Paternity assignment and demographic closure in the New Zealand southern right whale

Autonomous recorders are frequently used for examining vocal behaviour of animals, and are particularly effective in remote habitats. Southern right whales are known to have an extensive acoustic repertoire. A recorder was moored at the isolated sub-Antarctic Auckland Islands for a year to examine whether the acoustic behaviour of southern right whales differed seasonally and throughout the day at their main calving ground in New Zealand. Recordings were made in each month except June, and vocalizations were audible in all months with recordings except January. A total of 35 487 calls were detected, of which upcalls were the most common (11 623). Call rate peaked in August (288 ± 5.9 [s.e.] calls/hour) and July (194 ± 8.3). Vocal behaviour varied diurnally with highest call rates detected at dusk and night, consistent with the concept that upcalls function primarily as contact calls. Zero-inflated model results confirmed that seasonal variation was the most important factor for explaining differences in vocal behaviour. An automated detector designed to expedite the analysis process for North Atlantic right whales correctly identified 80% of upcalls, although false detections were frequent, particularly when call rates were low. This study is the first to attempt year-round monitoring of southern right whale presence in New Zealand.

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First Direct Evidence for Natal Wintering Ground Fidelity and Estimate of Juvenile Survival in the New Zealand Southern Right Whale Eubalaena australis

PLoS ONE ◽

10.1371/journal.pone.0146590 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

pp. e0146590 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

E. L. Carroll ◽

R. M. Fewster ◽

S. J. Childerhouse ◽

N. J. Patenaude ◽

L. Boren ◽

...

Keyword(s):

New Zealand ◽

Direct Evidence ◽

Juvenile Survival ◽

Right Whale ◽

Eubalaena Australis ◽

Wintering Ground

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An integrated approach to historical population assessment of the great whales: case of the New Zealand southern right whale

Royal Society Open Science ◽

10.1098/rsos.150669 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 3 (3) ◽

pp. 150669 ◽

Cited By ~ 19

Author(s):

Jennifer A. Jackson ◽

Emma L. Carroll ◽

Tim D. Smith ◽

Alexandre N. Zerbini ◽

Nathalie J. Patenaude ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Nineteenth Century ◽

New Zealand ◽

Population Level ◽

Integrated Approach ◽

Accurate Estimation ◽

Genetic Constraints ◽

Right Whale ◽

Multiple Data ◽

Population Dynamics Model ◽

Global Nature

Accurate estimation of historical abundance provides an essential baseline for judging the recovery of the great whales. This is particularly challenging for whales hunted prior to twentieth century modern whaling, as population-level catch records are often incomplete. Assessments of whale recovery using pre-modern exploitation indices are therefore rare, despite the intensive, global nature of nineteenth century whaling. Right whales ( Eubalaena spp.) were particularly exploited: slow swimmers with strong fidelity to sheltered calving bays, the species made predictable and easy targets. Here, we present the first integrated population-level assessment of the whaling impact and pre-exploitation abundance of a right whale, the New Zealand southern right whale ( E. australis ). In this assessment, we use a Bayesian population dynamics model integrating multiple data sources: nineteenth century catches, genetic constraints on bottleneck size and individual sightings histories informing abundance and trend. Different catch allocation scenarios are explored to account for uncertainty in the population's offshore distribution. From a pre-exploitation abundance of 28 800–47 100 whales, nineteenth century hunting reduced the population to approximately 30–40 mature females between 1914 and 1926. Today, it stands at less than 12% of pre-exploitation abundance. Despite the challenges of reconstructing historical catches and population boundaries, conservation efforts of historically exploited species benefit from targets for ecological restoration.

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Polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins, dibenzofurans and polychlorinated biphenyls in New Zealand cetaceans

J. Cetacean Res. Manage. ◽

10.47536/jcrm.v1i1.263 ◽

1999 ◽

pp. 157-167 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Paul D. Jones ◽

Donald J. Hannah ◽

Simon J. Buckland ◽

Tania Van Maanen ◽

Scott V. Lea Ihem ◽

...

Keyword(s):

New Zealand ◽

Polychlorinated Biphenyls ◽

Trophic Levels ◽

Limited Information ◽

Halogenated Aromatic Hydrocarbons ◽

Baleen Whales ◽

Right Whale ◽

Beaked Whales ◽

Dusky Dolphins ◽

Toxic Equivalents

Limited information is available on the concentrations of halogenated aromatic hydrocarbons (HAHs) in cetaceans from the Southern Hemisphere. This paper presents data on blubber concentrations of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDDs), polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDFs) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in Hector's dolphins, dusky dolphins, southern right whale dolphins, blue whales, minke whales, Gray's beaked whales, Cuvier's beaked whales and pygmy right whales stranded in New Zealand. Both HAH concentrations and toxic equivalents (TEQs) are found to be higher in Hector's dolphins, a species with an inshore distribution, than in other odontocetes, which are more oceanic. Baleen whales, which are oceanic and feed at lower trophic levels, present the lowest levels of pollutants, with PCDD and PCDF concentrations usually below detection limits. The PCB profiles of the various species suggest that they are exposed to different PCB sources. Overall, HAH levels detected are lower than those reported for comparable species in the Northern Hemisphere. The relative abundance of low chlorinated PCB congeners in New Zealand cetaceans, as compared to those from northern waters, suggests that the origin of these compounds is mostly atmospheric deposition.

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Cultural traditions across a migratory network shape the genetic structure of southern right whales around Australia and New Zealand

Scientific Reports ◽

10.1038/srep16182 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 5 (1) ◽

Cited By ~ 43

Author(s):

E. L. Carroll ◽

C. S. Baker ◽

M. Watson ◽

R. Alderman ◽

J. Bannister ◽

...

Keyword(s):

New Zealand ◽

Genetic Structure ◽

Cultural Traditions ◽

Right Whale ◽

Mtdna Haplotypes ◽

Right Whales ◽

Southern Right Whales ◽

Directed Learning ◽

Dna Profiles

Abstract Fidelity to migratory destinations is an important driver of connectivity in marine and avian species. Here we assess the role of maternally directed learning of migratory habitats, or migratory culture, on the population structure of the endangered Australian and New Zealand southern right whale. Using DNA profiles, comprising mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) haplotypes (500 bp), microsatellite genotypes (17 loci) and sex from 128 individually-identified whales, we find significant differentiation among winter calving grounds based on both mtDNA haplotype (FST = 0.048, ΦST = 0.109, p < 0.01) and microsatellite allele frequencies (FST = 0.008, p < 0.01), consistent with long-term fidelity to calving areas. However, most genetic comparisons of calving grounds and migratory corridors were not significant, supporting the idea that whales from different calving grounds mix in migratory corridors. Furthermore, we find a significant relationship between δ13C stable isotope profiles of 66 Australian southern right whales, a proxy for feeding ground location and both mtDNA haplotypes and kinship inferred from microsatellite-based estimators of relatedness. This indicates migratory culture may influence genetic structure on feeding grounds. This fidelity to migratory destinations is likely to influence population recovery, as long-term estimates of historical abundance derived from estimates of genetic diversity indicate the South Pacific calving grounds remain at <10% of pre-whaling abundance.

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Magellanic Cloud Eclipsing Binaries: Primary Distance Indicators

Symposium - International Astronomical Union ◽

10.1017/s007418090011900x ◽

1999 ◽

Vol 190 ◽

pp. 563-566

Author(s):

J. D. Pritchard ◽

W. Tobin ◽

J. V. Clausen ◽

E. F. Guinan ◽

E. L. Fitzpatrick ◽

...

Keyword(s):

New Zealand ◽

Magellanic Cloud ◽

Eclipsing Binaries ◽

Fundamental Parameters ◽

Distance Indicators

Our collaboration involves groups in Denmark, the U.S.A. Spain and of course New Zealand. Combining ground-based and satellite (IUEandHST) observations we aim to determine accurate and precise stellar fundamental parameters for the components of Magellanic Cloud Eclipsing Binaries as well as the distances to these systems and hence the parent galaxies themselves. This poster presents our latest progress.

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Heat-Etching with a Bullivant Type II Simple Freeze-Cleave Device

Proceedings, annual meeting, Electron Microscopy Society of America ◽

10.1017/s0424820100067522 ◽

1970 ◽

Vol 28 ◽

pp. 106-107 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Ronald S. Weinstein ◽

N. Scott McNutt

Keyword(s):

New Zealand ◽

General Hospital ◽

Massachusetts General Hospital ◽

Type I ◽

Type Ii ◽

Collaborative Effort ◽

Temperature And Pressure ◽

The University

The Type I simple cold block device was described by Bullivant and Ames in 1966 and represented the product of the first successful effort to simplify the equipment required to do sophisticated freeze-cleave techniques. Bullivant, Weinstein and Someda described the Type II device which is a modification of the Type I device and was developed as a collaborative effort at the Massachusetts General Hospital and the University of Auckland, New Zealand. The modifications reduced specimen contamination and provided controlled specimen warming for heat-etching of fracture faces. We have now tested the Mass. General Hospital version of the Type II device (called the “Type II-MGH device”) on a wide variety of biological specimens and have established temperature and pressure curves for routine heat-etching with the device.

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