Feeding Hotspots and Distribution of Fin and Humpback Whales in the Norwegian Sea From 2013 to 2018
Fin whales (Balaenoptera physalus) and humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) are commonly found in the Norwegian Sea during the summer months. Records from around 1995 to 2004 show that their distribution patterns were mainly associated with those of macro-zooplankton. More recent studies conduct...
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Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2021.632720 https://doaj.org/article/e26dcb6ebf6e43b5b25779477f28cb75 |
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:e26dcb6ebf6e43b5b25779477f28cb75 2023-05-15T15:36:42+02:00 Feeding Hotspots and Distribution of Fin and Humpback Whales in the Norwegian Sea From 2013 to 2018 Sunniva Løviknes Knut H. Jensen Bjørn A. Krafft Valantine Anthonypillai Leif Nøttestad 2021-02-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2021.632720 https://doaj.org/article/e26dcb6ebf6e43b5b25779477f28cb75 EN eng Frontiers Media S.A. https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmars.2021.632720/full https://doaj.org/toc/2296-7745 2296-7745 doi:10.3389/fmars.2021.632720 https://doaj.org/article/e26dcb6ebf6e43b5b25779477f28cb75 Frontiers in Marine Science, Vol 8 (2021) cetacean distribution feeding ecology site fidelity plasticity pelagic fish Science Q General. Including nature conservation geographical distribution QH1-199.5 article 2021 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2021.632720 2022-12-31T15:44:04Z Fin whales (Balaenoptera physalus) and humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) are commonly found in the Norwegian Sea during the summer months. Records from around 1995 to 2004 show that their distribution patterns were mainly associated with those of macro-zooplankton. More recent studies conducted from 2009 to 2012 demonstrate marked shifts, with fin whale distribution related to pelagic fish distribution, decreasing densities of humpbacks, and increased densities of toothed whales. During the same period, historically large abundances of pelagic planktivorous fish in the Norwegian Sea were reported. The goals of this study were to examine the summer distribution of fin and humpback whales from 2013 to 2018 and to assess the potential association between distribution and environmental impact factors. Results suggest a pronounced northerly shift in distribution for both species, a feeding hotspot for fin whales at the shelf area between Svalbard and Norway, and one near Bear Island for humpback whales. Fin whale distribution was associated with that of blue whiting (Micromesistius poutassou) and capelin (Mallotus villosus), whereas humpback whale distribution was associated with that of euphausiids (Meganyctiphanes norvegica, Thysanoessa longicaudata, and Thysanoessa inermis), capelin, and herring (Clupea harengus). However, a significant negative spatial correlation was found between whale occurrence and the widely expanding population of northeast Atlantic mackerel (Scomber scombrus). The results of this study suggest that the prey composition of fin and humpback whales in recent years contain a large proportion of fish. The apparent northerly shift in the distribution of these whale species is largely determined by the availability of prey, but it likely is also impacted by direct or indirect interspecific interactions, especially with killer whales (Orcinus orca). Such large-scale pronounced changes in distribution seem to confirm a high degree of plasticity in fin and humpback whale feeding in the ... Article in Journal/Newspaper Balaenoptera physalus Bear Island Fin whale Humpback Whale Meganyctiphanes norvegica Megaptera novaeangliae Northeast Atlantic Norwegian Sea Orca Orcinus orca Svalbard toothed whales Thysanoessa inermis Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles Bear Island ENVELOPE(-67.250,-67.250,-68.151,-68.151) Norway Norwegian Sea Svalbard Frontiers in Marine Science 8 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
op_collection_id |
ftdoajarticles |
language |
English |
topic |
cetacean distribution feeding ecology site fidelity plasticity pelagic fish Science Q General. Including nature conservation geographical distribution QH1-199.5 |
spellingShingle |
cetacean distribution feeding ecology site fidelity plasticity pelagic fish Science Q General. Including nature conservation geographical distribution QH1-199.5 Sunniva Løviknes Knut H. Jensen Bjørn A. Krafft Valantine Anthonypillai Leif Nøttestad Feeding Hotspots and Distribution of Fin and Humpback Whales in the Norwegian Sea From 2013 to 2018 |
topic_facet |
cetacean distribution feeding ecology site fidelity plasticity pelagic fish Science Q General. Including nature conservation geographical distribution QH1-199.5 |
description |
Fin whales (Balaenoptera physalus) and humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) are commonly found in the Norwegian Sea during the summer months. Records from around 1995 to 2004 show that their distribution patterns were mainly associated with those of macro-zooplankton. More recent studies conducted from 2009 to 2012 demonstrate marked shifts, with fin whale distribution related to pelagic fish distribution, decreasing densities of humpbacks, and increased densities of toothed whales. During the same period, historically large abundances of pelagic planktivorous fish in the Norwegian Sea were reported. The goals of this study were to examine the summer distribution of fin and humpback whales from 2013 to 2018 and to assess the potential association between distribution and environmental impact factors. Results suggest a pronounced northerly shift in distribution for both species, a feeding hotspot for fin whales at the shelf area between Svalbard and Norway, and one near Bear Island for humpback whales. Fin whale distribution was associated with that of blue whiting (Micromesistius poutassou) and capelin (Mallotus villosus), whereas humpback whale distribution was associated with that of euphausiids (Meganyctiphanes norvegica, Thysanoessa longicaudata, and Thysanoessa inermis), capelin, and herring (Clupea harengus). However, a significant negative spatial correlation was found between whale occurrence and the widely expanding population of northeast Atlantic mackerel (Scomber scombrus). The results of this study suggest that the prey composition of fin and humpback whales in recent years contain a large proportion of fish. The apparent northerly shift in the distribution of these whale species is largely determined by the availability of prey, but it likely is also impacted by direct or indirect interspecific interactions, especially with killer whales (Orcinus orca). Such large-scale pronounced changes in distribution seem to confirm a high degree of plasticity in fin and humpback whale feeding in the ... |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Sunniva Løviknes Knut H. Jensen Bjørn A. Krafft Valantine Anthonypillai Leif Nøttestad |
author_facet |
Sunniva Løviknes Knut H. Jensen Bjørn A. Krafft Valantine Anthonypillai Leif Nøttestad |
author_sort |
Sunniva Løviknes |
title |
Feeding Hotspots and Distribution of Fin and Humpback Whales in the Norwegian Sea From 2013 to 2018 |
title_short |
Feeding Hotspots and Distribution of Fin and Humpback Whales in the Norwegian Sea From 2013 to 2018 |
title_full |
Feeding Hotspots and Distribution of Fin and Humpback Whales in the Norwegian Sea From 2013 to 2018 |
title_fullStr |
Feeding Hotspots and Distribution of Fin and Humpback Whales in the Norwegian Sea From 2013 to 2018 |
title_full_unstemmed |
Feeding Hotspots and Distribution of Fin and Humpback Whales in the Norwegian Sea From 2013 to 2018 |
title_sort |
feeding hotspots and distribution of fin and humpback whales in the norwegian sea from 2013 to 2018 |
publisher |
Frontiers Media S.A. |
publishDate |
2021 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2021.632720 https://doaj.org/article/e26dcb6ebf6e43b5b25779477f28cb75 |
long_lat |
ENVELOPE(-67.250,-67.250,-68.151,-68.151) |
geographic |
Bear Island Norway Norwegian Sea Svalbard |
geographic_facet |
Bear Island Norway Norwegian Sea Svalbard |
genre |
Balaenoptera physalus Bear Island Fin whale Humpback Whale Meganyctiphanes norvegica Megaptera novaeangliae Northeast Atlantic Norwegian Sea Orca Orcinus orca Svalbard toothed whales Thysanoessa inermis |
genre_facet |
Balaenoptera physalus Bear Island Fin whale Humpback Whale Meganyctiphanes norvegica Megaptera novaeangliae Northeast Atlantic Norwegian Sea Orca Orcinus orca Svalbard toothed whales Thysanoessa inermis |
op_source |
Frontiers in Marine Science, Vol 8 (2021) |
op_relation |
https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmars.2021.632720/full https://doaj.org/toc/2296-7745 2296-7745 doi:10.3389/fmars.2021.632720 https://doaj.org/article/e26dcb6ebf6e43b5b25779477f28cb75 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2021.632720 |
container_title |
Frontiers in Marine Science |
container_volume |
8 |
_version_ |
1766367061869592576 |