The northern Chilean Patagonia region is a key feeding ground and a nursing habitat in the southern hemisphere for blue whales(Balaenoptera musculus).From 2014 to 2019,during 6 separate research cruises,the dive behav...The northern Chilean Patagonia region is a key feeding ground and a nursing habitat in the southern hemisphere for blue whales(Balaenoptera musculus).From 2014 to 2019,during 6 separate research cruises,the dive behavior of 28 individual blue whales was investigated using bio-logging tags(DTAGs),generating≈190 h of data.Whales dove to significantly greater depths during the day compared to nighttime(day:32.6±18.7 m;night:6.2±2.7 m;P<0.01).During the night,most time was spent close to the surface(86%±9.4%;P<0.01)and at depths of less than 12 m.From 2016 to 2019,active acoustics(scientific echosounders)were used to record prey(euphausiids)density and distribution simultaneously with whale diving data.Tagged whales appeared to perform dives relative to the vertical migration of prey during the day.The association between diurnal prey migration and shallow nighttime dive behavior suggests that blue whales are at increased risk of ship collisions during periods of darkness since the estimated maximum ship draft of vessels operating in the region is also≈12 m.In recent decades,northern Chilean Patagonia has seen a large increase in marine traffic due to a boom in salmon aquaculture and the passenger ship industry.Vessel strike risks for large whales are likely underestimated in this region.Results reported in this study may be valuable for policy and mitigation decisions regarding conservation of the endangered blue whale.展开更多
In the frame of our long-term study of cetacean abundance and distribution in polar marine ecosystems begun in 1979, a drastic increase in the bowbead Balaena mysticetus North Atlantic ＂stock＂ was observed from 2005...In the frame of our long-term study of cetacean abundance and distribution in polar marine ecosystems begun in 1979, a drastic increase in the bowbead Balaena mysticetus North Atlantic ＂stock＂ was observed from 2005 on, by a factor 30 and more： from 0.0002 per count between 1979 and 2003 （one individual, n=5430 cotmts） to 0.06 per count from 2005 to 2014 （34 individuals, n=6000 counts）; the most significant part of the increase occurred from 2007 on. Other large whale species （Mysticeti） showed a similar pattern, mainly blue Balaenoptera musculus, humpback Megaptera novaeangliae and fin whales Balaenoptera physalus. This large and abrupt increase cannot logically be due to population growth, nor to survival of a hidden ＂relic＂ population, nor to a changing geographical distribution within the European Arctic, taking into account the importance of the coverage during this study. Our interpretation is that individuals passed through the Northwest and/or Northeast Passages from the larger Pacific stock into the almost depleted North Atlantic populations coinciding with a period of very low ice coverage -- at the time the lowest ever recorded. In contrast, no clear evolution was detected neither for sperm whale Physeter macrocephalus nor for Minke whale Balaenoptera acusrostrata.展开更多
基金supported by the National Key Research and Development Program of China(Grant number 2016YFC0300802)the biodiversity investigation,observation and assessment program(2019-2023)of the Ministry of Ecology and Environment of ChinaIndian Ocean Ninety-east Ridge Ecosystem and Marine Environment Monitoring and Protection,supported by the China Ocean Mineral Resources R&D Association(no.DY135-E2-4).
文摘The northern Chilean Patagonia region is a key feeding ground and a nursing habitat in the southern hemisphere for blue whales(Balaenoptera musculus).From 2014 to 2019,during 6 separate research cruises,the dive behavior of 28 individual blue whales was investigated using bio-logging tags(DTAGs),generating≈190 h of data.Whales dove to significantly greater depths during the day compared to nighttime(day:32.6±18.7 m;night:6.2±2.7 m;P<0.01).During the night,most time was spent close to the surface(86%±9.4%;P<0.01)and at depths of less than 12 m.From 2016 to 2019,active acoustics(scientific echosounders)were used to record prey(euphausiids)density and distribution simultaneously with whale diving data.Tagged whales appeared to perform dives relative to the vertical migration of prey during the day.The association between diurnal prey migration and shallow nighttime dive behavior suggests that blue whales are at increased risk of ship collisions during periods of darkness since the estimated maximum ship draft of vessels operating in the region is also≈12 m.In recent decades,northern Chilean Patagonia has seen a large increase in marine traffic due to a boom in salmon aquaculture and the passenger ship industry.Vessel strike risks for large whales are likely underestimated in this region.Results reported in this study may be valuable for policy and mitigation decisions regarding conservation of the endangered blue whale.
文摘In the frame of our long-term study of cetacean abundance and distribution in polar marine ecosystems begun in 1979, a drastic increase in the bowbead Balaena mysticetus North Atlantic ＂stock＂ was observed from 2005 on, by a factor 30 and more： from 0.0002 per count between 1979 and 2003 （one individual, n=5430 cotmts） to 0.06 per count from 2005 to 2014 （34 individuals, n=6000 counts）; the most significant part of the increase occurred from 2007 on. Other large whale species （Mysticeti） showed a similar pattern, mainly blue Balaenoptera musculus, humpback Megaptera novaeangliae and fin whales Balaenoptera physalus. This large and abrupt increase cannot logically be due to population growth, nor to survival of a hidden ＂relic＂ population, nor to a changing geographical distribution within the European Arctic, taking into account the importance of the coverage during this study. Our interpretation is that individuals passed through the Northwest and/or Northeast Passages from the larger Pacific stock into the almost depleted North Atlantic populations coinciding with a period of very low ice coverage -- at the time the lowest ever recorded. In contrast, no clear evolution was detected neither for sperm whale Physeter macrocephalus nor for Minke whale Balaenoptera acusrostrata.
