Historical summer distribution of the endangered North Atlantic right whale (Eubalaena glacialis): a hypothesis based on environmental preferences of a congeneric species

• Main Authors: Monserrat, Sophie, Pennino, Maria G., Smith, Tim D., Reeves, Randall R., Meynard, Christine N., Kaplan, David M., Rodrigues, Ana S.L.
• Format: Text
• Language: unknown
• Published: W&M ScholarWorks 2015
• Subjects: Boosted regression trees; Eubalaena; historical distribution; right whale; species distribution models; whaling; Biological Sciences Peer-Reviewed Articles; Fisheries Science Peer-Reviewed Articles; Environmental Sciences; Marine Biology; Eubalaena glacialis; North Atlantic; North Atlantic right whale
• Online Access: https://scholarworks.wm.edu/vimsarticles/1864; https://doi.org/10.1111/ddi.12314; https://scholarworks.wm.edu/context/vimsarticles/article/2864/viewcontent/ddi.12314.pdf

Aim: To obtain a plausible hypothesis for the historical distribution of North Atlantic right whales (NARWs) (Eubalaena glacialis) in their summer feeding grounds. Previously widespread in the North Atlantic, after centuries of hunt- ing, these whales survive as a small population off eastern North America. Because their exploitation began before formal records started, information about their historical distribution is fragmentary.