From clicks to counts: Applying line-transect methods to passive acoustic monitoring of sperm whales in the Gulf of Alaska

2014 ◽  
Vol 136 (4) ◽  
pp. 2246-2246
Author(s):  
Tina M. Yack ◽  
Thomas F. Norris ◽  
Elizabeth Ferguson ◽  
Brenda K. Rone ◽  
Alexandre N. Zerbini
Keyword(s):  
Gulf Of Alaska ◽  
Acoustic Monitoring ◽  
Line Transect ◽  
Sperm Whales ◽  
Passive Acoustic Monitoring ◽  
Passive Acoustic

Passive acoustic monitoring of sperm whales during and after the Deepwater Horizon oil spill

2011 ◽  
Vol 130 (4) ◽  
pp. 2537-2537
Author(s):  
Karlina Merkens ◽  
Mark A. McDonald ◽  
Simone Baumann-Pickering ◽  
Kaitlin Frasier ◽  
Sean M. Wiggins ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Oil Spill ◽  
Deepwater Horizon ◽  
Acoustic Monitoring ◽  
Sperm Whales ◽  
Passive Acoustic Monitoring ◽  
Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill ◽  
Passive Acoustic

scholarly journals Cues, creaks, and decoys: using passive acoustic monitoring as a tool for studying sperm whale depredation

2015 ◽  
Vol 72 (5) ◽  
pp. 1621-1636 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aaron Thode ◽  
Delphine Mathias ◽  
Janice Straley ◽  
Victoria O'Connell ◽  
Linda Behnken ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Low Frequency ◽  
Field Tests ◽  
Sperm Whale ◽  
Acoustic Monitoring ◽  
Sperm Whales ◽  
Passive Acoustic Monitoring ◽  
Long Distance ◽  
Fishing Activity ◽  
Fishing Vessels ◽  
Passive Acoustic

Abstract Since 2003, a collaborative effort (SEASWAP) between fishers, scientists, and managers has researched how Alaskan sperm whales locate demersal longline fishing activity and then depredate sablefish from gear. Sperm whales constantly produce relatively low-frequency biosonar signals whenever foraging; therefore, over the past decade, passive acoustic monitoring (PAM) has become a basic tool, used for both measuring depredation activity and accelerating field tests of potential depredation countermeasures. This paper reviews and summarizes past published PAM research on SEASWAP, and then provides a detailed example of how PAM methods are currently being used to test countermeasures. The review covers two major research thrusts: (i) identifying acoustic outputs of fishing vessels that provide long-distance “cues” that attract whales to fishing activity; and (ii) validating whether distinctive “creak” sounds can be used to quantify and measure depredation rates, using both bioacoustic tags and statistical comparisons between visual and acoustic depredation estimates during federal sablefish surveys. The latter part of the paper then provides an example of how PAM is being used to study a particular potential countermeasure: an “acoustic decoy” which transmits fishing vessel acoustic cues to attract animals away from true fishing activity. The results of an initial 2011 field trial are presented to show how PAM was used to design the decoy signals and monitor the efficacy of the deployment. The ability of PAM to detect both whale presence and depredation behaviour has reduced the need to deploy researchers or other specialists on fishing cruises. Instead, volunteer fishers can deploy “user-friendly” acoustic recorders on their gear, greatly facilitating the testing of various deterrents, and providing the industry and regulators a convenient and unobtrusive tool for monitoring both the scale and long-term spread of this behaviour across the Alaskan fishery.

scholarly journals Assessing Seasonality and Density From Passive Acoustic Monitoring of Signals Presumed to be From Pygmy and Dwarf Sperm Whales in the Gulf of Mexico

2019 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
Author(s):  
John A. Hildebrand ◽  
Kaitlin E. Frasier ◽  
Simone Baumann-Pickering ◽  
Sean M. Wiggins ◽  
Karlina P. Merkens ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gulf Of Mexico ◽  
Acoustic Monitoring ◽  
Sperm Whales ◽  
Passive Acoustic Monitoring ◽  
Passive Acoustic

scholarly journals Cetacean occurrence in the Gulf of Alaska from long-term passive acoustic monitoring

2021 ◽  
Vol 168 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ally Rice ◽  
Ana Širović ◽  
Jennifer S. Trickey ◽  
Amanda J. Debich ◽  
Rachel S. Gottlieb ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Continental Shelf ◽  
Continental Slope ◽  
Marine Mammals ◽  
Gulf Of Alaska ◽  
Acoustic Monitoring ◽  
Physeter Macrocephalus ◽  
Passive Acoustic Monitoring ◽  
Temporal Separation ◽  
Shelf Slope ◽  
Passive Acoustic

AbstractThe Gulf of Alaska is an important habitat for a diverse array of marine mammals, many of which were severely depleted by historical whaling. To study current cetacean distributions in this region, passive acoustic monitoring was used to detect species-specific call types between 2011 and 2015 at five locations spanning the continental shelf, slope, and offshore seamounts. Spatial and temporal detection patterns were examined for nine species to compare differences in behavior and habitat use. Mysticetes showed seasonal increases in calling that indicated possible behavioral shifts between feeding and breeding in blue (Balaenoptera musculus), fin (B. physalus), and humpback (Megaptera novaeangliae) whales, and matched known migration timing of gray whales (Eschrichtius robustus). Interannual changes in blue and fin whale calling may relate to the marine heat wave that began in 2013 and lasted through the end of the monitoring period. Odontocete detections revealed unique spatial distributions, with killer whales (Orcinus orca) most common on the continental shelf and sperm whales (Physeter macrocephalus) most common on the continental slope, where detections occurred year-round. Beaked whales showed both spatial and temporal separation: Baird’s beaked whale (Berardius bairdii) detections were highest at Quinn Seamount in the spring, Cuvier’s (Ziphius cavirostris) at Pratt Seamount in winter, and Stejneger’s (Mesoplodon stejnegeri) on the continental slope in the fall. The year-round presence of many species highlights the ecological importance of the Gulf of Alaska and the spatiotemporal information reported here should inform future conservation efforts.

scholarly journals Clicking throughout the year: sperm whale clicks in relation to environmental conditions off the west coast of South Africa

2020 ◽  
Vol 43 ◽  
pp. 475-494
Author(s):  
FW Shabangu ◽  
RK Andrew
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Environmental Conditions ◽  
West Coast ◽  
Sperm Whale ◽  
Acoustic Monitoring ◽  
Height Anomaly ◽  
Sperm Whales ◽  
Passive Acoustic Monitoring ◽  
The West ◽  
Passive Acoustic

Knowledge of cetacean occurrence and behaviour in southern African waters is limited, and passive acoustic monitoring has the potential to address this gap efficiently. Seasonal acoustic occurrence and diel-vocalizing patterns of sperm whales in relation to environmental conditions are described here using passive acoustic monitoring data collected off the west coast of South Africa. Four autonomous acoustic recorders (AARs) were deployed on 3 oceanographic moorings from July 2014 to January 2017. Sperm whale clicks were detected year round in most recording sites, with peaks in acoustic occurrence in summer and late winter through spring. Diel-vocalizing patterns were detected in winter, spring and summer. Higher percentages of sperm whale clicks were recorded by AARs deployed at 1100 m water depth compared to those concurrently deployed at 850 and 4500 m, likely inferring that the whales exhibited some preference to water depths around 1100 m. Acoustic propagation modelling suggested a maximum detection range of 83 km in winter for sperm whale clicks produced at 1100 m. Random forest models classified daylight regime, sea surface height anomaly and month of the year as the most important predictors of sperm whale acoustic occurrence. The continuous acoustic occurrence of sperm whales suggests that the study area supports large biomasses of prey to sustain this species’ food requirements year round. This is the first study to describe the seasonal acoustic occurrence and diel-vocalizing patterns of sperm whales off the west coast of South Africa, extending knowledge of the species previously available only through whaling records.

Marine mammal distribution in the Gulf of Alaska from long-term passive acoustic monitoring

2019 ◽  
Vol 146 (4) ◽  
pp. 2804-2804
Author(s):  
Ally Rice ◽  
Ana Širović ◽  
Jennifer Trickey ◽  
John Hildebrand ◽  
Simone Baumann-Pickering
Keyword(s):  
Marine Mammal ◽  
Gulf Of Alaska ◽  
Acoustic Monitoring ◽  
Passive Acoustic Monitoring ◽  
Passive Acoustic ◽  
Mammal Distribution

scholarly journals Passive acoustic monitoring of killer whales (Orcinus orca) reveals year-round distribution and residency patterns in the Gulf of Alaska

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Hannah J. Myers ◽  
Daniel W. Olsen ◽  
Craig O. Matkin ◽  
Lara A. Horstmann ◽  
Brenda Konar
Keyword(s):  
Killer Whale ◽  
Marine Ecosystem ◽  
Distribution Patterns ◽  
Gulf Of Alaska ◽  
Acoustic Monitoring ◽  
Orcinus Orca ◽  
Killer Whales ◽  
Passive Acoustic Monitoring ◽  
The North ◽  
Passive Acoustic

AbstractKiller whales (Orcinus orca) are top predators throughout the world’s oceans. In the North Pacific, the species is divided into three ecotypes—resident (fish-eating), transient (mammal-eating), and offshore (largely shark-eating)—that are genetically and acoustically distinct and have unique roles in the marine ecosystem. In this study, we examined the year-round distribution of killer whales in the northern Gulf of Alaska from 2016 to 2020 using passive acoustic monitoring. We further described the daily acoustic residency patterns of three killer whale populations (southern Alaska residents, Gulf of Alaska transients, and AT1 transients) for one year of these data. Highest year-round acoustic presence occurred in Montague Strait, with strong seasonal patterns in Hinchinbrook Entrance and Resurrection Bay. Daily acoustic residency times for the southern Alaska residents paralleled seasonal distribution patterns. The majority of Gulf of Alaska transient detections occurred in Hinchinbrook Entrance in spring. The depleted AT1 transient killer whale population was most often identified in Montague Strait. Passive acoustic monitoring revealed that both resident and transient killer whales used these areas much more extensively than previously known and provided novel insights into high use locations and times for each population. These results may be driven by seasonal foraging opportunities and social factors and have management implications for this species.

scholarly journals Sperm whale presence observed using passive acoustic monitoring from gliders of opportunity

2020 ◽  
Vol 42 ◽  
pp. 133-149 ◽  
Author(s):  
P Cauchy ◽  
KJ Heywood ◽  
D Risch ◽  
ND Merchant ◽  
BY Queste ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mediterranean Sea ◽  
Sperm Whale ◽  
Acoustic Monitoring ◽  
Western Mediterranean ◽  
Sperm Whales ◽  
Passive Acoustic Monitoring ◽  
The North ◽  
Western Mediterranean Sea ◽  
Passive Acoustic ◽  
North Western

Habitat use by the endangered Mediterranean sperm whale subpopulation remains poorly understood, especially in winter. The sustained presence of oceanographic autonomous underwater vehicles in the area presents an opportunity to improve observation effort, enabling collection of valuable sperm whale distribution data, which may be crucial to their conservation. Passive acoustic monitoring loggers were deployed on vertically profiling oceanographic gliders surveying the north-western Mediterranean Sea during winter 2012-2013 and June 2014. Sperm whale echolocation ‘usual click’ trains, characteristic of foraging activity, were detected and classified from the recordings, providing information about the presence of sperm whales along the glider tracks. Widespread presence of sperm whales in the north-western Mediterranean Sea was confirmed. Winter observations suggest different foraging strategies between the Ligurian Sea, where mobile and scattered individuals forage at all times of day, and the Gulf of Lion, where larger aggregations target intense oceanographic features in the open ocean such as fronts and mixing events, with reduced acoustic presence at dawn. This study demonstrates the ability to successfully observe sperm whale behaviour from passive acoustic monitoring gliders. We identified possible mission design changes to optimize data collected from passive acoustic monitoring glider surveys and significantly improve sperm whale population monitoring and habitat use.

First in situ passive acoustic monitoring for marine mammals during operation of a tidal turbine in Ramsey Sound, Wales

2018 ◽  
Vol 590 ◽  
pp. 247-266 ◽  
Author(s):  
CE Malinka ◽  
DM Gillespie ◽  
JDJ Macaulay ◽  
R Joy ◽  
CE Sparling
Keyword(s):  
Marine Mammals ◽  
Acoustic Monitoring ◽  
Passive Acoustic Monitoring ◽  
Tidal Turbine ◽  
Passive Acoustic
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