Aerial Survey Estimates of Abundance of the Eastern Chukchi Sea Stock of Beluga Whales (Delphinapterus leucas) in 2012

The eastern Chukchi Sea (ECS) stock of beluga whales is one of three stocks in western Alaska that are co-managed by the National Marine Fisheries Service and the Alaska Beluga Whale Committee. Abundance of this stock was estimated as 3710 in 1991 from incomplete data. Analysis of data from satellite-linked time-depth recorders (SDRs) attached to belugas in summer concentration areas of the ECS and Beaufort Sea (BS) stocks provided an overview of beluga distribution and movements and allowed the identification of an area (140˚ W to 157˚ W in the BS) and a time period (19 July – 20 August) in which the distributions of the two stocks do not overlap. Aerial survey data were collected by the Aerial Surveys of Arctic Marine Mammals (ASAMM) project in that region and time period in 2012. We used those data in a line transect analysis that estimated there were 5547 (CV = 0.22) surface-visible belugas in the study area. Data from SDRs were used to develop correction factors to account for animals that were missed because they were either outside of the study area or diving too deep to be seen, resulting in a total abundance estimate of 20 752 (CV = 0.70). The average annual Alaska Native subsistence harvest from the ECS stock (57) is about 0.3% of the population estimate. Without data collected by the ASAMM project and from satellite-linked tags, this analysis would not have been possible. Additional surveys and tagging of ECS belugas are warranted.Le stock de bélugas de l’est de la mer des Tchouktches (EMT) figure parmi les trois stocks de l’ouest de l’Alaska à être gérés conjointement par le National Marine Fisheries Service et l’Alaska Beluga Whale Committee. À partir de données incomplètes, l’abondance de ce stock a été estimée à 3 710 en 1991. L’analyse des données recueillies à l’aide d’enregistreurs de profondeur temporelle satellitaires (SDR) fixés aux bélugas dans les zones de concentration estivales de l’EMT et de la mer de Beaufort (MB) a permis d’obtenir un aperçu de la répartition et du déplacement des bélugas ainsi que de cerner une zone (de 140˚ O à 157˚ O dans la MB) et une période (du 19 juillet au 20 août) pour lesquelles la répartition des deux stocks ne se chevauchent pas. Le projet Aerial Surveys of Arctic Marine Mammals (ASAMM) a permis de recueillir des données à partir de levés aériens pour la région et la période concernées en 2012. Grâce à une analyse de lignes interceptées, ces données ont permis d’estimer qu’il y avait 5 547 (CV = 0,22) bélugas visibles à la surface dans la zone à l’étude. Les données en provenance de SDR ont servi à mettre au point des facteurs de correction pour tenir compte des bélugas qui n’ont pas été captés, soit parce qu’ils se trouvaient en dehors de la zone visée par l’étude, soit parce qu’ils plongeaient trop loin pour être vus, ce qui s’est traduit par une estimation totale d’abondance de 20 752 (CV = 0,70) bélugas. La prise de subsistance annuelle moyenne de stock (57) par les Autochtones de l’Alaska dans l’EMT correspond à environ à 0,3 % de l’estimation de la population. Cette analyse n’aurait pu être possible sans les données prélevées par le projet ASAMM et les SDR. D’autres levés et l’étiquetage des bélugas de l’EMT s’imposent

Monitoring Alaskan Arctic shelf ecosystems through collaborative observation networks

© The Author(s), 2022. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License. The definitive version was published in Danielson, S. L., Grebmeier, J. M., Iken, K., Berchok, C., Britt, L., Dunton, K. H., Eisner, L., V. Farley, E., Fujiwara, A., Hauser, D. D. W., Itoh, M., Kikuchi, T., Kotwicki, S., Kuletz, K. J., Mordy, C. W., Nishino, S., Peralta-Ferriz, C., Pickart, R. S., Stabeno, P. S., Stafford. K. M., Whiting, A. V., & Woodgate, R. Monitoring Alaskan Arctic shelf ecosystems through collaborative observation networks. Oceanography, 35(2), (2022): 52, https://doi.org/10.5670/oceanog.2022.119.Ongoing scientific programs that monitor marine environmental and ecological systems and changes comprise an informal but collaborative, information-rich, and spatially extensive network for the Alaskan Arctic continental shelves. Such programs reflect contributions and priorities of regional, national, and international funding agencies, as well as private donors and communities. These science programs are operated by a variety of local, regional, state, and national agencies, and academic, Tribal, for-profit, and nongovernmental nonprofit entities. Efforts include research ship and autonomous vehicle surveys, year-long mooring deployments, and observations from coastal communities. Inter-program coordination allows cost-effective leveraging of field logistics and collected data into value-added information that fosters new insights unattainable by any single program operating alone. Coordination occurs at many levels, from discussions at marine mammal co-management meetings and interagency meetings to scientific symposia and data workshops. Together, the efforts represented by this collection of loosely linked long-term monitoring programs enable a biologically focused scientific foundation for understanding ecosystem responses to warming water temperatures and declining Arctic sea ice. Here, we introduce a variety of currently active monitoring efforts in the Alaskan Arctic marine realm that exemplify the above attributes.Funding sources include the following: ALTIMA: BOEM M09PG00016, M12PG00021, and M13PG00026; AMBON: NOPP-NA14NOS0120158 and NOPP-NA19NOS0120198; Bering Strait moorings: NSF-OPP-AON-PLR-1758565, NSF-OPP-PLR-1107106; BLE-LTER: NSF-OPP-1656026; CEO: NPRB-L36, ONR N000141712274 and N000142012413; DBO: NSF-AON-1917469 and NOAA-ARP CINAR-22309.07; HFR, AOOS Arctic glider, and Passive Acoustics at CEO and Bering Strait: NA16NOS0120027; WABC: NSF-OPP-1733564. JAMSTEC: partial support by ArCS Project JPMXD1300000000 and ArCS II Project JPMXD1420318865; Seabird surveys: BOEM M17PG00017, M17PG00039, and M10PG00050, and NPRB grants 637, B64, and B67. This publication was partially funded by the Cooperative Institute for Climate, Ocean, & Ecosystem Studies (CICOES) under NOAA Cooperative Agreement NA20OAR4320271, and represents contribution 2021-1163 to CICOES, EcoFOCI-1026, and 5315 to PMEL. This is NPRB publication ArcticIERP-43

Data from: Use of glacial fronts by narwhals (Monodon monoceros) in West Greenland

Glacial fronts are important summer habitat for narwhals (Monodon monoceros), however, no studies have quantified which glacial properties attract whales. We investigated the importance of glacial habitats using telemetry data from n=15 whales in September 1993-1994 and 2006-2007 in Melville Bay, West Greenland. For 41 marine-terminating glaciers, we estimated 1) narwhal presence/absence, 2) number of 24 h periods spent at glaciers, and 3) the fraction of narwhals that visited each glacier (at 5, 7, and 10 km) in autumn. We also compiled data on glacier width, ice thickness, ice velocity, front advance/retreat, area and extent of iceberg discharge, bathymetry, subglacial freshwater runoff, and sediment flux. Narwhal use of glacial habitats expanded in the 2000s likely due to reduced summer fast ice and later fall freeze-up. Using a generalized multivariate framework, glacier ice front thickness (vertical height in the water column) was a significant covariate in all models. A negative relationship with glacier velocity was included in several models and glacier front width was a significant predictor in the 2000s. Results suggest narwhals prefer glaciers with potential for higher ambient freshwater melt over glaciers with silt-laden discharge. This may represent a preference for summer freshwater habitat, similar to other Arctic monodontids

Marine mammal and seabird summer distribution and abundance in the fjords of northeast Cumberland Sound of Baffin Island, Nunavut, Canada

Critical baseline population knowledge is required to properly assess the status of marine mammal and bird populations in the Canadian Arctic and the effects of climate trends on them. To address this need for one significant Arctic region, a boat-based marine mammal and seabird transect survey was conducted in Cumberland Sound fjords during summer 2008. During 173 km effort (20 h), 959 birds were recorded representing at least nine species which were dominated by Common Eiders (Somateria mollissima borealis), Iceland or Glaucous Gulls (Larus glaucoides or Larus hyperboreus), and Black Guillemots (Cepphus grylle), in addition to less common birds including Red-throated and Common Loons (Gavia stellata and Gavia immer), Northern Fulmars (Fulmarus glacialis), and Great or Lesser Black-backed Gulls (Larus marinus or Larus fuscus). Of these, 480 birds were observed on the water in one event consisting of eiders and gulls which may have biased encounter rates. Of 101 marine mammal sightings, four species were represented: 73 harp seals (Pagophilus groenlandicus), 13 beluga whales (Delphinapterus leucas), nine bowhead whales (Balaena mysticetus), five ringed seals (Pusa hispida), and one unidentified pinniped. A pod of four killer whales (Orcinus orca) was observed off-effort in Pangnirtung Fjord during the survey period. This pilot study provided the first estimates of relative abundance for marine mammals and seabirds in the study area to aid in developing future surveys. © 2010 Springer-Verlag

Laidre et al. glacier database

These data are the physical variables that describe the properties of each glacier front in NW Greenland, as used in Laidre et al. Biology Letters