Fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus) identification and distribution around São Miguel island (Azores) and inferences on the movements towards other areas
Understanding the movement patterns, and their possible drivers, of highly migratory marine species such as fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus), is vital for establishing appro-priate conservation measures. After been drastically reduced during the whaling period, fin whale populations are now recover...
Main Author: | |
---|---|
Other Authors: | , |
Format: | Master Thesis |
Language: | English |
Published: |
2021
|
Subjects: | |
Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/10400.1/17436 |
id |
ftunivalgarve:oai:sapientia.ualg.pt:10400.1/17436 |
---|---|
record_format |
openpolar |
spelling |
ftunivalgarve:oai:sapientia.ualg.pt:10400.1/17436 2023-05-15T15:36:36+02:00 Fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus) identification and distribution around São Miguel island (Azores) and inferences on the movements towards other areas Ernesto, Maria Ana Simões Reis González, Laura Abecasis, David 2021-06-07 http://hdl.handle.net/10400.1/17436 eng eng http://hdl.handle.net/10400.1/17436 202754510 openAccess http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ CC-BY Baleia comum Cetáceos Foto-id Açores São Miguel Migração Whale-watching Domínio/Área Científica::Ciências Naturais::Outras Ciências Naturais masterThesis 2021 ftunivalgarve 2022-07-06T00:01:15Z Understanding the movement patterns, and their possible drivers, of highly migratory marine species such as fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus), is vital for establishing appro-priate conservation measures. After been drastically reduced during the whaling period, fin whale populations are now recovering which led IUCN to recently update their status from “Endangered” to “Vulnerable”. Studying the population structure of the North At-lantic fin whales is particularly challenging due to their mobile nature and the lack of clear geographic barriers. The IWC (International Whaling Commission) suggests seven stock structure hypotheses however, there has been evidence of movements between these areas. The Azores archipelago is known to be a migration corridor for the North Atlantic populations, especially during springtime yet, many questions still exist regarding the ecology and habitat use in the archipelago. In this study, 11 years of opportunistic data from whale-watching platforms were used to create a photo-identification catalogue of fin whales around São Miguel. This catalogue was then compared with four other catalogues: one in the Azores and three from Iberian waters. The aim of this study was to assess potential migratory patterns and connections, understand the role of the Azorean archipelago and identify possible environmental driv-ers related to their presence. The composition of the photo-id catalogue and database en-abled the identification of 256 individuals and accounted for 32 re-sightings around São Miguel. The results presented indicate possible migratory connections within the archi-pelago and Galicia (North-West Spain), suggesting a variation of the commonly accepted migratory routes of baleen whales. Our findings also suggest that oceanographic features and events (e.g., phytoplankton spring bloom) influence the timing of fin whale migration and distribution in the archipelago. Additionally, this study serves as a baseline to further investigations, highlighting the important role of opportunist ... Master Thesis Balaenoptera physalus baleen whales Fin whale North Atlantic Universidade do Algarve: Sapienta |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Universidade do Algarve: Sapienta |
op_collection_id |
ftunivalgarve |
language |
English |
topic |
Baleia comum Cetáceos Foto-id Açores São Miguel Migração Whale-watching Domínio/Área Científica::Ciências Naturais::Outras Ciências Naturais |
spellingShingle |
Baleia comum Cetáceos Foto-id Açores São Miguel Migração Whale-watching Domínio/Área Científica::Ciências Naturais::Outras Ciências Naturais Ernesto, Maria Ana Simões Reis Fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus) identification and distribution around São Miguel island (Azores) and inferences on the movements towards other areas |
topic_facet |
Baleia comum Cetáceos Foto-id Açores São Miguel Migração Whale-watching Domínio/Área Científica::Ciências Naturais::Outras Ciências Naturais |
description |
Understanding the movement patterns, and their possible drivers, of highly migratory marine species such as fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus), is vital for establishing appro-priate conservation measures. After been drastically reduced during the whaling period, fin whale populations are now recovering which led IUCN to recently update their status from “Endangered” to “Vulnerable”. Studying the population structure of the North At-lantic fin whales is particularly challenging due to their mobile nature and the lack of clear geographic barriers. The IWC (International Whaling Commission) suggests seven stock structure hypotheses however, there has been evidence of movements between these areas. The Azores archipelago is known to be a migration corridor for the North Atlantic populations, especially during springtime yet, many questions still exist regarding the ecology and habitat use in the archipelago. In this study, 11 years of opportunistic data from whale-watching platforms were used to create a photo-identification catalogue of fin whales around São Miguel. This catalogue was then compared with four other catalogues: one in the Azores and three from Iberian waters. The aim of this study was to assess potential migratory patterns and connections, understand the role of the Azorean archipelago and identify possible environmental driv-ers related to their presence. The composition of the photo-id catalogue and database en-abled the identification of 256 individuals and accounted for 32 re-sightings around São Miguel. The results presented indicate possible migratory connections within the archi-pelago and Galicia (North-West Spain), suggesting a variation of the commonly accepted migratory routes of baleen whales. Our findings also suggest that oceanographic features and events (e.g., phytoplankton spring bloom) influence the timing of fin whale migration and distribution in the archipelago. Additionally, this study serves as a baseline to further investigations, highlighting the important role of opportunist ... |
author2 |
González, Laura Abecasis, David |
format |
Master Thesis |
author |
Ernesto, Maria Ana Simões Reis |
author_facet |
Ernesto, Maria Ana Simões Reis |
author_sort |
Ernesto, Maria Ana Simões Reis |
title |
Fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus) identification and distribution around São Miguel island (Azores) and inferences on the movements towards other areas |
title_short |
Fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus) identification and distribution around São Miguel island (Azores) and inferences on the movements towards other areas |
title_full |
Fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus) identification and distribution around São Miguel island (Azores) and inferences on the movements towards other areas |
title_fullStr |
Fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus) identification and distribution around São Miguel island (Azores) and inferences on the movements towards other areas |
title_full_unstemmed |
Fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus) identification and distribution around São Miguel island (Azores) and inferences on the movements towards other areas |
title_sort |
fin whale (balaenoptera physalus) identification and distribution around são miguel island (azores) and inferences on the movements towards other areas |
publishDate |
2021 |
url |
http://hdl.handle.net/10400.1/17436 |
genre |
Balaenoptera physalus baleen whales Fin whale North Atlantic |
genre_facet |
Balaenoptera physalus baleen whales Fin whale North Atlantic |
op_relation |
http://hdl.handle.net/10400.1/17436 202754510 |
op_rights |
openAccess http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ |
op_rightsnorm |
CC-BY |
_version_ |
1766366966341173248 |