Spatial associations between large baleen whales and their prey in West Greenland

Laidre, Kristin L.; Heide‐Jørgensen, Mads Peter; Heagerty, Patrick J.; Cossio, Anthony M.; Bergström, Bo; Simon, Malene

doi:10.3354/meps08423

Cited by 73 publications

(60 citation statements)

References 43 publications

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Section: Northern Baleen Whales: Krill Specialists or Generalists?mentioning

confidence: 83%

“…Hence, prey densities at the ecosystem scale may determine the whale distributions within the ecosystem, as shown by the present study, while significant meso-and finer scale associations are often found in smaller study areas within the distributions of these species (e.g. Witteveen et al 2008, Hazen et al 2009, Laidre et al 2010.Minke, fin and humpback whales can be considered to be generalist predators, foraging on both zooplankton and pelagic fish , Piatt & Methven 1992, Santora et al 2010, Laidre et al 2010). In the Barents Sea, whales were associated with shallow northern banks, and they also overlapped with amphipods and polar cod within this habitat (Figs.…”

mentioning

confidence: 87%

“…Minke, fin and humpback whales can be considered to be generalist predators, foraging on both zooplankton and pelagic fish , Piatt & Methven 1992, Santora et al 2010, Laidre et al 2010). In the Barents Sea, whales were associated with shallow northern banks, and they also overlapped with amphipods and polar cod within this habitat (Figs.…”

Section: Northern Baleen Whales: Krill Specialists or Generalists?mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Baleen whale distributions and prey associations in the Barents Sea

Skern‐Mauritzen¹,

Johannesen²,

Bjørge³

et al. 2011

Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser.

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We investigated the spatial associations between minke Balaenoptera acutorostrata, fin B. physalus and humpback Megaptera novaeangliae whales and their prey in the Barents Sea in late summer of 2003 to 2007. During these years the abundance of their assumed primary prey, capelin Mallotus villotus, was low due to a stock collapse. The whales were therefore expected to associate with abundant herring Clupea harengus in the southern Barents Sea and krill (Euphausiacea) in the central and northern Barents Sea. The baleen whales predominantly occupied a narrow, northern area that had high densities of krill, amphipods Themisto spp., and polar cod Boreogadus saida along the northern range of the capelin distribution. A small proportion of the Barents Sea minke and fin whales occurred in the southern areas. Herring was therefore not an important prey species in the Barents Sea in this season. Ecosystem-scale associations, which were determined by spatial associations between species distributions averaged across years, indicated that krill was the predominant prey species. However, contrasting mesoscale associations with their prey in 50 km grid cells and a preference for shallow northern banks suggests that these whales have a diverse diet within a preferred habitat. Finally, positive density dependence and facilitation can be significant processes that influence whale distributions, as the 3 baleen whale species were positively associated at both ecosystem-and mesoscales. KEY WORDS: Ecosystem survey · Pelagic communities · Trophic interactions · Marine mammals Resale or republication not permitted without written consent of the publisherMar Ecol Prog Ser 426: [289][290][291][292][293][294][295][296][297][298][299][300][301] 2011 while herring and krill (Euphausiacea) were abundant (Gjøsaeter et al. 2009, Zhukova et al. 2009). The diet and prey selection of minke whales has been thoroughly studied in early summer (May to June) when the northern Barents Sea is ice-covered (e.g. , Smout & Lindstrøm 2007. During this season, minke whales in the Barents Sea preferentially forage on capelin, but the dietary importance of herring and krill increases when capelin abundance decreases , Smout & Lindstrøm 2007. However, little knowledge exists on minke whale-prey interactions in late summer or on interactions between fin and humpback whales and their prey in this ecosystem.Minke, fin and humpback whales often congregate in the same feeding areas, likely targeting similar prey (Piatt & Methven 1992, Murase et al. 2002). In general, they seem to prefer pelagic fish to zooplankton in northern ecosystems (Murase et al. 2007, Smout & Lindstrøm 2007, Witteveen et al. 2008. However, in comparison with that in early summer, the prey assemblage in late summer (e.g. August to September) may include additional species. Northern areas with high amphipod Themisto spp. (Dalpadado et al. 2001) and polar cod Boreogadus saida (Stiansen & Filin 2008) densities are exposed so these prey species become available for pelagic predators ...

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Section: Northern Baleen Whales: Krill Specialists or Generalists?mentioning

confidence: 83%

mentioning

confidence: 87%

Section: Northern Baleen Whales: Krill Specialists or Generalists?mentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Baleen whale distributions and prey associations in the Barents Sea

Skern‐Mauritzen¹,

Johannesen²,

Bjørge³

et al. 2011

Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser.

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“…The waters of Baffin Bay and Melville Bay off northwest Greenland are some of the most productive and tightly connected physical-biological systems in the marine environment (Laidre et al, 2010). The region is ice covered in the winter and thus far has had limited vessel traffic, so that the local soundscape is dominated by icebergs, H. FROUIN-MOU� et al sea ice, wind, waves, and wildlife sounds.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Seasonal Trends in Acoustic Detection of Marine Mammals in Baffin Bay and Melville Bay, Northwest Greenland + Supplementary Appendix 1 (See Article Tools)

Frouin‐Mouy¹,

Kowarski²,

Martin³

et al. 2017

ARCTIC

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ABSTRACT. The expansion of hydrocarbon exploration in northwest Greenland has made it increasingly important to understand the occurrence of marine mammals in the region. We describe the seasonal occurrence of marine mammals and the spatial distribution of their calls in Baffin Bay and Melville Bay. Four Autonomous Multichannel Acoustic Recorders (AMARs) were deployed during summer 2012 (late July to early October), five recorders during September 2013, and two recorders from late September 2013 to early September 2014. The call presence of several species was analyzed using automatic call detection and manual verification analysis methods. A novel approach to discern narwhal (Monodon monoceros) clicks from beluga (Delphinapterus leucas) clicks was implemented during the verification process. Narwhal calls were detected in spring and fall, showing a south-to-north migration pattern in spring and a north-to-south migration pattern in fall. Few beluga whales were detected during fall 2013 and spring 2014. Bearded seal (Erignathus barbatus) calls were detected mainly during spring (mating period). A small number of bowhead whale calls (Balaena mysticetus) were detected during fall 2013 and spring and summer 2014. For the first time at this latitude in Baffin Bay, long-finned pilot whales (Globicephala melas) and sperm whales (Physeter macrocephalus) were detected during summer and fall. Our results suggest that the presence of marine mammals in Baffin Bay and Melville Bay is governed mainly by the annual cycle of sea ice formation and decay.

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“…These in turn attract bowhead whales to the vicinity of Disko Bay between February and May (Laidre et al, 2009;Laidre and Heide-Jørgensen, 2012), and, in summer, foraging humpback whales. The presence of large baleen whales, including fin, humpback, minke (B. acutorostrata), and sei whales (B. borealis) on the West Greenland summer feeding ground is likely related to advective processes that both melt the coastal sea ice and shift capelin and euphausiids onto the shelf (Laidre et al, 2009(Laidre et al, , 2010. The region supports large colonies of piscivorous seabirds nesting along the southwestern Greenland coast, which also forage on small fish in the open waters.…”

Section: Melting Of Sea Ice and The Availability Of Open Water To Seamentioning

confidence: 99%

Advection in polar and sub-polar environments: Impacts on high latitude marine ecosystems

Hunt

Drinkwater

Arrigo

et al. 2016

Progress in Oceanography

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a b s t r a c tWe compare and contrast the ecological impacts of atmospheric and oceanic circulation patterns on polar and sub-polar marine ecosystems. Circulation patterns differ strikingly between the north and south. Meridional circulation in the north provides connections between the sub-Arctic and Arctic despite the presence of encircling continental landmasses, whereas annular circulation patterns in the south tend to isolate Antarctic surface waters from those in the north. These differences influence fundamental aspects of the polar ecosystems from the amount, thickness and duration of sea ice, to the types of organisms, and the ecology of zooplankton, fish, seabirds and marine mammals. Meridional flows in both the North Pacific and the North Atlantic oceans transport heat, nutrients, and plankton northward into the Chukchi Sea, the Barents Sea, and the seas off the west coast of Greenland. In the North Atlantic, the advected heat warms the waters of the southern Barents Sea and, with advected nutrients and plankton, supports immense biomasses of fish, seabirds and marine mammals. On the Pacific side of the Arctic, cold waters flowing northward across the northern Bering and Chukchi seas during winter and spring limit the ability of boreal fish species to take advantage of high seasonal production there. Southward flow of cold Arctic waters into sub-Arctic regions of the North Atlantic occurs mainly through Fram Strait with less through the Barents Sea and the Canadian Archipelago. In the Pacific, the transport of Arctic waters and plankton southward through Bering Strait is minimal.In the Southern Ocean, the Antarctic Circumpolar Current and its associated fronts are barriers to the southward dispersal of plankton and pelagic fishes from sub-Antarctic waters, with the consequent evolution of Antarctic zooplankton and fish species largely occurring in isolation from those to the north. The Antarctic Circumpolar Current also disperses biota throughout the Southern Ocean, and as a result, the biota tends to be similar within a given broad latitudinal band. South of the Southern Boundary of the ACC, there is a large-scale divergence that brings nutrient-rich water to the surface. This divergence, along with more localized upwelling regions and deep vertical convection in winter, generates elevated nutrient levels throughout the Antarctic at the end of austral winter. However, such elevated nutrient levels do not support elevated phytoplankton productivity through the entire Southern Ocean, as iron concentrations are rapidly removed to limiting levels by spring blooms in deep waters. However, coastal http://dx

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Spatial associations between large baleen whales and their prey in West Greenland

Cited by 73 publications

References 43 publications

Baleen whale distributions and prey associations in the Barents Sea

Baleen whale distributions and prey associations in the Barents Sea

Seasonal Trends in Acoustic Detection of Marine Mammals in Baffin Bay and Melville Bay, Northwest Greenland + Supplementary Appendix 1 (See Article Tools)

Advection in polar and sub-polar environments: Impacts on high latitude marine ecosystems

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