An assessment of sperm whale occurrence and social structure off São Miguel Island, Azores using fluke and dorsal identification photographs
Abstract Female and immature sperm whales form stable social units in tropical to subtropical waters. One such area is the Azores archipelago, where details of their year‐round occurrence and social organization are not well known. We used year‐round sightings data collected from whale watching vess...
Published in: | Marine Mammal Science |
---|---|
Main Authors: | , |
Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
Language: | English |
Published: |
Wiley
2019
|
Subjects: | |
Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/mms.12617 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/mms.12617 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full-xml/10.1111/mms.12617 |
id |
crwiley:10.1111/mms.12617 |
---|---|
record_format |
openpolar |
spelling |
crwiley:10.1111/mms.12617 2024-09-15T18:37:32+00:00 An assessment of sperm whale occurrence and social structure off São Miguel Island, Azores using fluke and dorsal identification photographs van der Linde, Miranda L. Eriksson, Ida K. 2019 http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/mms.12617 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/mms.12617 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full-xml/10.1111/mms.12617 en eng Wiley http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/termsAndConditions#vor Marine Mammal Science volume 36, issue 1, page 47-65 ISSN 0824-0469 1748-7692 journal-article 2019 crwiley https://doi.org/10.1111/mms.12617 2024-08-09T04:24:58Z Abstract Female and immature sperm whales form stable social units in tropical to subtropical waters. One such area is the Azores archipelago, where details of their year‐round occurrence and social organization are not well known. We used year‐round sightings data collected from whale watching vessels to assess sperm whale occurrence and social structure off São Miguel Island, Azores from 2010 to 2017. Individuals were photo‐identified by their flukes ( n = 393) and dorsal pigmentation marks were examined to explore their use in assisting with reidentifications. Of all cataloged whales, 78.8% were sufficiently distinctive to be reidentified from dorsal pigmentation patterns. Associations between individuals were analyzed to determine social structure and delineate social units. We identified 12 units comprising 2–13 members that had stable, and perhaps preferred associations for periods up to the eight years of the study. Preferences between some pairs of units may exist, but more research is required to better understand dynamics within and between units. This local scale study is an important contributor to our knowledge of geographic variation on a global scale. We recommend making use of all available information from the entire archipelago, to further increase our understanding of sperm social organization in the Azores. Article in Journal/Newspaper Sperm whale Wiley Online Library Marine Mammal Science 36 1 47 65 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Wiley Online Library |
op_collection_id |
crwiley |
language |
English |
description |
Abstract Female and immature sperm whales form stable social units in tropical to subtropical waters. One such area is the Azores archipelago, where details of their year‐round occurrence and social organization are not well known. We used year‐round sightings data collected from whale watching vessels to assess sperm whale occurrence and social structure off São Miguel Island, Azores from 2010 to 2017. Individuals were photo‐identified by their flukes ( n = 393) and dorsal pigmentation marks were examined to explore their use in assisting with reidentifications. Of all cataloged whales, 78.8% were sufficiently distinctive to be reidentified from dorsal pigmentation patterns. Associations between individuals were analyzed to determine social structure and delineate social units. We identified 12 units comprising 2–13 members that had stable, and perhaps preferred associations for periods up to the eight years of the study. Preferences between some pairs of units may exist, but more research is required to better understand dynamics within and between units. This local scale study is an important contributor to our knowledge of geographic variation on a global scale. We recommend making use of all available information from the entire archipelago, to further increase our understanding of sperm social organization in the Azores. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
van der Linde, Miranda L. Eriksson, Ida K. |
spellingShingle |
van der Linde, Miranda L. Eriksson, Ida K. An assessment of sperm whale occurrence and social structure off São Miguel Island, Azores using fluke and dorsal identification photographs |
author_facet |
van der Linde, Miranda L. Eriksson, Ida K. |
author_sort |
van der Linde, Miranda L. |
title |
An assessment of sperm whale occurrence and social structure off São Miguel Island, Azores using fluke and dorsal identification photographs |
title_short |
An assessment of sperm whale occurrence and social structure off São Miguel Island, Azores using fluke and dorsal identification photographs |
title_full |
An assessment of sperm whale occurrence and social structure off São Miguel Island, Azores using fluke and dorsal identification photographs |
title_fullStr |
An assessment of sperm whale occurrence and social structure off São Miguel Island, Azores using fluke and dorsal identification photographs |
title_full_unstemmed |
An assessment of sperm whale occurrence and social structure off São Miguel Island, Azores using fluke and dorsal identification photographs |
title_sort |
assessment of sperm whale occurrence and social structure off são miguel island, azores using fluke and dorsal identification photographs |
publisher |
Wiley |
publishDate |
2019 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/mms.12617 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/mms.12617 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full-xml/10.1111/mms.12617 |
genre |
Sperm whale |
genre_facet |
Sperm whale |
op_source |
Marine Mammal Science volume 36, issue 1, page 47-65 ISSN 0824-0469 1748-7692 |
op_rights |
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/termsAndConditions#vor |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1111/mms.12617 |
container_title |
Marine Mammal Science |
container_volume |
36 |
container_issue |
1 |
container_start_page |
47 |
op_container_end_page |
65 |
_version_ |
1810481916949823488 |