Diving behaviour of narwhals ( Monodon monoceros ) on their summer grounds
Three adult female narwhals from the population that summers in the sheltered waters of northern Baffin Island, Canada, were fitted with satellite-linked UHF radio packages. The units logged and transmitted diving and swim-speed data and revealed the location of the study animals for periods of up t...
Published in: | Canadian Journal of Zoology |
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Canadian Science Publishing
1994
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crcansciencepubl:10.1139/z94-015 2023-12-17T10:27:36+01:00 Diving behaviour of narwhals ( Monodon monoceros ) on their summer grounds Martin, A. R. Kingsley, M. C. S. Ramsay, M. A. 1994 http://dx.doi.org/10.1139/z94-015 http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/doi/pdf/10.1139/z94-015 en eng Canadian Science Publishing http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/page/about/CorporateTextAndDataMining Canadian Journal of Zoology volume 72, issue 1, page 118-125 ISSN 0008-4301 1480-3283 Animal Science and Zoology Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics journal-article 1994 crcansciencepubl https://doi.org/10.1139/z94-015 2023-11-19T13:39:09Z Three adult female narwhals from the population that summers in the sheltered waters of northern Baffin Island, Canada, were fitted with satellite-linked UHF radio packages. The units logged and transmitted diving and swim-speed data and revealed the location of the study animals for periods of up to 19 days. Most diving activity was in the top 40 m and bottom 40 m of the water column. Shallow dives were characterized by low rates of descent and ascent (<0.5 m∙s −1 ), short submersions, and frequent changes of vertical direction. Deep dives were normally to, or near to, the seabed in depths of up to 257 m, and involved both faster rates of vertical movement (1–2 m∙s −1 ) and longer periods underwater (up to 15.1 min). Midwater dives were intermediate in all respects. Deeper dives were of a characteristic "square" profile and provided an average of 7 min at the chosen depth, representing 57% of the time submerged. No dives were demonstrably longer than the estimated aerobic dive limit for this species. Activity at depth, including rapid swimming and many changes of vertical direction, was indicative of foraging and consistent with a diet of many small prey items. Overall, a relatively small proportion of time was devoted to presumed foraging activity, suggesting either that feeding is a low priority at this time of year or that the whales' nutritional needs could be easily met by the food stocks available. Article in Journal/Newspaper Baffin Island Baffin Monodon monoceros narwhal* Canadian Science Publishing (via Crossref) Baffin Island Canada Canadian Journal of Zoology 72 1 118 125 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Canadian Science Publishing (via Crossref) |
op_collection_id |
crcansciencepubl |
language |
English |
topic |
Animal Science and Zoology Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics |
spellingShingle |
Animal Science and Zoology Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics Martin, A. R. Kingsley, M. C. S. Ramsay, M. A. Diving behaviour of narwhals ( Monodon monoceros ) on their summer grounds |
topic_facet |
Animal Science and Zoology Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics |
description |
Three adult female narwhals from the population that summers in the sheltered waters of northern Baffin Island, Canada, were fitted with satellite-linked UHF radio packages. The units logged and transmitted diving and swim-speed data and revealed the location of the study animals for periods of up to 19 days. Most diving activity was in the top 40 m and bottom 40 m of the water column. Shallow dives were characterized by low rates of descent and ascent (<0.5 m∙s −1 ), short submersions, and frequent changes of vertical direction. Deep dives were normally to, or near to, the seabed in depths of up to 257 m, and involved both faster rates of vertical movement (1–2 m∙s −1 ) and longer periods underwater (up to 15.1 min). Midwater dives were intermediate in all respects. Deeper dives were of a characteristic "square" profile and provided an average of 7 min at the chosen depth, representing 57% of the time submerged. No dives were demonstrably longer than the estimated aerobic dive limit for this species. Activity at depth, including rapid swimming and many changes of vertical direction, was indicative of foraging and consistent with a diet of many small prey items. Overall, a relatively small proportion of time was devoted to presumed foraging activity, suggesting either that feeding is a low priority at this time of year or that the whales' nutritional needs could be easily met by the food stocks available. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Martin, A. R. Kingsley, M. C. S. Ramsay, M. A. |
author_facet |
Martin, A. R. Kingsley, M. C. S. Ramsay, M. A. |
author_sort |
Martin, A. R. |
title |
Diving behaviour of narwhals ( Monodon monoceros ) on their summer grounds |
title_short |
Diving behaviour of narwhals ( Monodon monoceros ) on their summer grounds |
title_full |
Diving behaviour of narwhals ( Monodon monoceros ) on their summer grounds |
title_fullStr |
Diving behaviour of narwhals ( Monodon monoceros ) on their summer grounds |
title_full_unstemmed |
Diving behaviour of narwhals ( Monodon monoceros ) on their summer grounds |
title_sort |
diving behaviour of narwhals ( monodon monoceros ) on their summer grounds |
publisher |
Canadian Science Publishing |
publishDate |
1994 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1139/z94-015 http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/doi/pdf/10.1139/z94-015 |
geographic |
Baffin Island Canada |
geographic_facet |
Baffin Island Canada |
genre |
Baffin Island Baffin Monodon monoceros narwhal* |
genre_facet |
Baffin Island Baffin Monodon monoceros narwhal* |
op_source |
Canadian Journal of Zoology volume 72, issue 1, page 118-125 ISSN 0008-4301 1480-3283 |
op_rights |
http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/page/about/CorporateTextAndDataMining |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1139/z94-015 |
container_title |
Canadian Journal of Zoology |
container_volume |
72 |
container_issue |
1 |
container_start_page |
118 |
op_container_end_page |
125 |
_version_ |
1785579486460248064 |