Bryde's whale calls recorded in the Gulf of Mexico

Bryde’s whales (Balaenoptera edeni) inhabit tropical and subtropical waters worldwide and, unlike most other mysticetes, they are not thought to make long seasonal migrations (Jefferson et al. 2008). They are the only balaenopterid regularly found in the U.S. waters of the Gulf of Mexico (GOM), with their range likely constrained to the shallow, northeastern part of the GOM around DeSoto Canyon (Maze-Foley and Mullin, 2006). Bryde’s whales are likely the smallest population of cetaceans in the region (Maze-Foley and Mullin, 2006). While it is possible Bryde’s whales are present in this area year-round as four reported strandings have been recorded across seasons (Mead 1977, Jefferson and Schiro 1997, W€ursig et al. 2000), visual surveys have been conducted only during the spring (Waring et al. 2009). National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Fisheries has been conducting regular marine mammal surveys in the GOM since the 1990s. The number of Bryde’s whales in the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) was estimated at 35 (CV = 1.10) between 1991 and 1994 (Hansen et al. 1995), and 40 (CV = 0.61) between 1996 and 2001 (Mullin and Fulling 2004). Based on the most recent surveys conducted in 2003 and 2004, Bryde’s whale population in the US EEZ in the GOM is estimated at 15 (CV = 1.98) individuals (Mullin 2007). It has been suggested that the GOM population is a distinct stock, but no evidence exists to confirm their separation from the nearby southern Caribbean or Atlantic stocks (Waring et al. 2009). Bryde’s whales produce a variety of call types in different geographic regions and it has been suggested calls may delineate different stocks (Oleson et al. 2003). Distinct low frequency (60–950 Hz) pulses, tonals, and moans have been described for freeranging Bryde’s whale adults and calves in the Eastern Tropical Pacific (ETP), the Gulf of California, southern Caribbean, and the North Pacific (Cummings et al. 1986, Edds et al. 1993, Oleson et al. 2003, Heimlich et al. 2005, Kerosky et al. 2012).

[1]  Len Thomas,et al.  Estimating cetacean population density using fixed passive acoustic sensors: an example with Blainville's beaked whales. , 2009, The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America.

[2]  G. Waring,et al.  U.S. Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico marine mammal stock assessments--2002 , 1995 .

[3]  S.M. Wiggins,et al.  High-frequency Acoustic Recording Package (HARP) for broad-band, long-term marine mammal monitoring , 2007, 2007 Symposium on Underwater Technology and Workshop on Scientific Use of Submarine Cables and Related Technologies.

[4]  J. Gedamke,et al.  Acoustic survey for marine mammal occurrence and distribution off East Antarctica (30-80°E) in January-February 2006 , 2010 .

[5]  P. Wade,et al.  Estimates of Cetacean Abundance and Distribution in the Eastern Tropical Pacific , 1993 .

[6]  B. Tershy,et al.  The diving behavior of blue and fin whales: is dive duration shorter than expected based on oxygen stores? , 2001, Comparative biochemistry and physiology. Part A, Molecular & integrative physiology.

[7]  J. Hildebrand,et al.  Baleen whale spatial patterns in the Scotia Sea during January and February 2003 , 2006 .

[8]  John A. Hildebrand,et al.  Behavioral context of call production by eastern North Pacific blue whales , 2007 .

[9]  Daniel K. Odell,et al.  Vocalizations of a captive juvenile and free-ranging adult-calf pairs of Bryde's whales, Balaenoptera edeni , 1993 .

[10]  J. Lilly,et al.  Sounds Emitted by the Bottlenose Dolphin , 1961, Science.

[11]  F. G. Stehli,et al.  The Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean , 1975 .

[12]  S. Heimlich,et al.  Types, distribution, and seasonal occurrence of sounds attributed to Bryde's whales (Balaenoptera edeni) recorded in the eastern tropical Pacific, 1999-2001. , 2005, The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America.

[13]  Susan E. Parks,et al.  Sound production behavior of individual North Atlantic right whales: implications for passive acoustic monitoring , 2011 .

[14]  John A. Hildebrand,et al.  BLUE WHALE VISUAL AND ACOUSTIC ENCOUNTER RATES IN THE SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA BIGHT , 2007 .

[15]  Anthony Martinez,et al.  Differences in acoustic signals from Delphinids in the western North Atlantic and northern Gulf of Mexico , 2008 .

[16]  K. Mullin,et al.  ABUNDANCE OF CETACEANS IN THE OCEANIC NORTHERN GULF OF MEXICO, 1996–2001 , 2004 .

[17]  John A. Hildebrand,et al.  Blue Whale (Balaenoptera musculus) Diel Call Patterns Offshore of Southern California , 2005 .

[18]  Christopher W. Clark,et al.  Acoustic Behavior of Mysticete Whales , 1990 .

[19]  P. Best.  Distribution and population separation of Bryde's whale Balaenoptera edeni off southern Africa , 2001 .

[20]  B. Würsig.  The marine mammals of the Gulf of Mexico , 2000 .

[21]  T. Jefferson,et al.  Distribution of cetaceans in the offshore Gulf of Mexico , 1997 .

[22]  Melba C. Caldwell,et al.  10 – Review of the Signature-Whistle Hypothesis for the Atlantic Bottlenose Dolphin , 1990 .

[23]  J. Hildebrand,et al.  Bryde's whale seasonal range expansion and increasing presence in the Southern California Bight from 2000 to 2010 , 2012 .

[24]  M. Webber,et al.  Marine Mammals of the World: A Comprehensive Guide to Their Identification , 2007 .

[25]  J. Hildebrand,et al.  LOW FREQUENCY CALLS OF BRYDE'S WHALES , 2003 .