Demography of an ice-obligate mysticete in a region of rapid environmental change
Antarctic minke whales ( Balaenoptera bonaerensis , AMW) are an abundant, ice-dependent species susceptible to rapid climatic changes occurring in parts of the Antarctic. Here, we used remote biopsy samples and estimates of length derived from unoccupied aircraft system (UAS) to characterize for the...
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2022
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Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rsos.220724 https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/pdf/10.1098/rsos.220724 https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full-xml/10.1098/rsos.220724 |
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crroyalsociety:10.1098/rsos.220724 2024-06-23T07:45:42+00:00 Demography of an ice-obligate mysticete in a region of rapid environmental change Pallin, L. Bierlich, K. C. Durban, J. Fearnbach, H. Savenko, O. Baker, C. S. Bell, E. Double, M. C. de la Mare, W. Goldbogen, J. Johnston, D. Kellar, N. Nichols, R. Nowacek, D. Read, A. J. Steel, D. Friedlaender, A. Office of Polar Programs the Dr. Earl H. Myers & Ethel M. Myers Oceanographic & Marine Biology Trust World Wildlife Fund The International Whaling Commission's Southern Ocean Research Partnership OneOcean Expeditions Hurtigruten cruises Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine's State Institution National Antarctic Scientific Center Special-Purpose Research Program in Antarctica NSF LTER State of the State Institution National Antarctic Scientific Center National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program UC Santa Cruz's Graduate Division and department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Lindblad Expeditions-National Geographic Conservation Fund Dr. Anita North 2022 http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rsos.220724 https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/pdf/10.1098/rsos.220724 https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full-xml/10.1098/rsos.220724 en eng The Royal Society https://royalsociety.org/journals/ethics-policies/data-sharing-mining/ Royal Society Open Science volume 9, issue 11 ISSN 2054-5703 journal-article 2022 crroyalsociety https://doi.org/10.1098/rsos.220724 2024-06-04T06:23:09Z Antarctic minke whales ( Balaenoptera bonaerensis , AMW) are an abundant, ice-dependent species susceptible to rapid climatic changes occurring in parts of the Antarctic. Here, we used remote biopsy samples and estimates of length derived from unoccupied aircraft system (UAS) to characterize for the first time the sex ratio, maturity, and pregnancy rates of AMWs around the Western Antarctic Peninsula (WAP). DNA profiling of 82 biopsy samples (2013–2020) identified 29 individual males and 40 individual females. Blubber progesterone levels indicated 59% of all sampled females were pregnant, irrespective of maturity. When corrected for sexual maturity, the median pregnancy rate was 92.3%, indicating that most mature females become pregnant each year. We measured 68 individuals by UAS (mean = 8.04 m) and estimated that 66.5% of females were mature. This study provides the first data on the demography of AMWs along the WAP and represents the first use of non-lethal approaches to studying this species. Furthermore, these results provide baselines against which future changes in population status can be assessed in this rapidly changing marine ecosystem. Article in Journal/Newspaper Antarc* Antarctic Antarctic Peninsula Balaenoptera bonaerensis The Royal Society Antarctic Antarctic Peninsula The Antarctic Royal Society Open Science 9 11 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
The Royal Society |
op_collection_id |
crroyalsociety |
language |
English |
description |
Antarctic minke whales ( Balaenoptera bonaerensis , AMW) are an abundant, ice-dependent species susceptible to rapid climatic changes occurring in parts of the Antarctic. Here, we used remote biopsy samples and estimates of length derived from unoccupied aircraft system (UAS) to characterize for the first time the sex ratio, maturity, and pregnancy rates of AMWs around the Western Antarctic Peninsula (WAP). DNA profiling of 82 biopsy samples (2013–2020) identified 29 individual males and 40 individual females. Blubber progesterone levels indicated 59% of all sampled females were pregnant, irrespective of maturity. When corrected for sexual maturity, the median pregnancy rate was 92.3%, indicating that most mature females become pregnant each year. We measured 68 individuals by UAS (mean = 8.04 m) and estimated that 66.5% of females were mature. This study provides the first data on the demography of AMWs along the WAP and represents the first use of non-lethal approaches to studying this species. Furthermore, these results provide baselines against which future changes in population status can be assessed in this rapidly changing marine ecosystem. |
author2 |
Office of Polar Programs the Dr. Earl H. Myers & Ethel M. Myers Oceanographic & Marine Biology Trust World Wildlife Fund The International Whaling Commission's Southern Ocean Research Partnership OneOcean Expeditions Hurtigruten cruises Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine's State Institution National Antarctic Scientific Center Special-Purpose Research Program in Antarctica NSF LTER State of the State Institution National Antarctic Scientific Center National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program UC Santa Cruz's Graduate Division and department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Lindblad Expeditions-National Geographic Conservation Fund Dr. Anita North |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Pallin, L. Bierlich, K. C. Durban, J. Fearnbach, H. Savenko, O. Baker, C. S. Bell, E. Double, M. C. de la Mare, W. Goldbogen, J. Johnston, D. Kellar, N. Nichols, R. Nowacek, D. Read, A. J. Steel, D. Friedlaender, A. |
spellingShingle |
Pallin, L. Bierlich, K. C. Durban, J. Fearnbach, H. Savenko, O. Baker, C. S. Bell, E. Double, M. C. de la Mare, W. Goldbogen, J. Johnston, D. Kellar, N. Nichols, R. Nowacek, D. Read, A. J. Steel, D. Friedlaender, A. Demography of an ice-obligate mysticete in a region of rapid environmental change |
author_facet |
Pallin, L. Bierlich, K. C. Durban, J. Fearnbach, H. Savenko, O. Baker, C. S. Bell, E. Double, M. C. de la Mare, W. Goldbogen, J. Johnston, D. Kellar, N. Nichols, R. Nowacek, D. Read, A. J. Steel, D. Friedlaender, A. |
author_sort |
Pallin, L. |
title |
Demography of an ice-obligate mysticete in a region of rapid environmental change |
title_short |
Demography of an ice-obligate mysticete in a region of rapid environmental change |
title_full |
Demography of an ice-obligate mysticete in a region of rapid environmental change |
title_fullStr |
Demography of an ice-obligate mysticete in a region of rapid environmental change |
title_full_unstemmed |
Demography of an ice-obligate mysticete in a region of rapid environmental change |
title_sort |
demography of an ice-obligate mysticete in a region of rapid environmental change |
publisher |
The Royal Society |
publishDate |
2022 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rsos.220724 https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/pdf/10.1098/rsos.220724 https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full-xml/10.1098/rsos.220724 |
geographic |
Antarctic Antarctic Peninsula The Antarctic |
geographic_facet |
Antarctic Antarctic Peninsula The Antarctic |
genre |
Antarc* Antarctic Antarctic Peninsula Balaenoptera bonaerensis |
genre_facet |
Antarc* Antarctic Antarctic Peninsula Balaenoptera bonaerensis |
op_source |
Royal Society Open Science volume 9, issue 11 ISSN 2054-5703 |
op_rights |
https://royalsociety.org/journals/ethics-policies/data-sharing-mining/ |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1098/rsos.220724 |
container_title |
Royal Society Open Science |
container_volume |
9 |
container_issue |
11 |
_version_ |
1802641976890228736 |