STOCK DEFINITION AND GEOGRAPHIC RANGE

• Other Authors: The Pennsylvania State University CiteSeerX Archives
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: 1997
• Subjects: Northwest Atlantic; Sowerby's beaked whale
• Online Access: http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.434.612; http://www.nefsc.noaa.gov/publications/tm/tm114/pdfs/58.pdf

Within the genus Mesoplodon, there are four species of beaked whales that reside in the northwest Atlantic. These include True's beaked whale, Mesoplodon mirus; Gervais ' beaked whale, M. europaeus; Blainville's beaked whale, M. densirostris; and Sowerby's beaked whale, M. bidens. These species are difficult to identify to the species level at sea; therefore, much of the available characterization for beaked whales is to genus level only. Stock structure for each species is unknown. The distribution of Mesoplodon spp. in the northwest Atlantic is known principally from stranding records (Mead 1989). Off the northeast U.S. coast, beaked whale (Mesoplodon spp.) sightings have occurred principally along the southern edge of Georges Bank (CeTAP, 1982; Waring et al. 1992; Palka and Waring, in prep.). Most sightings were in late spring and summer. In addition, beaked whales were also sighted in Gulf