Marine mammal biodiversity and rare narwhal ( Monodon monoceros) observations near northern Ellesmere Island, Canada
Abstract A climate‐driven decline of sea ice has increased international interest in understanding the ecology of seldom studied high‐Arctic regions projected to retain the last remnants of summer sea ice. Arctic marine mammals are vulnerable to future environmental change due to their high dependen...
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crwiley:10.1002/ecs2.3534 2024-06-02T08:00:14+00:00 Marine mammal biodiversity and rare narwhal ( Monodon monoceros) observations near northern Ellesmere Island, Canada Carlyle, Cody G. Florko, Katie R. N. Young, Brent G. Yurkowski, David J. Michel, Christine Ferguson, Steven H. Fisheries and Oceans Canada Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada W. Garfield Weston Foundation 2021 http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.3534 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/ecs2.3534 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full-xml/10.1002/ecs2.3534 https://esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/ecs2.3534 en eng Wiley http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Ecosphere volume 12, issue 6 ISSN 2150-8925 2150-8925 journal-article 2021 crwiley https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.3534 2024-05-03T10:34:52Z Abstract A climate‐driven decline of sea ice has increased international interest in understanding the ecology of seldom studied high‐Arctic regions projected to retain the last remnants of summer sea ice. Arctic marine mammals are vulnerable to future environmental change due to their high dependence on sea ice. We completed aerial surveys in August 2019 to document the occurrence and location of marine mammals within the recently designated Tuvaijuittuq Marine Protected Area which acts as a last refuge for ice‐associated species. We present photographic evidence of narwhals ( Monodon monoceros ), Atlantic walruses ( Odobenus rosmarus ), bearded seals ( Erignathus barbatus ), and ringed seals ( Pusa hispida ) in Archer Fjord, northern Ellesmere Island, Nunavut, Canada (81°14′–81°49′ N). We discuss these observations in the context of historical records and more recent opportunistic sightings from the region to support the hypothesis of an expansion north of the currently accepted range of narwhal. The diversity and number of observations of marine mammals in Archer Fjord is a striking contrast to the relative scarcity of the rest of the surveyed region, with very few observations of ringed seals throughout the more northerly study area. Our observations highlight opportunities to further explore high‐latitude areas that may host unique marine mammal biodiversity in the region, including narwhal. Article in Journal/Newspaper Arctic marine mammals Arctic Ellesmere Island Erignathus barbatus Monodon monoceros narwhal* Nunavut Odobenus rosmarus Pusa hispida Sea ice walrus* Wiley Online Library Archer ENVELOPE(162.867,162.867,-76.850,-76.850) Arctic Canada Ellesmere Island Nunavut Ecosphere 12 6 |
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Open Polar |
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Wiley Online Library |
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crwiley |
language |
English |
description |
Abstract A climate‐driven decline of sea ice has increased international interest in understanding the ecology of seldom studied high‐Arctic regions projected to retain the last remnants of summer sea ice. Arctic marine mammals are vulnerable to future environmental change due to their high dependence on sea ice. We completed aerial surveys in August 2019 to document the occurrence and location of marine mammals within the recently designated Tuvaijuittuq Marine Protected Area which acts as a last refuge for ice‐associated species. We present photographic evidence of narwhals ( Monodon monoceros ), Atlantic walruses ( Odobenus rosmarus ), bearded seals ( Erignathus barbatus ), and ringed seals ( Pusa hispida ) in Archer Fjord, northern Ellesmere Island, Nunavut, Canada (81°14′–81°49′ N). We discuss these observations in the context of historical records and more recent opportunistic sightings from the region to support the hypothesis of an expansion north of the currently accepted range of narwhal. The diversity and number of observations of marine mammals in Archer Fjord is a striking contrast to the relative scarcity of the rest of the surveyed region, with very few observations of ringed seals throughout the more northerly study area. Our observations highlight opportunities to further explore high‐latitude areas that may host unique marine mammal biodiversity in the region, including narwhal. |
author2 |
Fisheries and Oceans Canada Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada W. Garfield Weston Foundation |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Carlyle, Cody G. Florko, Katie R. N. Young, Brent G. Yurkowski, David J. Michel, Christine Ferguson, Steven H. |
spellingShingle |
Carlyle, Cody G. Florko, Katie R. N. Young, Brent G. Yurkowski, David J. Michel, Christine Ferguson, Steven H. Marine mammal biodiversity and rare narwhal ( Monodon monoceros) observations near northern Ellesmere Island, Canada |
author_facet |
Carlyle, Cody G. Florko, Katie R. N. Young, Brent G. Yurkowski, David J. Michel, Christine Ferguson, Steven H. |
author_sort |
Carlyle, Cody G. |
title |
Marine mammal biodiversity and rare narwhal ( Monodon monoceros) observations near northern Ellesmere Island, Canada |
title_short |
Marine mammal biodiversity and rare narwhal ( Monodon monoceros) observations near northern Ellesmere Island, Canada |
title_full |
Marine mammal biodiversity and rare narwhal ( Monodon monoceros) observations near northern Ellesmere Island, Canada |
title_fullStr |
Marine mammal biodiversity and rare narwhal ( Monodon monoceros) observations near northern Ellesmere Island, Canada |
title_full_unstemmed |
Marine mammal biodiversity and rare narwhal ( Monodon monoceros) observations near northern Ellesmere Island, Canada |
title_sort |
marine mammal biodiversity and rare narwhal ( monodon monoceros) observations near northern ellesmere island, canada |
publisher |
Wiley |
publishDate |
2021 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.3534 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/ecs2.3534 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full-xml/10.1002/ecs2.3534 https://esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/ecs2.3534 |
long_lat |
ENVELOPE(162.867,162.867,-76.850,-76.850) |
geographic |
Archer Arctic Canada Ellesmere Island Nunavut |
geographic_facet |
Archer Arctic Canada Ellesmere Island Nunavut |
genre |
Arctic marine mammals Arctic Ellesmere Island Erignathus barbatus Monodon monoceros narwhal* Nunavut Odobenus rosmarus Pusa hispida Sea ice walrus* |
genre_facet |
Arctic marine mammals Arctic Ellesmere Island Erignathus barbatus Monodon monoceros narwhal* Nunavut Odobenus rosmarus Pusa hispida Sea ice walrus* |
op_source |
Ecosphere volume 12, issue 6 ISSN 2150-8925 2150-8925 |
op_rights |
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.3534 |
container_title |
Ecosphere |
container_volume |
12 |
container_issue |
6 |
_version_ |
1800744218846560256 |