Integration of oceanographic data with fin whale calling presence in the Bering Sea

Srishti Dasarathy, NOAA NMML, NOAA Ernest F. Hollings Scholar, Chapel Hill, NC, United States; The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, Catherine Berchok, NOAA NMML, WA, United States, Phyllis J Stabeno, NOAA Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory, Seattle, WA, United States and Jessica Crance, NOAA NMML
Abstract:
Through the integration of environmental data with passive acoustic monitoring, it is possible to investigate whether fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus) presence is influenced by environmental factors. Fin whale calling activity and concurrent environmental variables were analyzed from May 2012 to September 2013. These data were collected from passive acoustic and oceanographic moorings located in the Bering Sea. Fin whale calling presence was strongly correlated with three of the eight parameters analyzed: ice concentration, chlorophyll (a proxy for primary production), and temperature. Fin whale calling was negatively correlated with ice concentration; as ice concentration increased, fin whale calling decreased. A strong positive correlation was observed between fin whale calling and chlorophyll. A large spike in chlorophyll concentration in July 2013 preceded fin whale calling at the northern location. Fin whale calling also increased concurrently with a mixing of the water column (evidenced in the temperature data) at a depth of 30 to 50m. Peaks in chlorophyll concentration occurred after the mixing of the water column, and followed an increase in fin whale calling. These data illustrate the relationship between fin whale presence and environmental variables in the Bering Sea. These correlations may be used to predict the impact of climate change on fin whale populations in the rapidly changing environment of the Bering Sea.
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