Mapping and Understanding the Role of Seabed Morphology in Relation to Beluga Whale (Delphinapterus leucas) Hotspots and Habitat Use in the Mackenzie Estuary, NT

Whalen, Dustin; Loseto, Lisa L.; Hornby, Claire; Harwood, Lois A.; Hansen-Craik, K.

doi:10.1007/s12237-019-00653-8

Cited by 5 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 36 publications

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“…nous Knowledge over virtual media (so as to honour and respect the knowledge), the design and structure of the habitat model were instead developed based on previous EBS beluga habitat modelling (Loseto et al 2006;Hauser et al 2017;Hornby et al 2017;Whalen et al 2020) and conversations with Research Advisor D. Esagok (harvester and knowledge holder). The discussions around changes in beluga habitat and model interpretation were then based on secondary sources (i.e., interdisciplinary content of natural sciences, social sciences and accessible literature encompassing Inuvialuit Knowledge, in peer-review publications and grey literature, and discussions with D. Esagok), in place of discussions with beluga harvesters.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Indeed, additional environmental variables may also influence beluga presence in the estuary, such as winds and waves (Scharffenberg et al 2019a) For personal use only. (Simard et al 2014), bathymetry (Hornby et al 2016), seabed compositions (Whalen et al 2020), river current, or upwelling (Williams et al 2006;Hauser et al 2015). Ecological influences such as predation (Anderson et al 2017) and competition (Guisan et al 2017), or anthropogenic disturbances due to shipping (Halliday et al 2020), may also represent valid explanations of beluga distribution patterns throughout the season.…”

Section: Habitat Selection and Current Distributionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Greater freshwater discharge from the Mackenzie channels (Doxaran et al 2015) and accelerating coastal erosion (Solomon et al 1994;Jones et al 2018;Worden et al 2020) may drive belugas near coasts and further in the channel mouths (Scharffenberg et al 2020), supporting the selection by belugas of areas with high suspended particulate content concentration. Additionally, areas in Kugmallit Bay are becoming shallower due to increasing sedimentation (Whalen et al 2020) and belugas may take advantage of these new features for their epidermal moulting scrape-off. The model used in this study assumes that current conditions are responsible for current beluga distribution and ignores the possible spatial and temporal mismatch between the change in environmental conditions and the species responses (Redfern et al 2006;Scharffenberg et al 2020).…”

Section: Temporal and Spatial Shifts Beluga Distributionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Some environmental conditions have already been identified as favourable for beluga aggregation, such as warm (water temperature > 2 • C and up to 18 • C; Fraker et al 1979b;Hornby et al 2016) and turbid waters (suspended matter concentration ∼ 375 g•m -3 ; Macdonald and Yu 2006), low salinity (<1 ; Fraker et al 1979a), and low wind conditions (<40 km•h -1 ; Scharffenberg et al 2019a). Furthermore, it has been suggested that belugas choose particular spatial features, such as sheltered areas (Fraker et al 1979b;Scharffenberg et al 2019b) or shoal-sandy substrates (Whalen et al 2020). Altogether, these recent studies underline the complexity behind habitat selection, combining spatial features and environmental conditions under multiple distinct circumstances.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Environmental drivers of beluga whale distribution in a changing climate: a case study of summering aggregations in the Mackenzie Estuary and Tarium Niryutait Marine Protected Area

et al. 2022

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During summer, the Eastern Beaufort Sea beluga whale population aggregates in the waters of the Mackenzie Estuary and Tarium Niryutait Marine Protected Area (TN MPA). Guided by local communities’ priorities, this study aimed to better understand beluga summer habitat selection and to examine whether shifts in beluga distribution are expected under a changing climate. We used a resource selection function (RSF) based on aerial survey data and satellite remote sensing images to estimate the likelihood of beluga presence as a function of environmental conditions. The RSF revealed belugas selected warm and turbid waters, with suspended particulate matter concentrations and sea surface temperatures ranging above average estuarine values. These specific conditions support hypotheses on the ecological roles of estuaries for belugas such as providing a thermal advantage for their calves or for belugas epidermal moulting. Using a diachronic analysis, we found a distribution shift towards coastal and inshore waters, areas already experiencing effects of climate change. Thus, the current distribution may reflect beluga responses to a changing climate, selecting warmer and more turbid areas. Our finding provides insight into current and evolving beluga habitat and habitat selection under a changing climate, that may help inform beluga management in the TN MPA.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Habitat Selection and Current Distributionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Temporal and Spatial Shifts Beluga Distributionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Environmental drivers of beluga whale distribution in a changing climate: a case study of summering aggregations in the Mackenzie Estuary and Tarium Niryutait Marine Protected Area

et al. 2022

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“…However, the principal use of Deep Benthic dives indicates that feeding close to benthos, including at depths ≥1,000 m, is more important for EBS belugas. While belugas are known to undertake other behaviors in shallow coastal regions during the summer, including molting (at 2-4 m depth; Smith et al, 1992;Whalen et al, 2020), the depth sampling frequency and dive threshold used here would have underrepresented this behavior.…”

Section: Summermentioning

confidence: 99%

Year-Round Dive Characteristics of Male Beluga Whales From the Eastern Beaufort Sea Population Indicate Seasonal Shifts in Foraging Strategies

et al. 2022

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Dive behavior represents multiple ecological functions for marine mammals, but our understanding of dive characteristics is typically limited by the resolution or longevity of tagging studies. Knowledge on the time-depth structures of dives can provide insight into the behaviors represented by vertical movements; furthering our understanding of the ecological importance of habitats occupied, seasonal shifts in activity, and the energetic consequences of targeting prey at a given depth. Given our incomplete understanding of Eastern Beaufort Sea (EBS) beluga whale behavior over an annual cycle, we aimed to characterize dives made by belugas, with a focus on analyzing shifts in foraging strategies. Objectives were to (i) characterize and classify the range of beluga-specific dive types over an annual cycle, (ii) propose dive functions based on optimal foraging theory, physiology, and association with environmental variables, and (iii) identify whether belugas undergo seasonal shifts in the frequency of dives associated with variable foraging strategies. Satellite-linked time-depth-recorders (TDRs) were attached to 13 male belugas from the EBS population in 2018 and 2019, and depth data were collected in time series at a 75 s sampling interval. Tags collected data for between 13 and 357 days, including three tags which collected data across all months. A total of 90,211 dives were identified and characterized by twelve time and depth metrics and classified into eight dive types using a Gaussian mixed modeling and hierarchical clustering analysis approach. Dive structures identify various seasonal behaviors and indicate year-round foraging. Shallower and more frequent diving during winter in the Bering Sea indicate foraging may be energetically cheaper, but less rewarding than deeper diving during summer in the Beaufort Sea and Arctic Archipelago, which frequently exceeded the aerobic dive limit previously calculated for this population. Structure, frequency and association with environmental variables supports the use of other dives in recovery, transiting, and navigating through sea ice. The current study provides the first comprehensive description of the year-round dive structures of any beluga population, providing baseline information to allow improved characterization and to monitor how this population may respond to environmental change and increasing anthropogenic stressors.

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Identifying and Comparing Important Areas for Marine Sustainable Use and Conservation

2024

Frontiers Research Topics

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Frontiers is more than just an open access publisher of scholarly articles: it is a pioneering approach to the world of academia, radically improving the way scholarly research is managed. The grand vision of Frontiers is a world where all people have an equal opportunity to seek, share and generate knowledge. Frontiers provides immediate and permanent online open access to all its publications, but this alone is not enough to realize our grand goals. Frontiers journal seriesThe Frontiers journal series is a multi-tier and interdisciplinary set of openaccess, online journals, promising a paradigm shift from the current review, selection and dissemination processes in academic publishing. All Frontiers journals are driven by researchers for researchers; therefore, they constitute a service to the scholarly community. At the same time, the Frontiers journal series operates on a revolutionary invention, the tiered publishing system, initially addressing specific communities of scholars, and gradually climbing up to broader public understanding, thus serving the interests of the lay society, too. Dedication to qualityEach Frontiers article is a landmark of the highest quality, thanks to genuinely collaborative interactions between authors and review editors, who include some of the world's best academicians. Research must be certified by peers before entering a stream of knowledge that may eventually reach the public -and shape society; therefore, Frontiers only applies the most rigorous and unbiased reviews. Frontiers revolutionizes research publishing by freely delivering the most outstanding research, evaluated with no bias from both the academic and social point of view. By applying the most advanced information technologies, Frontiers is catapulting scholarly publishing into a new generation. What are Frontiers Research Topics?Frontiers Research Topics are very popular trademarks of the Frontiers journals series: they are collections of at least ten articles, all centered on a particular subject. With their unique mix of varied contributions from Original Research to Review Articles, Frontiers Research Topics unify the most influential researchers, the latest key findings and historical advances in a hot research area.

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Mapping and Understanding the Role of Seabed Morphology in Relation to Beluga Whale (Delphinapterus leucas) Hotspots and Habitat Use in the Mackenzie Estuary, NT

Cited by 5 publications

References 36 publications

Environmental drivers of beluga whale distribution in a changing climate: a case study of summering aggregations in the Mackenzie Estuary and Tarium Niryutait Marine Protected Area

Environmental drivers of beluga whale distribution in a changing climate: a case study of summering aggregations in the Mackenzie Estuary and Tarium Niryutait Marine Protected Area

Year-Round Dive Characteristics of Male Beluga Whales From the Eastern Beaufort Sea Population Indicate Seasonal Shifts in Foraging Strategies

Identifying and Comparing Important Areas for Marine Sustainable Use and Conservation

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