Integrating technologies provides insight into the subsurface foraging behaviour of a humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) feeding on walleye pollock (Gadus chalcogrammus) in Juan de Fuca Strait, Canada
Subsurface foraging is an important proportion of the activity budget of rorqual whales, yet information on their behaviour underwater remains challenging to obtain. Rorquals are assumed to feed throughout the water column and to select prey as a function of depth, availability and density, but ther...
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:1e9d3c636d14485a8211f44801c165eb 2023-05-15T16:35:54+02:00 Integrating technologies provides insight into the subsurface foraging behaviour of a humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) feeding on walleye pollock (Gadus chalcogrammus) in Juan de Fuca Strait, Canada Rhonda Reidy Stéphane Gauthier Thomas Doniol-Valcroze Matthew A. Lemay Rute B. G. Clemente-Carvalho Laura L. E. Cowen Francis Juanes 2023-01-01T00:00:00Z https://doaj.org/article/1e9d3c636d14485a8211f44801c165eb EN eng Public Library of Science (PLoS) https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9987809/?tool=EBI https://doaj.org/toc/1932-6203 1932-6203 https://doaj.org/article/1e9d3c636d14485a8211f44801c165eb PLoS ONE, Vol 18, Iss 3 (2023) Medicine R Science Q article 2023 ftdoajarticles 2023-03-12T01:32:31Z Subsurface foraging is an important proportion of the activity budget of rorqual whales, yet information on their behaviour underwater remains challenging to obtain. Rorquals are assumed to feed throughout the water column and to select prey as a function of depth, availability and density, but there remain limitations in the precise identification of targeted prey. Current data on rorqual foraging in western Canadian waters have thus been limited to observations of prey species amenable to surface feeding, such as euphausiids and Pacific herring (Clupea pallasii), with no information on deeper alternative prey sources. We measured the foraging behaviour of a humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) in Juan de Fuca Strait, British Columbia, using three complimentary methods: whale-borne tag data, acoustic prey mapping, and fecal sub-sampling. Acoustically detected prey layers were near the seafloor and consistent with dense schools of walleye pollock (Gadus chalcogrammus) distributed above more diffuse aggregations of pollock. Analysis of a fecal sample from the tagged whale confirmed that it had been feeding on pollock. Integrating the dive profile with the prey data revealed that the whale’s foraging effort followed the general pattern of areal prey density, wherein the whale had a higher lunge-feeding rate at the highest prey abundance and stopped feeding when prey became limited. Our findings of a humpback whale feeding on seasonally energy-dense fish like walleye pollock, which are potentially abundant in British Columbia, suggests that pollock may be an important prey source for this rapidly growing whale population. This result is informative when assessing regional fishing activities for semi-pelagic species as well as the whales’ vulnerability to fishing gear entanglements and feeding disturbances during a narrow window of prey acquisition. Article in Journal/Newspaper Humpback Whale Megaptera novaeangliae Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles Canada Pacific British Columbia ENVELOPE(-125.003,-125.003,54.000,54.000) Rorqual ENVELOPE(-62.311,-62.311,-65.648,-65.648) |
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Open Polar |
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Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
op_collection_id |
ftdoajarticles |
language |
English |
topic |
Medicine R Science Q |
spellingShingle |
Medicine R Science Q Rhonda Reidy Stéphane Gauthier Thomas Doniol-Valcroze Matthew A. Lemay Rute B. G. Clemente-Carvalho Laura L. E. Cowen Francis Juanes Integrating technologies provides insight into the subsurface foraging behaviour of a humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) feeding on walleye pollock (Gadus chalcogrammus) in Juan de Fuca Strait, Canada |
topic_facet |
Medicine R Science Q |
description |
Subsurface foraging is an important proportion of the activity budget of rorqual whales, yet information on their behaviour underwater remains challenging to obtain. Rorquals are assumed to feed throughout the water column and to select prey as a function of depth, availability and density, but there remain limitations in the precise identification of targeted prey. Current data on rorqual foraging in western Canadian waters have thus been limited to observations of prey species amenable to surface feeding, such as euphausiids and Pacific herring (Clupea pallasii), with no information on deeper alternative prey sources. We measured the foraging behaviour of a humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) in Juan de Fuca Strait, British Columbia, using three complimentary methods: whale-borne tag data, acoustic prey mapping, and fecal sub-sampling. Acoustically detected prey layers were near the seafloor and consistent with dense schools of walleye pollock (Gadus chalcogrammus) distributed above more diffuse aggregations of pollock. Analysis of a fecal sample from the tagged whale confirmed that it had been feeding on pollock. Integrating the dive profile with the prey data revealed that the whale’s foraging effort followed the general pattern of areal prey density, wherein the whale had a higher lunge-feeding rate at the highest prey abundance and stopped feeding when prey became limited. Our findings of a humpback whale feeding on seasonally energy-dense fish like walleye pollock, which are potentially abundant in British Columbia, suggests that pollock may be an important prey source for this rapidly growing whale population. This result is informative when assessing regional fishing activities for semi-pelagic species as well as the whales’ vulnerability to fishing gear entanglements and feeding disturbances during a narrow window of prey acquisition. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Rhonda Reidy Stéphane Gauthier Thomas Doniol-Valcroze Matthew A. Lemay Rute B. G. Clemente-Carvalho Laura L. E. Cowen Francis Juanes |
author_facet |
Rhonda Reidy Stéphane Gauthier Thomas Doniol-Valcroze Matthew A. Lemay Rute B. G. Clemente-Carvalho Laura L. E. Cowen Francis Juanes |
author_sort |
Rhonda Reidy |
title |
Integrating technologies provides insight into the subsurface foraging behaviour of a humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) feeding on walleye pollock (Gadus chalcogrammus) in Juan de Fuca Strait, Canada |
title_short |
Integrating technologies provides insight into the subsurface foraging behaviour of a humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) feeding on walleye pollock (Gadus chalcogrammus) in Juan de Fuca Strait, Canada |
title_full |
Integrating technologies provides insight into the subsurface foraging behaviour of a humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) feeding on walleye pollock (Gadus chalcogrammus) in Juan de Fuca Strait, Canada |
title_fullStr |
Integrating technologies provides insight into the subsurface foraging behaviour of a humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) feeding on walleye pollock (Gadus chalcogrammus) in Juan de Fuca Strait, Canada |
title_full_unstemmed |
Integrating technologies provides insight into the subsurface foraging behaviour of a humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) feeding on walleye pollock (Gadus chalcogrammus) in Juan de Fuca Strait, Canada |
title_sort |
integrating technologies provides insight into the subsurface foraging behaviour of a humpback whale (megaptera novaeangliae) feeding on walleye pollock (gadus chalcogrammus) in juan de fuca strait, canada |
publisher |
Public Library of Science (PLoS) |
publishDate |
2023 |
url |
https://doaj.org/article/1e9d3c636d14485a8211f44801c165eb |
long_lat |
ENVELOPE(-125.003,-125.003,54.000,54.000) ENVELOPE(-62.311,-62.311,-65.648,-65.648) |
geographic |
Canada Pacific British Columbia Rorqual |
geographic_facet |
Canada Pacific British Columbia Rorqual |
genre |
Humpback Whale Megaptera novaeangliae |
genre_facet |
Humpback Whale Megaptera novaeangliae |
op_source |
PLoS ONE, Vol 18, Iss 3 (2023) |
op_relation |
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9987809/?tool=EBI https://doaj.org/toc/1932-6203 1932-6203 https://doaj.org/article/1e9d3c636d14485a8211f44801c165eb |
_version_ |
1766026218498424832 |