Pygmy blue and Antarctic blue whale presence, distribution and population parameters in southern Australia based on passive acoustics

McCauley, Robert D.; Gavrilov, Alexander; Jolliffe, Capri D.; Ward, Rhianne; Gill, Peter C.

doi:10.1016/j.dsr2.2018.09.006

Cited by 27 publications

(23 citation statements)

References 31 publications

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“…The highest number of song events analysed were in 2010 and 2011 with 509 and 598 records respectively (Fig 5). Peaks in the number of identified vocal events (Fig 5) were consistent with the northern (February to June) and southern (November to January) migratory pulses of the SEIO pygmy blue whale, which occur along the Western Australian coast at this latitude [15, 16, 47–49]. The largest peak in pygmy blue whale song events was over March and April coinciding with the northern migratory pulse [31] where in some years animals are known to linger in the Perth Canyon engaging in feeding behaviour [37, 31, 50].…”

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 55%

“…In the most recent data sets the largest obstacle to identifying the song structure of vocalising animals in the manual analysis was other vocalising animals which flooded samples with pygmy blue whale signals. As population numbers increase ([48, 49] for EIO pygmy blue), it may be a natural adaptation for song repetition intervals to increase. Whether this may be because animals do not have to call as frequently to attract a mate, or the benefit of producing more signals in a shorter time period is outweighed by the energetic cost, or competition due to increases in vocal activity of other animals, would require more investigation.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Song variation of the South Eastern Indian Ocean pygmy blue whale population in the Perth Canyon, Western Australia

Jolliffe¹,

McCauley²,

Gavrilov³

et al. 2019

PLoS ONE

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Sea noise collected over 2003 to 2017 from the Perth Canyon, Western Australia was analysed for variation in the South Eastern Indian Ocean pygmy blue whale song structure. The primary song-types were: P3, a three unit phrase (I, II and III) repeated with an inter-song interval (ISI) of 170–194 s; P2, a phrase consisting of only units II & III repeated every 84–96 s; and P1 with a phrase consisting of only unit II repeated every 45–49 s. The different ISI values were approximate multiples of each other within a season. When comparing data from each season, across seasons, the ISI value for each song increased significantly through time (all fits had p << 0.001), at 0.30 s/Year (95%CI 0.217–0.383), 0.8 s/Year (95%CI 0.655–1.025) and 1.73 s/Year (95%CI 1.264–2.196) for the P1, P2 and P3 songs respectively. The proportions of each song-type averaged at 21.5, 24.2 and 56% for P1, P2 and P3 occurrence respectively and these ratios could vary by up to ± 8% (95% CI) amongst years. On some occasions animals changed the P3 ISI to be significantly shorter (120–160 s) or longer (220–280 s). Hybrid song patterns occurred where animals combined multiple phrase types into a repeated song. In recent years whales introduced further complexity by splitting song units. This variability of song-type and proportions implies abundance measure for this whale sub population based on song detection needs to factor in trends in song variability to make data comparable between seasons. Further, such variability in song production by a sub population of pygmy blue whales raises questions as to the stability of the song types that are used to delineate populations. The high level of song variability may be driven by an increasing number of background whale callers creating ‘noise’ and so forcing animals to alter song in order to ‘stand out’ amongst the crowd.

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Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 55%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Song variation of the South Eastern Indian Ocean pygmy blue whale population in the Perth Canyon, Western Australia

Jolliffe¹,

McCauley²,

Gavrilov³

et al. 2019

PLoS ONE

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“…S1). All these whales seem to be part of an eastern Indian Ocean population, which ranges from at least southern Australia, the STC, and Western Australia to West Timor and Indonesia 12,14,16,[21][22][23]27,34 . The other pygmy blue whale population seems to represent a western Pacific Ocean population, which ranges from at least south of New Zealand, including around New Zealand where they feed, to the east coast of Australia where they perhaps migrate, and to at least Tonga where they perhaps breed [14][15][16]55 .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Movements and behaviour of blue whales satellite tagged in an Australian upwelling system

Möller

Attard

Bilgmann

et al. 2020

Sci Rep

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Knowledge about the movement ecology of endangered species is needed to identify biologically important areas and the spatio-temporal scale of potential human impacts on species. Blue whales (Balaenoptera musculus) are endangered due to twentieth century whaling and currently threatened by human activities. In Australia, they feed in the Great Southern Australian Coastal Upwelling System (GSACUS) during the austral summer. We investigate their movements, occupancy, behaviour, and environmental drivers to inform conservation management. Thirteen whales were satellite tagged, biopsy sampled and photo-identified in 2015. All were genetically confirmed to be of the pygmy subspecies (B. m. brevicauda). In the GSACUS, whales spent most of their time over the continental shelf and likely foraging in association with several seascape variables (sea surface temperature variability, depth, wind speed, sea surface height anomaly, and chlorophyll a). When whales left the region, they migrated west and then north along the Australian coast until they reached West Timor and Indonesia, where their movements indicated breeding or foraging behaviour. These results highlight the importance of the GSACUS as a foraging ground for pygmy blue whales inhabiting the eastern Indian Ocean and indicate the whales’ migratory route to proposed breeding grounds off Indonesia. Information about the spatio-temporal scale of potential human impacts can now be used to protect this little-known subspecies of blue whale.

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“…Barlow et al (2018) also reported 100% daily acoustic presence of PBWs in the STB during the 2016 austral autumn. In south-west Australia, calls of east Indian Ocean PBWs also peak during austral autumn (between February and May) (Stafford et al, 2011;Gavrilov and McCauley, 2013;McCauley et al, 2018). Unlike ABWs, PBWs do not migrate to Antarctica to feed (Branch et al, 2007) (see Attard et al, 2012 for exceptions), and therefore rely on local productive feeding areas, such as the STB (Barlow et al, 2020).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Passive Acoustic Monitoring Reveals Spatio-Temporal Distributions of Antarctic and Pygmy Blue Whales Around Central New Zealand

Warren

Širović

McPherson³

et al. 2021

Front. Mar. Sci.

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Effective management of wild animal populations relies on an understanding of their spatio-temporal distributions. Passive acoustic monitoring (PAM) is a non-invasive method to investigate the distribution of free-ranging species that reliably produce sound. Critically endangered Antarctic blue whales (Balaenoptera musculus intermedia) (ABWs) co-occur with pygmy blue whales (B. m. brevicauda) (PBWs) around New Zealand. Nationally, both are listed as “data deficient” due to difficulties in access and visual sub-species identification. PAM was used to investigate the distributions of blue whales via sub-species specific song detections in central New Zealand. Propagation models, incorporating ambient noise data, enabled the comparison of detections among recording locations in different marine environments. ABW detections peaked during austral winter and spring, indicating that New Zealand, and the South Taranaki Bight (STB) in particular, is a migratory corridor for ABWs. Some ABW calls were also detected during the breeding season (September and October). PBW calls were highly concentrated in the STB, particularly between March and May, suggesting that an aggregation of PBWs may occur here. Therefore, the STB is of great importance for both sub-species of blue whale. PBW detections were absent from the STB during parts of austral spring, but PBWs were detected at east coast locations during this time. Detection area models were valuable when interpreting and comparing detections among recording locations. The results provide sub-species specific information required for management of critically endangered ABWs and highlight the relative importance of central New Zealand for both sub-species of blue whale.

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Pygmy blue and Antarctic blue whale presence, distribution and population parameters in southern Australia based on passive acoustics

Cited by 27 publications

References 31 publications

Song variation of the South Eastern Indian Ocean pygmy blue whale population in the Perth Canyon, Western Australia

Song variation of the South Eastern Indian Ocean pygmy blue whale population in the Perth Canyon, Western Australia

Movements and behaviour of blue whales satellite tagged in an Australian upwelling system

Passive Acoustic Monitoring Reveals Spatio-Temporal Distributions of Antarctic and Pygmy Blue Whales Around Central New Zealand

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