Striking the <i>right</i> balance in right whale conservation

Schick, Robert S.; Halpin, Patrick N.; Read, Andrew J.; Slay, Christopher K.; Kraus, Scott D.; Mate, Bruce R.; Baumgartner, Mark F.; Roberts, Jason J.; Best, Benjamin; Good, Caroline; Loarie, Scott R.; Clark, James S.

doi:10.1139/f09-115

Cited by 22 publications

(34 citation statements)

References 8 publications

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“…Lastly, we know that several of the baleen whales seen in NOH migrate into and out of this region within the year. For example, pregnant female right whales migrate between NOH and SOH and the migratory corridor between these regions is critically important, yet understudied (Schick et al 2009). While we ignored within-year variability, comparing seasonal species climatologies would provide insight into how these communities typically change within a year.…”

Section: Temporal Dynamicsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Community structure in pelagic marine mammals at large spatial scales

Schick¹,

Halpin²,

Read³

et al. 2011

Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser.

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The understanding of a species' niche is fundamental to the concept of ecology, yet relatively little work has been done on niches in pelagic marine mammal communities. Data collection on the distribution and abundance of marine mammals is costly, time consuming and complicated by logistical difficulties. Here we take advantage of a data archive comprising many different datasets on the distribution and abundance of cetaceans from Nova Scotia through the Gulf of Mexico in an effort to uncover community structure at large spatial scales (1000s of km). We constructed a multivariate ordination of the species data, tested for group structure that might exist within the ordination space, and determined how these groups might differ in environmental space. We examined 3 biogeographic regions: the oceanic waters north and south of Cape Hatteras, NC, and the Gulf of Mexico. North of Hatteras, we found 2 main groups split along a temperature and chlorophyll gradient, with most piscivores being found in cooler, more productive waters of the continental shelf, and most teuthivores being found farther offshore in warmer, less productive waters at the shelf break (200 m isobath). South of Hatteras, we found 3 groups, with the largest group being in warmer, lower chlorophyll waters that are closest to shore. In the Gulf of Mexico, we found 7 groups arrayed along a bottom depth gradient. We also tested the effect of taxonomically lumping different beaked whale species on ordination results. Results showed that when beaked whales were identified to the species level, they clustered out into distinct niches that are separate from those of other Odontocete groups. These results add to an increasing understanding of wildlife habitat associations and niche partitionings in the community structure of pelagic species, and provide important baseline information for future population monitoring efforts. KEY WORDS: Cetaceans · Group contrast Mantel test · Nonmetric dimensional scaling · Multivariate ordination · Northwest Atlantic OceanResale or republication not permitted without written consent of the publisher

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Section: Temporal Dynamicsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Community structure in pelagic marine mammals at large spatial scales

Schick¹,

Halpin²,

Read³

et al. 2011

Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser.

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show abstract

“…One of these measures requires that vessels ≥65 ft (19.8 m) reduce speeds during seasons when right whales are likely to be present in the area (NOAA 2008). Although reducing vessel speed decreases the risk of ship strike mortality (Laist et al 2001, Vanderlaan & Taggart 2007, Wiley et al 2011, Conn & Silber 2013, current mitigation efforts may not provide adequate protection due to incomplete spatial and temporal coverage of right whale habitat and occurrence (Schick et al 2009, van der Hoop et al 2013, 2015. Since the efficacy of current management protocols is uncertain, regulatory efforts require ongoing evaluation and modification (Pace 2011, van der Hoop et al 2013, 2015.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

North Atlantic right whale occurrence near wind energy areas along the mid-Atlantic US coast: implications for management

Hodge¹,

Muirhead²,

Morano³

et al. 2015

Endang. Species. Res.

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The distribution and seasonal patterns of the North Atlantic right whale, Eubalaena glacialis, inform management decisions that mitigate anthropogenic threats. Based on data from visual surveys, much of the population migrates between winter calving grounds in coastal waters adjacent to the southeast USA and summer feeding and nursery grounds adjacent to the northeast USA. However, little is known about right whale occurrence along the mid-Atlantic US migratory corridor. A better understanding of right whale occurrence in this region is needed prior to offshore wind energy development activities, which may increase mortality risks and chronic impacts on the population. We conducted an 11 mo passive acoustic survey along coastal North Carolina and Georgia near several wind energy areas to document the acoustic occurrence of right whales in the southern region of the mid-Atlantic US coast. Right whales were acoustically detected across all seasons, with peak seasonal presence occurring during autumn in the Georgia site and during winter in the North Carolina site. A secondary peak in presence also occurred during June and July in the Georgia site, when right whales were not expected to be in the area. Given the nearly year-round presence of right whales in the survey areas, these results may warrant an evaluation of current management protocols in order to provide adequate protection to the population in the face of offshore energy development activities.

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“…With half of all known right whale deaths in US waters since 1990 due to ship strikes found along the species' migratory corridor -which is thought to extend to approximately 30 nmi from shore (Schick 2009, Keller et al 2012) -failure to include waters between 20 and 30 nmi in SMA boundaries leaves a potentially significant gap in protection of right whales from ship collisions. Its lack of inclusion also complicates evaluations of SMA effectiveness.…”

Section: Sma Boundariesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effectiveness of mandatory vessel speed limits for protecting North Atlantic right whales

Laist¹,

Knowlton²,

Pendleton³

2014

Endang. Species. Res.

107

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To reduce right whale Eubalaena glacialis deaths caused by ship collisions along the US East Coast, a rule was implemented on 8 December 2008 requiring all vessels ≥65 feet (19.8 m) to travel 10 knots (18.5 km h −1 ) or less in 10 seasonal management areas (SMAs). To evaluate the effectiveness of this rule, we plotted the locations of all right whale and humpback whale Megaptera novaeangliae carcasses attributed to ship-strikes since December 1990 in US waters to determine their proximity to SMAs. In the 18 yr pre-rule period, 13 of 15 (87%) right whales and 12 of 26 (46%) humpback whales killed by ships were found inside later SMA boundaries or within 45 nmi (83 km) of their perimeters during later active dates. In the first 5 yr after the rule became effective, no ship-struck right whales were found inside or within 45 nmi of any active SMA. This was nearly twice as long as the longest pre-rule period without discovery of a ship-struck carcass in those areas during effective time periods. Based on the 18 yr pre-rule period, bootstrap resampling analyses revealed that the probability of finding no ship-struck whales in or near SMAs during the first 5 yr post-rule period would be a statistically significant reduction in such deaths (p = 0.031). The results suggest the rule has been effective at reducing right whale deaths. We suggest enlarging SMAs to include additional parts of the right whale migratory corridor.

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Striking the right balance in right whale conservation

Cited by 22 publications

References 8 publications

Community structure in pelagic marine mammals at large spatial scales

Community structure in pelagic marine mammals at large spatial scales

North Atlantic right whale occurrence near wind energy areas along the mid-Atlantic US coast: implications for management

Effectiveness of mandatory vessel speed limits for protecting North Atlantic right whales

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