Topic 4B: Marine Mammals

Developing the Next Generation Marine Mammal Information Center for Integrated Ocean Observing: OBIS-SEAMAP 2.0

Lead PI: Dr. Patrick Halpin, Duke University

OBIS-SEAMAP aims to continue its information system services and to expand both the scope and depth of its program to better meet the increasingly complex demands facing the ocean science and management communities. The program plans to focus new efforts on developing a more technically advanced and fully interoperable marine animal information management system within the context of the emerging integrated ocean observing system. The OBIS-SEAMAP system will continue to be a leading prototype for the development of new technologies and data delivery systems for CoML and the International Ocean Observing System (IOOS).

Number of Years: 3

Requested Funds: $1,476,898

Partners:

Duke University
Cornell University
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
University of Rhode Island
University of North Carolina HYCOM Consortium
Envrionmental Sciences Research Institute (ESRI)
NOAA – Southeast, Alaska, Northeast, Southwest & Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Centers

Mid-Frequency Sonar Interactions with Beaked Whales

Lead PI: Dr. Kenneth G. Foote, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution

Experiments are being conducted in the laboratory on captive marine mammals to assess effects of sound on hearing, and at sea on wild animals to assess behavioral reactions. It is this project’s aim to bridge the gap between such experiments and operational scenarios for risk analysis. This will be accomplished by developing an online modeling system, called the Virtual Beaked Whale, which will predict acoustic fields internal to the animal for sonar signals in the range 1-10 kHz.

Number of Years: 3

Requested Funds: $1,454,085

Partners:

Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
Mount Sinai School of Medicine
Pennsylvania State University
Naval Survace Warfare Center

The Influence of Oceanographic and Biological Processes on the Distribution of Cetaceans on the West Florida Shelf: A Synoptic Study Based on Underwater and Space-Based Remote Sensing

Lead PI: Dr. David Mann, University of South Florida

This team will take advantage of the West Florida Shelf (WFS) as a test-bed for determining the effects of physical and biological oceanographic events and noise on cetacean distributions. The team proposes to use autonomous acoustic data recorders to monitor cetaceans over a large spatial and temporal scale, overcoming some of the limitations of studies based on visual surveys alone. These data will be complemented by visual survey data within the acoustic survey area during recorder deployment and retrieval. With in-situ and satellite remote sensing oceanographic data, relationships between the distribution of cetaceans and such factors as sea surface temperature, chlorophyll levels and background noise levels will be investigated on appropriate temporal and spatial scales. Results from existing numerical circulation models of the Gulf of Mexico will help understand underlying oceanographic processes. This proposal brings together experts in physical oceanography, satellite oceanography, cetacean ecology, cetacean acoustics, and physical acoustics to address multiple objectives.

Number of Years: 3

Requested Funds: $1,633,761.00

Partners:

University of South Florida
Texas A&M
Marine Acoustics, Inc.
Eckerd College

An Ocean Observing System for Large-Scale Monitoring and Mapping of Noise Throughout the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary

Lead PI: Dr. Christopher Clark, University of South Florida

This study will take place within the Gerry E. Studds Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary (SBNMS or Sanctuary). The Sanctuary is an “urban” marine sanctuary located to the east of Boston, MA in close proximity to a densely populated coastal zone and is home to some of the oldest and highest capacity commercial fisheries in the world. It is an important feeding ground for endangered marine mammals such as the North Atlantic right whale (Eubalaena glacialis), humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) and fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus). Our primary objective is to build a case study that can provide a national and international benchmark for scientifically evaluating the impacts of and interactions between various anthropogenic sound producers and acoustically sensitive marine animals in a complex acoustic environment. Uniquely, this study will integrate multiple sources of empirical data collected over an ecologically relevant spatial scale and a relatively long time scale.

Number of Years: 3

Requested Funds: $1,498,404

Partners:

Cornell University
Marine Acoustics, Inc.
NOAA Fisheries
NOAA Sanctuaries

DECAF – Density Estimation for Cetaceans from passive Acoustic Fixed sensors

Lead PI: Dr. Len Thomas, University of St. Andrews, Scotland

The aim of this project is to develop and implement methods for estimating cetacean density from fixed passive acoustic sensors. Obtaining spatially and temporally referenced estimates of absolute density for cetacean species is fundamental to understanding their basic biology, and also to monitoring and mitigating the effect of man-made impacts on their populations. Passive acoustics is increasingly being recognized as a useful and practical modality for gathering information about cetaceans, and there is a growing body of research on the use of towed acoustic arrays to estimate density, either alone or in conjunction with more traditional visual surveys.

Number of Years: 4

Requested Funds: $1,525,859 (49.4% domestic, 50.6% foreign)

Partners:

University of St. Andrews
Space and Naval Warfare Systems Center
Oregon State University
Naval Undersea Warfare Center Division
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution

Acoustic Detection, Behavior, and Habitat Use of Deep-Diving Odontocetes

Lead PI: Dr. Mark Johnson, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution

This project is designed to fill critical data gaps for topic 4B3 “Improved Methods to Survey, Locate and Identify Marine Mammals”, but also adds environmental and behavioral data addressing topic 4B1 “Investigations of marine mammals in their ecosystems”. This study will measure systematically the parameters required to design and evaluate acoustic platforms for presence and density estimation, focusing on three species of deep-diving toothed whales in uniquely efficient field sites.

Number of Years: 3

Requested Funds: $1,319,811

Partners:

Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
University of La Laguna
University of Aarhus
Northeast Fisheries Science Center
Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientifica
NATO Undersea Research Center
Naval Undersea Warfare Center
Webb Research Corporation
Duke University
Oregon State University
Spanish, Canary Islands and El Hierro Governments

Climate Change and Baleen Whale Trophic Cascades in West Greenland

Lead PI: Dr. Kristin Laidre, University of Washington

This project is a concentrated study on the movements, foraging ecology, and trophic cascades of large baleen whales in the West Greenland ecosystem. The food web in the West Greenland sub-Arctic and Arctic ecoystems is short and offers ample opportunities for understanding cetacean trophic cascades and ocean energy transfer. Novel methods of data collection such as satellite and archival telemetry will be used to quantify cetacean foraging behavior, focal area use, and phenology.

Number of Years: 3

Requested Funds: $966,652

Partners: