First abundance estimate for white whales Delphinapterus leucas in Svalbard, Norway
The Svalbard Archipelago (Norway) is experiencing rapid declines in the seasonal duration and extent of sea-ice cover, and local tidewater glaciers are melting. These environmental changes represent a threat to ice-associated species in the region, including white whales Delphinapterus leucas . Howe...
Published in: | Endangered Species Research |
---|---|
Main Authors: | , , , , |
Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
Language: | English |
Published: |
2020
|
Subjects: | |
Online Access: | https://risweb.st-andrews.ac.uk/portal/en/researchoutput/first-abundance-estimate-for-white-whales-delphinapterus-leucas-in-svalbard-norway(4b3dda6d-affa-4033-bc6d-de162ac2bf4d).html https://doi.org/10.3354/esr01016 https://research-repository.st-andrews.ac.uk/bitstream/10023/19740/1/Vacqui_Garcia_2020_ESR_First_CC.pdf |
id |
ftunstandrewcris:oai:risweb.st-andrews.ac.uk:publications/4b3dda6d-affa-4033-bc6d-de162ac2bf4d |
---|---|
record_format |
openpolar |
spelling |
ftunstandrewcris:oai:risweb.st-andrews.ac.uk:publications/4b3dda6d-affa-4033-bc6d-de162ac2bf4d 2023-05-15T14:59:56+02:00 First abundance estimate for white whales Delphinapterus leucas in Svalbard, Norway Vacquié-garcia, J Lydersen, C Marques, T.A. Andersen, M Kovacs, Km 2020-02-27 application/pdf https://risweb.st-andrews.ac.uk/portal/en/researchoutput/first-abundance-estimate-for-white-whales-delphinapterus-leucas-in-svalbard-norway(4b3dda6d-affa-4033-bc6d-de162ac2bf4d).html https://doi.org/10.3354/esr01016 https://research-repository.st-andrews.ac.uk/bitstream/10023/19740/1/Vacqui_Garcia_2020_ESR_First_CC.pdf eng eng info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess Vacquié-garcia , J , Lydersen , C , Marques , T A , Andersen , M & Kovacs , K 2020 , ' First abundance estimate for white whales Delphinapterus leucas in Svalbard, Norway ' , Endangered Species Research , vol. 41 , pp. 253-263 . https://doi.org/10.3354/esr01016 Beluga Arctic Baseline population estimate Climate change Environmental change Space use Adaptation Prey shifting article 2020 ftunstandrewcris https://doi.org/10.3354/esr01016 2021-12-26T14:36:26Z The Svalbard Archipelago (Norway) is experiencing rapid declines in the seasonal duration and extent of sea-ice cover, and local tidewater glaciers are melting. These environmental changes represent a threat to ice-associated species in the region, including white whales Delphinapterus leucas . However, no estimates of stock size or trends are available for this stock. An aerial survey was conducted during the summer of 2018, covering the coastlines of all major islands in Svalbard, as well fjords and open ocean areas. A total count was attempted for the coastlines, while coverage of the fjords and open ocean areas was designed as distance-sampling line transects. In total, 265 white whales were detected in 22 groups along the 4965 km of coastline coverage. No whales were observed on fjord (1481 km) or open ocean transects (535 km). After correcting for surface availability using behavioural data from the same area (in summer) and making adjustments for small areas not flown during the survey, the stock size was estimated to be 549 individuals (95% CI: 436-723). This estimate is surprisingly low given that this species is one of the most frequently observed cetaceans in the area, but it confirms suspicions based on difficulties in finding animals when operating white whale tagging programmes over the past decade. This first population estimate is important in the context of the rapid environmental change taking place in the Arctic and for providing a baseline for comparison with future estimates. Article in Journal/Newspaper Arctic Beluga Beluga* Climate change Delphinapterus leucas Sea ice Svalbard White whale University of St Andrews: Research Portal Arctic Norway Svalbard Svalbard Archipelago Endangered Species Research 41 253 263 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
University of St Andrews: Research Portal |
op_collection_id |
ftunstandrewcris |
language |
English |
topic |
Beluga Arctic Baseline population estimate Climate change Environmental change Space use Adaptation Prey shifting |
spellingShingle |
Beluga Arctic Baseline population estimate Climate change Environmental change Space use Adaptation Prey shifting Vacquié-garcia, J Lydersen, C Marques, T.A. Andersen, M Kovacs, Km First abundance estimate for white whales Delphinapterus leucas in Svalbard, Norway |
topic_facet |
Beluga Arctic Baseline population estimate Climate change Environmental change Space use Adaptation Prey shifting |
description |
The Svalbard Archipelago (Norway) is experiencing rapid declines in the seasonal duration and extent of sea-ice cover, and local tidewater glaciers are melting. These environmental changes represent a threat to ice-associated species in the region, including white whales Delphinapterus leucas . However, no estimates of stock size or trends are available for this stock. An aerial survey was conducted during the summer of 2018, covering the coastlines of all major islands in Svalbard, as well fjords and open ocean areas. A total count was attempted for the coastlines, while coverage of the fjords and open ocean areas was designed as distance-sampling line transects. In total, 265 white whales were detected in 22 groups along the 4965 km of coastline coverage. No whales were observed on fjord (1481 km) or open ocean transects (535 km). After correcting for surface availability using behavioural data from the same area (in summer) and making adjustments for small areas not flown during the survey, the stock size was estimated to be 549 individuals (95% CI: 436-723). This estimate is surprisingly low given that this species is one of the most frequently observed cetaceans in the area, but it confirms suspicions based on difficulties in finding animals when operating white whale tagging programmes over the past decade. This first population estimate is important in the context of the rapid environmental change taking place in the Arctic and for providing a baseline for comparison with future estimates. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Vacquié-garcia, J Lydersen, C Marques, T.A. Andersen, M Kovacs, Km |
author_facet |
Vacquié-garcia, J Lydersen, C Marques, T.A. Andersen, M Kovacs, Km |
author_sort |
Vacquié-garcia, J |
title |
First abundance estimate for white whales Delphinapterus leucas in Svalbard, Norway |
title_short |
First abundance estimate for white whales Delphinapterus leucas in Svalbard, Norway |
title_full |
First abundance estimate for white whales Delphinapterus leucas in Svalbard, Norway |
title_fullStr |
First abundance estimate for white whales Delphinapterus leucas in Svalbard, Norway |
title_full_unstemmed |
First abundance estimate for white whales Delphinapterus leucas in Svalbard, Norway |
title_sort |
first abundance estimate for white whales delphinapterus leucas in svalbard, norway |
publishDate |
2020 |
url |
https://risweb.st-andrews.ac.uk/portal/en/researchoutput/first-abundance-estimate-for-white-whales-delphinapterus-leucas-in-svalbard-norway(4b3dda6d-affa-4033-bc6d-de162ac2bf4d).html https://doi.org/10.3354/esr01016 https://research-repository.st-andrews.ac.uk/bitstream/10023/19740/1/Vacqui_Garcia_2020_ESR_First_CC.pdf |
geographic |
Arctic Norway Svalbard Svalbard Archipelago |
geographic_facet |
Arctic Norway Svalbard Svalbard Archipelago |
genre |
Arctic Beluga Beluga* Climate change Delphinapterus leucas Sea ice Svalbard White whale |
genre_facet |
Arctic Beluga Beluga* Climate change Delphinapterus leucas Sea ice Svalbard White whale |
op_source |
Vacquié-garcia , J , Lydersen , C , Marques , T A , Andersen , M & Kovacs , K 2020 , ' First abundance estimate for white whales Delphinapterus leucas in Svalbard, Norway ' , Endangered Species Research , vol. 41 , pp. 253-263 . https://doi.org/10.3354/esr01016 |
op_rights |
info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.3354/esr01016 |
container_title |
Endangered Species Research |
container_volume |
41 |
container_start_page |
253 |
op_container_end_page |
263 |
_version_ |
1766332048898785280 |