Download or read book Aerial Surveys Abundance and Distribution of Beluga Whales Delphinapterus Leucas in Cook Inlet Alaska June 2016 written by Kim E. W. Shelden and published by . This book was released on 2017 with total page 62 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) has conducted aerial surveys to estimate abundance of the beluga population in Cook Inlet, Alaska, each June, July, or both from 1993 to 2012, after which biennial surveys began in 2014. The current document presents survey results and subsequent analyses yielding an abundance estimate and population trend based on data collected during June 2016. Surveys occurred May 31 - June 9, 2016 (49.2 flight hours). All surveys were flown in twin-engine, high-wing aircraft (i.e., an Aero Commander) at a target altitude of 244 m (800 ft) and speed of 185 km/hour (100 knots), consistent with NMFS' surveys of Cook Inlet conducted in previous years. Tracklines were flown 1.4 km from the shoreline, along the entire Cook Inlet coast, including islands. Additionally, sawtooth pattern tracklines were flown across the inlet in 2016. These aerial surveys effectively covered 40% of the total surface area of Cook Inlet and 100% of the coastline. In particular, most of the upper inlet, north of the East and West Foreland where beluga whales are consistently found, was surveyed seven times (out of seven attempts). Paired, independent observers searched on the coastal side of the plane, where most beluga sightings occur, while a single observer searched on the inlet side. A computer operator/data recorder periodically monitored distance from the shoreline (1.4 km) with a clinometer (angle 10°). After finding beluga groups, a series of aerial passes allowed all observers to each make independent counts of every group. In addition, whale groups were video recorded for later analysis and more precise counts in the laboratory. [doi:10.7289/V5/AFSC-PR-2017-09 (https://doi.org/10.7289/V5/AFSC-PR-2017-09)]

Download or read book Leben und Reisen der ersten englischen Seefahrer Drake Cavendish and Dampier written by and published by . This book was released on 1836 with total page 4 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Distribution of Cook Inlet Beluga Whales Delphinapterus Leucas in Winter written by Donald J. Hansen and published by . This book was released on 1999 with total page 92 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Aerial Surveys of Beluga Whales Delphinapterus Leucas in Cook Inlet Alaska June 2005 to 2012 written by Kim E. W. Shelden and published by . This book was released on 2013 with total page 122 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) has conducted aerial surveys of the beluga population in Cook Inlet, Alaska, each June and/or July since 1993. Results from 1993 to 2000 and 2001 to 2004 were published previously. The current document is a compilation of data from field reports for the subsequent years, from 2005 to 2012. Surveys during these year occurred 31 May-9 June 2005 (54.5 flight hours), 6-15 June 2006 (58.4 flight hours), 7-15 June 2007 (47.2 flight hours), 3-12 June 2008 (47.7 flight hours), 2-9 June 2009 (39.4 flight hours), 1-10 June 2010 (48.4 flight hours), 31 May-9 June 2011 (47.0 flight hours), and 29 May-7 June 2012 (53.0 flight hours). All surveys were flown in twin-engine, high-wing aircraft (i.e., an Aero Commander or Twin Otter) at a target altitude of 244 m (800 ft) and speed of 185 km/hour (100 knots), consistent with NMFS' surveys of Cook Inlet conducted in previous years. Tracklines were flown 1.4 km from the shoreline, along the entire Cook Inlet coast, including islands. Offshore transects were designed to run the length of Cook Inlet or in a sawtooth pattern across the inlet, minimizing overlap within each season, as well as between years. These aerial surveys effectively covered 25% to 34% of the total surface area of Cook Inlet in each of the 8 years and nearly 100% of the coastline (with the exception of 2007: 71%). In particular, most of the upper inlet, north of the Forelands where beluga whales are consistently found, was surveyed five to six times each year. Paired, independent observers searched on the coastal side of the plane, where virtually all beluga sightings occur, while a single observer searched on the offshore side. A computer operator/data recorder periodically monitored distance from the shoreline (1.4 km) with a clinometer (angle 10°). After finding beluga groups, a series of aerial passes allowed all four observers to each make four or more independent counts of every group, (i.e., typically 16 counts of each group conducted during 8 passes). In addition, whale groups were video recorded for later analysis and more precise counts in the laboratory. During the 8 years of surveys from 2005 to 2012, belugas were not seen in lower Cook Inlet (south of East and West Foreland) nor in the upper inlet south of North Foreland and Point Possession until 2012 when a group of at least seven belugas was observed headed toward West Foreland on 31 May. Before 1996, it was common to see beluga groups south of North Foreland in Trading Bay. Since the mid-1990s to early 2000s, only one or two beluga groups have been found in lower Cook Inlet south of East and West Foreland and none in the region between the Forelands and North Foreland. Groups of more than one or two whales have not been seen in the lower inlet since 1995. During the 2012 survey, this beluga group moved into the upper inlet and was observed in Trading Bay for the remainder of the survey (highest median count = 21 whales). The annual sums of medians from aerial counts provide a quick index of relative abundance, not corrected for estimates of whales missed and assuming there may be some exchange of whales between areas. Annual index counts from 2005 to 2012 (192, 153, 224, 126, 303, 291, 208, and 319, respectively) included the lowest (2008) and highest (2012) counts recorded since surveys began in 1993 (1993-2004 counts: 302, 276, 322, 287, 261, 192, 217, 184, 210, 181, 174, and 187).

Download or read book Distribution and Abundance of Cook Inlet Belukha Whales Delphinapterus Leucas in Winter written by and published by . This book was released on 1997 with total page 21 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A project management plan for a study that utilizes winter (February-March) aerial surveys of Cook Inlet to locate, count, and record behaviors of beluga whales in order to determine their distribution, relative abundance, and activities during the period of maximum extent of ice-coverage in the inlet.

Download or read book Aerial Surveys of Beluga Whales Delphinapterus Leucas in Cook Inlet Alaska June 2014 written by and published by . This book was released on 2015 with total page 55 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Detecting Changes in Population Trends for Cook Inlet Beluga Whales Delphinapterus Leucas Using Alternative Schedules for Aerial Surveys written by Roderick C. Hobbs and published by . This book was released on 2013 with total page 25 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Measuring population trends, and detecting a change in the trend, of Cook Inlet beluga whales (CIB), Delphinapterus leucas, has a specific role in the co-management agreement that determines harvest levels, and a more general application in the management of the population. Currently, an annual aerial survey schedule has provided abundance estimates from which growth trends for this population are determined. Under the harvest co-management agreement, the measured trend over a 10-year period is used to classify the population into one of three growth categories ('high', 'intermediate', or 'low'; Appendix). The growth category, along with the average abundance over the last 5-year period, is used to determine the number of takes allowed over the next 5-year hunting period (Appendix). For a more general application, we would like to be able to detect a change in the growth rate of the population that results from a change in the underlying life history parameters such as birth interval and rates of survival and identify the year that the change occurred"--Introduction.

Download or read book Detecting Changes in Population Trends for Cook Inlet Beluga Whales Delphinapterus Leucas Using Alternative Schedules for Aerial Surveys written by Roderick C. Hobbs and published by . This book was released on 2013 with total page 25 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Measuring population trends, and detecting a change in the trend, of Cook Inlet beluga whales (CIB), Delphinapterus leucas, has a specific role in the co-management agreement that determines harvest levels, and a more general application in the management of the population. Currently, an annual aerial survey schedule has provided abundance estimates from which growth trends for this population are determined. Under the harvest co-management agreement, the measured trend over a 10-year period is used to classify the population into one of three growth categories ('high', 'intermediate', or 'low'; Appendix). The growth category, along with the average abundance over the last 5-year period, is used to determine the number of takes allowed over the next 5-year hunting period (Appendix). For a more general application, we would like to be able to detect a change in the growth rate of the population that results from a change in the underlying life history parameters such as birth interval and rates of survival and identify the year that the change occurred"--Introduction.

Download or read book Marine Fisheries Review written by and published by . This book was released on 2015 with total page 444 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Federal Actions Associated with Management and Recovery of Cook Inlet Beluga Whales written by and published by . This book was released on 2003 with total page 204 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Beluga Whale Delphinapterus Leucas Satellite tagging and Health Assessments in Cook Inlet Alaska 1999 to 2002 written by Kim E. W. Shelden and published by . This book was released on 2018 with total page 226 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Cook Inlet beluga whales, Delphinapterus leucas, are currently listed as 'Endangered' under the U.S. Endangered Species Act (ESA). The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) began monitoring this population during the 1990s after it was added to the ESA Candidate Species list in 1988. Monitoring efforts included aerial surveys, and in 1995, the first attempts to capture and satellite-tag whales. Working with Canadian scientists and Alaska Native subsistence hunters in 1995 and 1997, tagging methods were adapted to conditions in Cook Inlet (muddy water, extreme tides, and extensive mudflats), culminating in successful capture and tracking of a whale during the summer of 1999. This was followed by three more years of capture and tagging studies during late summer. Tags were attached to 18 whales between 1999 and 2002. We do not have detailed accounts of these later tagging seasons (e.g., similar to the Appendix chronicling events from the 1997 and 1999 seasons in Ferrero et al. (2000)). Litzky et al. (2001) summarized field operations for the 2000 tagging season, but no reports exist for 2001 and 2002. A reanalysis of the tag dataset (Goetz et al. 2012) led to questions about the captures and how tags were programmed during this time period. Given the Cook Inlet population has continued to decline (Hobbs et al. 2015, Shelden et al. 2017), and was listed as an Endangered Distinct Population Segment under the ESA in October 2008 (NOAA 2008), future recommendations for tagging will depend on lessons learned from these past projects. Lacking detailed field reports, we consolidated information from multiple sources. Herein, we bring these varied sources together to provide a thorough documentation of the tagging operations undertaken in Cook Inlet each summer in 2000, 2001, and 2002. We include revised tag transmission timelines, monthly movement maps, dive behavior data, and ice-association graphs and maps for all whales (where applicable) tagged in 1999, 2000, 2001, and 2002. Whale locations were compared to sighting records (opportunistic and systematic) to determine how many whales were likely proximate to tagged whales. Animations of whale movements are available at http://www.afsc.noaa.gov/News/Cook_Inlet_Beluga_Range_Contracted.htm (accessed 17 Aug. 2016). Beginning with the 2000 season, each whale underwent a health assessment at the time of tagging. Results from laboratory analyses of the blood, blubber, skin, and mucus samples are presented. These include results obtained for hematology and serum chemistry values, hormones, DNA extractions, blubber lipid composition, fatty acid profiles, stable isotope ratios, and persistent organic pollutant profiles. We also provide a follow-up to the tagging study, describing captured and tagged whales that have been photo-documented since 2005 by the Cook Inlet Beluga Whale Photo-identification Project (https://www.cookinletbelugas.com/).

Download or read book Aerial Surveys of Beluga Whales in Cook Inlet Alaska June 1996 written by David J. Rugh and published by . This book was released on 1996* with total page 44 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Aerial Surveys of Beluga Whales in Cook Inlet Alaska June 1997 written by David J. Rugh and published by . This book was released on 1997* with total page 34 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Annual Calf Indices for Beluga Whales Delphinapterus Leucus in Cook Inlet Alaska 2006 2010 written by Roderick C. Hobbs and published by . This book was released on 2012 with total page 29 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Beluga whales (Delphinapterus leucas) in Cook Inlet, Alaska, form an isolated, depleted population that is now listed as endangered. One monitor of population health is through documenting calving rates. This study provides an index of the number of calves seen in Cook Inlet in August. Although the August survey is the focus for the calf index, given most births are thought to occur by late July, data collected during the annual June abundance survey are used for comparison. Analyses cover the period from 2006 to 2010 (a feasibility and techniques study occurred in August 2005). Systematic aerial surveys covered primary habitat for belugas in Cook Inlet, and paired video cameras provided images used in laboratory analysis. A total of 44 groups of whales from the August surveys were examined, of which most contained images of calves that were identified by color (darker than adults), small size, and proximity to adults. Among these whale groups, 688 usable images were found and examined. By rating inter-whale proximity in five categories, and estimating the ages represented, we developed criteria for recognizing young calves, an index that represents primarily young-of-the-year calves, and a second index that represents young-of-the-year, yearling calves, and some young juveniles. It appears that more calves were born in 2006 (12%) than in subsequent years (2007-2010 ranged from 0.5% to 3%). However, these calving rates have several potential biases and should be used for trend analysis only, not for absolute estimates of calf production. Overall, the 5-year average (2006-2010) birth rate was 3.6%. With mortality rates per year of roughly 3% or more (based on counts of beach-cast carcasses), this would suggest that the birth rate estimated here is probably at or below the replacement level necessary for recovery of this population.

Download or read book Aerial Surveys of Beluga Whales in Cook Inlet Alaska Between June 2001 and June 2002 written by David J. Rugh and published by . This book was released on 2004 with total page 26 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Aerial Surveys of Beluga Whales in Cook Inlet Alaska July 1995 written by David J. Rugh and published by . This book was released on 1995* with total page 26 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Preliminary Estimate of the Abundance of Beluga Whales in Cook Inlet Based on NOAA s June 1994 Aerial Survey and Tagging Experiments written by Roderick C. Hobbs and published by . This book was released on 1994* with total page 12 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: