeding and body size evolution in this group of whales.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document