MEPS

Marine Ecology Progress Series

MEPS is a leading hybrid research journal on all aspects of marine, coastal and estuarine ecology. Priority is given to outstanding research that advances our ecological understanding.

Online: ISSN 1616-1599

Print: ISSN 0171-8630

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3354/meps

Journal contents
Mar Ecol Prog Ser

Using ocean gliders to characterize baleen whale habitat in the Northwest Atlantic

ABSTRACT: Characterizing baleen whale habitat is challenging because of the difficulty in obtaining sufficient spatially and temporally concurrent in situ observations of whales and oceanographic conditions. We collected a multi-year series of concurrent whale detections and high-resolution oceanographic measurements from Slocum ocean gliders to evaluate baleen whale habitat associations. The study area was Roseway Basin, a relatively small (30 x 60 km), shallow (<180 m) basin located ~40 km seaward of SW Nova Scotia, Canada. Data were collected from 13 fall (Aug - Nov) glider surveys of the Basin over an eight-year period (2014 - 2021). Gliders collected profiles of salinity and temperature as well as audio to detect and classify whale sounds. Acoustic analysis revealed spatial, diel, and within-season patterns in whale detections. Whale occurrence and a suite of oceanographic variables were computed in 20-km grid cells in each month and year of the study (n = 267). Descriptive and statistical (logistic regression) analyses were used to explore associations between the occurrence of each species and depth, topographic relief, water column stratification, current speed, and bottom mixed layer thickness and density. Results suggested strong, positive associations of fin, sei, and right whale occurrence and depth. They also showed that right whale occurrence in Aug - Sep was associated with a well-stratified water column overlying a thick, dense bottom mixed layer, consistent with conditions known to have a role in aggregating their copepod prey. Though exploratory, our results demonstrate the utility of profiling gliders for making inferences about baleen whale habitats.

KEYWORDS

Hansen Johnson (Corresponding Author)

  • Oceanography Department, Dalhousie University, 1355 Oxford St, Halifax, Nova Scotia B3H 4R2, Canada
hjohnson@neaq.org, hansenjohnson@gmail.com

Kimberley Davies (Co-author)

  • Department of Biological Sciences, University of New Brunswick, 355 Campus Ring Rd, Saint John, New Brunswick E2L 4L5, Canada
kim.davies@unb.ca

Christopher Taggart (Co-author)

  • Oceanography Department, Dalhousie University, 1355 Oxford St, Halifax, Nova Scotia B3H 4R2, Canada
chris.taggart@dal.ca

Mark Baumgartner (Co-author)

  • Biology Department, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, 266 Woods Hole Road, MS #33, Woods Hole, Massachusetts 02543, USA
mbaumgartner@whoi.edu

Handling Editor:
Lisa T. Ballance, Newport, Oregon, USA

Reviewers:
P. Cauchy and 2 anonymous referees