scholarly journals Objective classification of North Atlantic right whale (Eubalaena glacialis) vocalizations to improve passive acoustic detection

2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ildar R Urazghildiiev ◽  
Susan E. Parks
Keyword(s):  
North Atlantic ◽  
High Frequency ◽  
Classification Scheme ◽  
Acoustic Monitoring ◽  
Cape Cod ◽  
Complex Sounds ◽  
Right Whale ◽  
Cape Cod Bay ◽  
Objective Classification ◽  
Passive Acoustic

Passive acoustic monitoring is playing an increasing role in the detection of endangered North Atlantic right whales (NARW). Previous acoustic monitoring has relied on a single stereotyped vocalization, the upcall. Here the entire repertoire produced by NARW during the winter and early spring in Cape Cod Bay, Massachusetts is described. An objective sound classification scheme and automatic classification algorithm were developed. Nine days of acoustic recordings were used for the data analysis and a total of 9,611 right whale sounds were identified. The objective classification scheme of right whale sounds allowed for rapid identification of a diversity of right whale sounds. These sounds were assigned to 6 classes of narrowband upcalls, downsweep, complex and high frequency calls, wideband gunshot sounds and complex sounds. Results indicate that the prevalence of upcalls varied from 28% of detected calls in January to 80% in April. Other classes of signals were also well represented in the repertoire including the narrowband complex(10-36%) and high frequency calls (1-26%), wideband gunshot sounds (4-25%) and wideband complex sounds (0 – 25%). The prevalence of non-upcall signals suggests that including more signals classes may improve rates of detection for right whales in the Cape Cod Bay habitat.

scholarly journals Objective classification of North Atlantic right whale (Eubalaena glacialis) vocalizations to improve passive acoustic detection

2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ildar R Urazghildiiev ◽  
Susan E. Parks
Keyword(s):  
North Atlantic ◽  
High Frequency ◽  
Classification Scheme ◽  
Acoustic Monitoring ◽  
Cape Cod ◽  
Complex Sounds ◽  
Right Whale ◽  
Cape Cod Bay ◽  
Objective Classification ◽  
Passive Acoustic

Passive acoustic monitoring is playing an increasing role in the detection of endangered North Atlantic right whales (NARW). Previous acoustic monitoring has relied on a single stereotyped vocalization, the upcall. Here the entire repertoire produced by NARW during the winter and early spring in Cape Cod Bay, Massachusetts is described. An objective sound classification scheme and automatic classification algorithm were developed. Nine days of acoustic recordings were used for the data analysis and a total of 9,611 right whale sounds were identified. The objective classification scheme of right whale sounds allowed for rapid identification of a diversity of right whale sounds. These sounds were assigned to 6 classes of narrowband upcalls, downsweep, complex and high frequency calls, wideband gunshot sounds and complex sounds. Results indicate that the prevalence of upcalls varied from 28% of detected calls in January to 80% in April. Other classes of signals were also well represented in the repertoire including the narrowband complex(10-36%) and high frequency calls (1-26%), wideband gunshot sounds (4-25%) and wideband complex sounds (0 – 25%). The prevalence of non-upcall signals suggests that including more signals classes may improve rates of detection for right whales in the Cape Cod Bay habitat.

Passive acoustic monitoring predicts daily variation in North Atlantic right whale presence and relative abundance in Roseway Basin, Canada

2019 ◽  
Vol 35 (4) ◽  
pp. 1280-1303
Author(s):  
Delphine Durette‐Morin ◽  
Kimberley T. A. Davies ◽  
Hansen D. Johnson ◽  
Moira W. Brown ◽  
Hilary Moors‐Murphy ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Relative Abundance ◽  
North Atlantic ◽  
Daily Variation ◽  
Acoustic Monitoring ◽  
Passive Acoustic Monitoring ◽  
North Atlantic Right Whale ◽  
Right Whale ◽  
Passive Acoustic

Sound propagation modeling of right whale calls in Cape Cod Bay.

2010 ◽  
Vol 128 (4) ◽  
pp. 2467-2467
Author(s):  
Ying‐Tsong Lin ◽  
Arthur E. Newhall ◽  
Susan E. Parks
Keyword(s):  
Sound Propagation ◽  
Cape Cod ◽  
Propagation Modeling ◽  
Right Whale ◽  
Cape Cod Bay

scholarly journals How we can all stop killing whales: a proposal to avoid whale entanglement in fishing gear

2019 ◽  
Vol 76 (4) ◽  
pp. 781-786 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael J Moore
Keyword(s):  
Endangered Species ◽  
Water Column ◽  
North Atlantic ◽  
Cape Cod ◽  
Fishing Gear ◽  
Eastern Canada ◽  
North Atlantic Right Whale ◽  
Right Whale ◽  
The North ◽  
The North Atlantic

Abstract Whales are federally protected by the Marine Mammal Protection Act; endangered species, such as the North Atlantic right whale, receive additional protection under the Endangered Species Act. However, their regulations have failed to satisfy conservation and animal welfare concerns. From 1990 to 2011 the North Atlantic right whale (Eubalaena glacialis, NARW) population grew at a mean of 2.8% annually. However, population trends reversed since 2011; the species is in decline, with only ∼100 reproductively active females remaining. This failure is driven by vessel collisions and increasingly fatal and serious entanglement in fixed fishing gear, whose rope strength has increased substantially. Chronic entanglement, drag, and associated morbidity have been linked to poor fecundity. Genuine solutions involve designating areas to be avoided and speed restrictions for ships and removing fishing trap ropes from the water column. A trap fishing closure for NARW habitat in the Cape Cod Bay (U.S.) area has been in place seasonally since 2015. 2017 mortalities in Eastern Canada elicited substantive management changes whereby the 2018 presence of NARW in active trap fishing areas resulted in an effective closure. To avoid these costly closures, the traditional trap fishery model of rope end lines attached to surface marker buoys has to be modified so that traps are marked virtually, and retrieved with gear that does not remain in the water column except during trap retrieval. Consumer demand for genuinely whale-safe products will augment and encourage the necessary regulatory changes so that trap fisheries conserve target and nontarget species.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document