Determining the species assemblage and habitat use of cetaceans in the Svalbard Archipelago, based on observations from 2002 to 2014
This study used 13 years of cetacean sighting data (2002–2014) from waters around the Svalbard Archipelago to determine key habitats for year-round resident species as well as seasonally resident species, and to explore spatial overlap between these groups via a combination of kernel density estimat...
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Norwegian Polar Institute
2018
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:f5d8d339ddd44cc880cceaff4b585976 2023-05-15T15:13:44+02:00 Determining the species assemblage and habitat use of cetaceans in the Svalbard Archipelago, based on observations from 2002 to 2014 Luke Storrie Christian Lydersen Magnus Andersen Russell B. Wynn Kit M. Kovacs 2018-01-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.1080/17518369.2018.1463065 https://doaj.org/article/f5d8d339ddd44cc880cceaff4b585976 EN eng Norwegian Polar Institute http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17518369.2018.1463065 https://doaj.org/toc/1751-8369 1751-8369 doi:10.1080/17518369.2018.1463065 https://doaj.org/article/f5d8d339ddd44cc880cceaff4b585976 Polar Research, Vol 37, Iss 1 (2018) Arctic citizen science climate change marine mammals Maxent modelling whales Environmental sciences GE1-350 Oceanography GC1-1581 article 2018 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.1080/17518369.2018.1463065 2022-12-30T22:08:32Z This study used 13 years of cetacean sighting data (2002–2014) from waters around the Svalbard Archipelago to determine key habitats for year-round resident species as well as seasonally resident species, and to explore spatial overlap between these groups via a combination of kernel density estimation and Maxent modelling. The data set consists of observations made by research vessels conducting various marine studies, coast guard ships and marine-cruise tourist operators. Data are reported from the seasonal period in which there is daylight (March-November), though 95% of the observations occurred June-September. Changes over the study period were investigated, within the limits of the data, to explore whether range shifts may be occurring. Fifteen cetacean species were reported. Among the resident ice-associated cetaceans, only white whales were reported frequently; they were seen exclusively in coastal habitats, in accordance with their known use of tidal glacier fronts for feeding in this region. Narwhal and bowhead whales were rare. Seasonally resident minke whales, fin whales, humpback whales, blue whales and sperm whales as well as small dolphins were seen frequently, in broad and somewhat overlapping habitats. Other less common seasonal residents included killer whales, northern bottlenose whales and sei whales; harbour porpoises and long-finned pilot whales were also reported, but rarely. Shifts over the study period towards higher latitudes, and into coastal environments, were observed for several seasonally resident species. These expansions are likely linked to warming ocean temperatures and a precipitous decline in sea-ice cover in the area. Article in Journal/Newspaper Arctic Climate change glacier narwhal* Polar Research Sea ice Svalbard Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles Arctic Svalbard Svalbard Archipelago Polar Research 37 1 1463065 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
op_collection_id |
ftdoajarticles |
language |
English |
topic |
Arctic citizen science climate change marine mammals Maxent modelling whales Environmental sciences GE1-350 Oceanography GC1-1581 |
spellingShingle |
Arctic citizen science climate change marine mammals Maxent modelling whales Environmental sciences GE1-350 Oceanography GC1-1581 Luke Storrie Christian Lydersen Magnus Andersen Russell B. Wynn Kit M. Kovacs Determining the species assemblage and habitat use of cetaceans in the Svalbard Archipelago, based on observations from 2002 to 2014 |
topic_facet |
Arctic citizen science climate change marine mammals Maxent modelling whales Environmental sciences GE1-350 Oceanography GC1-1581 |
description |
This study used 13 years of cetacean sighting data (2002–2014) from waters around the Svalbard Archipelago to determine key habitats for year-round resident species as well as seasonally resident species, and to explore spatial overlap between these groups via a combination of kernel density estimation and Maxent modelling. The data set consists of observations made by research vessels conducting various marine studies, coast guard ships and marine-cruise tourist operators. Data are reported from the seasonal period in which there is daylight (March-November), though 95% of the observations occurred June-September. Changes over the study period were investigated, within the limits of the data, to explore whether range shifts may be occurring. Fifteen cetacean species were reported. Among the resident ice-associated cetaceans, only white whales were reported frequently; they were seen exclusively in coastal habitats, in accordance with their known use of tidal glacier fronts for feeding in this region. Narwhal and bowhead whales were rare. Seasonally resident minke whales, fin whales, humpback whales, blue whales and sperm whales as well as small dolphins were seen frequently, in broad and somewhat overlapping habitats. Other less common seasonal residents included killer whales, northern bottlenose whales and sei whales; harbour porpoises and long-finned pilot whales were also reported, but rarely. Shifts over the study period towards higher latitudes, and into coastal environments, were observed for several seasonally resident species. These expansions are likely linked to warming ocean temperatures and a precipitous decline in sea-ice cover in the area. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Luke Storrie Christian Lydersen Magnus Andersen Russell B. Wynn Kit M. Kovacs |
author_facet |
Luke Storrie Christian Lydersen Magnus Andersen Russell B. Wynn Kit M. Kovacs |
author_sort |
Luke Storrie |
title |
Determining the species assemblage and habitat use of cetaceans in the Svalbard Archipelago, based on observations from 2002 to 2014 |
title_short |
Determining the species assemblage and habitat use of cetaceans in the Svalbard Archipelago, based on observations from 2002 to 2014 |
title_full |
Determining the species assemblage and habitat use of cetaceans in the Svalbard Archipelago, based on observations from 2002 to 2014 |
title_fullStr |
Determining the species assemblage and habitat use of cetaceans in the Svalbard Archipelago, based on observations from 2002 to 2014 |
title_full_unstemmed |
Determining the species assemblage and habitat use of cetaceans in the Svalbard Archipelago, based on observations from 2002 to 2014 |
title_sort |
determining the species assemblage and habitat use of cetaceans in the svalbard archipelago, based on observations from 2002 to 2014 |
publisher |
Norwegian Polar Institute |
publishDate |
2018 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.1080/17518369.2018.1463065 https://doaj.org/article/f5d8d339ddd44cc880cceaff4b585976 |
geographic |
Arctic Svalbard Svalbard Archipelago |
geographic_facet |
Arctic Svalbard Svalbard Archipelago |
genre |
Arctic Climate change glacier narwhal* Polar Research Sea ice Svalbard |
genre_facet |
Arctic Climate change glacier narwhal* Polar Research Sea ice Svalbard |
op_source |
Polar Research, Vol 37, Iss 1 (2018) |
op_relation |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17518369.2018.1463065 https://doaj.org/toc/1751-8369 1751-8369 doi:10.1080/17518369.2018.1463065 https://doaj.org/article/f5d8d339ddd44cc880cceaff4b585976 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1080/17518369.2018.1463065 |
container_title |
Polar Research |
container_volume |
37 |
container_issue |
1 |
container_start_page |
1463065 |
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1766344269914701824 |