Fin Whale ( Balaenoptera physalus ) in the Ligurian Sea: Preliminary Study on Acoustics Demonstrates Their Regular Occurrence in Autumn
The patterns of movement of the fin whale ( Balaenoptera physalus (Linnaeus, 1758)) in the Mediterranean Sea are still a matter of debate. Feeding aggregations are well known in the Corso-Liguro-Provençal Basin from July to September, but little is known for the autumn and winter seasons. Passive ac...
Published in: | Journal of Marine Science and Engineering |
---|---|
Main Authors: | , , , , , |
Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
Language: | English |
Published: |
MDPI AG
2021
|
Subjects: | |
Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.3390/jmse9090966 https://doaj.org/article/52abe29352114ee385a032303c51cb99 |
id |
ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:52abe29352114ee385a032303c51cb99 |
---|---|
record_format |
openpolar |
spelling |
ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:52abe29352114ee385a032303c51cb99 2023-05-15T15:36:32+02:00 Fin Whale ( Balaenoptera physalus ) in the Ligurian Sea: Preliminary Study on Acoustics Demonstrates Their Regular Occurrence in Autumn Laura Pintore Virginia Sciacca Salvatore Viola Cristina Giacoma Elena Papale Giacomo Giorli 2021-09-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.3390/jmse9090966 https://doaj.org/article/52abe29352114ee385a032303c51cb99 EN eng MDPI AG https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1312/9/9/966 https://doaj.org/toc/2077-1312 doi:10.3390/jmse9090966 2077-1312 https://doaj.org/article/52abe29352114ee385a032303c51cb99 Journal of Marine Science and Engineering, Vol 9, Iss 966, p 966 (2021) fin whale Balaenoptera physalus Mediterranean Sea Ligurian Sea acoustic detection Naval architecture. Shipbuilding. Marine engineering VM1-989 Oceanography GC1-1581 article 2021 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.3390/jmse9090966 2022-12-31T06:02:33Z The patterns of movement of the fin whale ( Balaenoptera physalus (Linnaeus, 1758)) in the Mediterranean Sea are still a matter of debate. Feeding aggregations are well known in the Corso-Liguro-Provençal Basin from July to September, but little is known for the autumn and winter seasons. Passive acoustic monitoring (PAM) was implemented in the Ligurian Sea to overcome this gap and to investigate the temporal and spatial variation of fin whale acoustic presence. From July to December 2011, five autonomous recorders were deployed at between 700 and 900 m depths. Fin whale calls were automatically detected almost every day, with higher vocalization rates in October, November, and December. Furthermore, daily vocalization rates were higher during light hours, and closer to the coast. These outcomes suggest that not all the individuals migrate, staying in the area also during autumn for feeding or breeding purposes. The dial cycle of vocalization might be related to feeding activities and zooplankton vertical migration, whereas the proximity to the coast can be explained by the morphology of the area that promotes the upwelling system. Although this work only represents a six-month period, certainly it suggests the need for a larger spatial and temporal PAM effort, crucial for species management and for mitigating possible impact of anthropogenic activities at the basin level. Article in Journal/Newspaper Balaenoptera physalus Fin whale Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles Journal of Marine Science and Engineering 9 9 966 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
op_collection_id |
ftdoajarticles |
language |
English |
topic |
fin whale Balaenoptera physalus Mediterranean Sea Ligurian Sea acoustic detection Naval architecture. Shipbuilding. Marine engineering VM1-989 Oceanography GC1-1581 |
spellingShingle |
fin whale Balaenoptera physalus Mediterranean Sea Ligurian Sea acoustic detection Naval architecture. Shipbuilding. Marine engineering VM1-989 Oceanography GC1-1581 Laura Pintore Virginia Sciacca Salvatore Viola Cristina Giacoma Elena Papale Giacomo Giorli Fin Whale ( Balaenoptera physalus ) in the Ligurian Sea: Preliminary Study on Acoustics Demonstrates Their Regular Occurrence in Autumn |
topic_facet |
fin whale Balaenoptera physalus Mediterranean Sea Ligurian Sea acoustic detection Naval architecture. Shipbuilding. Marine engineering VM1-989 Oceanography GC1-1581 |
description |
The patterns of movement of the fin whale ( Balaenoptera physalus (Linnaeus, 1758)) in the Mediterranean Sea are still a matter of debate. Feeding aggregations are well known in the Corso-Liguro-Provençal Basin from July to September, but little is known for the autumn and winter seasons. Passive acoustic monitoring (PAM) was implemented in the Ligurian Sea to overcome this gap and to investigate the temporal and spatial variation of fin whale acoustic presence. From July to December 2011, five autonomous recorders were deployed at between 700 and 900 m depths. Fin whale calls were automatically detected almost every day, with higher vocalization rates in October, November, and December. Furthermore, daily vocalization rates were higher during light hours, and closer to the coast. These outcomes suggest that not all the individuals migrate, staying in the area also during autumn for feeding or breeding purposes. The dial cycle of vocalization might be related to feeding activities and zooplankton vertical migration, whereas the proximity to the coast can be explained by the morphology of the area that promotes the upwelling system. Although this work only represents a six-month period, certainly it suggests the need for a larger spatial and temporal PAM effort, crucial for species management and for mitigating possible impact of anthropogenic activities at the basin level. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Laura Pintore Virginia Sciacca Salvatore Viola Cristina Giacoma Elena Papale Giacomo Giorli |
author_facet |
Laura Pintore Virginia Sciacca Salvatore Viola Cristina Giacoma Elena Papale Giacomo Giorli |
author_sort |
Laura Pintore |
title |
Fin Whale ( Balaenoptera physalus ) in the Ligurian Sea: Preliminary Study on Acoustics Demonstrates Their Regular Occurrence in Autumn |
title_short |
Fin Whale ( Balaenoptera physalus ) in the Ligurian Sea: Preliminary Study on Acoustics Demonstrates Their Regular Occurrence in Autumn |
title_full |
Fin Whale ( Balaenoptera physalus ) in the Ligurian Sea: Preliminary Study on Acoustics Demonstrates Their Regular Occurrence in Autumn |
title_fullStr |
Fin Whale ( Balaenoptera physalus ) in the Ligurian Sea: Preliminary Study on Acoustics Demonstrates Their Regular Occurrence in Autumn |
title_full_unstemmed |
Fin Whale ( Balaenoptera physalus ) in the Ligurian Sea: Preliminary Study on Acoustics Demonstrates Their Regular Occurrence in Autumn |
title_sort |
fin whale ( balaenoptera physalus ) in the ligurian sea: preliminary study on acoustics demonstrates their regular occurrence in autumn |
publisher |
MDPI AG |
publishDate |
2021 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.3390/jmse9090966 https://doaj.org/article/52abe29352114ee385a032303c51cb99 |
genre |
Balaenoptera physalus Fin whale |
genre_facet |
Balaenoptera physalus Fin whale |
op_source |
Journal of Marine Science and Engineering, Vol 9, Iss 966, p 966 (2021) |
op_relation |
https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1312/9/9/966 https://doaj.org/toc/2077-1312 doi:10.3390/jmse9090966 2077-1312 https://doaj.org/article/52abe29352114ee385a032303c51cb99 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.3390/jmse9090966 |
container_title |
Journal of Marine Science and Engineering |
container_volume |
9 |
container_issue |
9 |
container_start_page |
966 |
_version_ |
1766366897901666304 |