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Occurrence of baleen whales in the New York Bight, 1998–2017: insights from opportunistic data

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 November 2022

Emily Chou Open the ORCID record for Emily Chou [Opens in a new window] ,
Melinda L. Rekdahl ,
Arthur H. Kopelman ,
Danielle M. Brown Open the ORCID record for Danielle M. Brown [Opens in a new window] ,
Paul L. Sieswerda ,
Robert A. DiGiovanni Jr.  and
Howard C. Rosenbaum
Emily Chou*
Affiliation:
Wildlife Conservation Society, Ocean Giants Program, New York, USA
Melinda L. Rekdahl
Affiliation:
Wildlife Conservation Society, Ocean Giants Program, New York, USA
Arthur H. Kopelman
Affiliation:
Coastal Research and Education Society of Long Island, Inc., New York, USA
Danielle M. Brown
Affiliation:
Gotham Whale, New York, USA Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Natural Resources, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, New Jersey, USA
Paul L. Sieswerda
Affiliation:
Gotham Whale, New York, USA
Robert A. DiGiovanni Jr.
Affiliation:
Atlantic Marine Conservation Society, New York, USA
Howard C. Rosenbaum*
Affiliation:
Wildlife Conservation Society, Ocean Giants Program, New York, USA
*
Authors for correspondence: Emily Chou, E-mail: ec3158@columbia.edu; Howard Rosenbaum, E-mail: hrosenbaum@wcs.org
Authors for correspondence: Emily Chou, E-mail: ec3158@columbia.edu; Howard Rosenbaum, E-mail: hrosenbaum@wcs.org
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Abstract

The New York Bight is undergoing rapid anthropogenic change amidst an apparent increase in baleen whale sightings. Though survey efforts have increased in recent years, the lack of published knowledge on baleen whale occurrence prior to these efforts impedes effective assessments of distributional or behavioural shifts due to increasing human activities. Here we synthesize opportunistic sightings of baleen whales from 1998–2017, which represent the majority of sightings data prior to recent survey efforts, and which are largely unpublished. Humpback and fin whales were the most commonly sighted species, followed by North Atlantic right whales and North Atlantic minke whales. Important behaviours such as feeding and nursing were observed, and most species (including North Atlantic right whales) were seen during all seasons. Baleen whales overlapped with multiple anthropogenic use areas, and all species, but of particular importance North Atlantic right whales, were sighted outside the spatial and temporal bounds of the Seasonal Management Areas for North Atlantic right whales. These opportunistic data are vital for providing a baseline and context of baleen whales in the New York Bight prior to broad-scale efforts and facilitate interpretation of current and future observations and trends, which can more accurately inform effective management and mitigation efforts.

Keywords

Baleen whalesbaselineNew York BightNorth Atlantic right whaleopportunistic
Type
Marine Record
Information
Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom , Volume 102 , Issue 6 , September 2022 , pp. 438 - 444
Copyright
Copyright © Wildlife Conservation Society, 2022. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom

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