Northernmost records of Southern Hemisphere humpback whales (<scp><i>Megaptera novaeangliae</i></scp>) migrating from the Antarctic Peninsula to the Pacific coast of Nicaragua

Weerdt, Joëlle De; Ramos, Eric A.; Cheeseman, Ted

doi:10.1111/mms.12677

Cited by 16 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 29 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Two humpback whale populations migrate into the coastal Pacific waters of Nicaragua during their breeding season: the Central American population from the Northern Hemisphere (Calambokidis 2008), and the population classified by the International Whaling Commission as "G-Stock" from the Southern Hemisphere (De Weerdt et al 2020). Although humpback whales are listed as "Least Concern" by the IUCN , the status of the Central American population has been classified as "Threatened" by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA); NOAA recognizes Central American humpback whales as a "Distinct Population Segment" that requires special attention for future management actions (Bettridge et al 2015).…”

Section: Humpback Whale (Megaptera Novaeangliae)mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…No body measurements were taken of either animal, but measurements of the skeleton of the young individual showed the length to be 10 m. Based on the stranding dates of these animals and their overlap with the humpback whale's migratory season (September and July, Table 1), both whales were likely part of the G-Stock Southern Hemisphere population. Animals from this population migrate north from Antarctic waters along the coast of South America in the austral winter, and sometimes reach Nicaragua (De Weerdt et al 2020).…”

Section: Humpback Whale (Megaptera Novaeangliae)mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The lack of basic information on species present in Nicaraguan waters limits the development of effective management practices for cetacean conservation. Recent findings on recurrent feeding of humpback whales (De Weerdt and Ramos, 2019) and the presence of whales from distinct subpopulation (De Weerdt et al 2020) highlights the need for more in-depth studies on whales and dolphins in the regions. Information on these species in Nicaragua and Central America is lacking because of the limited amount of boat-based surveys, the absence of a coordinated stranding response, and of organizations trained and equipped to collect standard stranding data and conduct post-mortem analysis of stranded animals.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Cetacean strandings along the Pacific and Caribbean coasts of Nicaragua from 2014 to 2021

Weerdt

Ramos²,

Pouplard³

et al. 2021

Mar Biodivers Rec

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Documenting marine mammal strandings provides important information needed to understand the occurrence and distribution patterns of species. Here, we report on strandings of cetaceans on the Pacific (n = 11) and Caribbean (n = 2) coasts of Nicaragua, documented opportunistically from 2014 to 2021. Strandings included three species of baleen whale (blue whale Balaenoptera musculus, Bryde’s whale Balaenoptera edeni, humpback whale Megaptera novaeangliae) and five species of toothed whale (dwarf sperm whale Kogia sima, Guiana dolphin Sotalia guianensis, pantropical spotted dolphin Stenella attenuata, spinner dolphin Stenella longirostris, Cuvier’s beaked whale Ziphius cavirostris). These are the first published accounts of blue whales, Bryde’s whales, dwarf sperm whales, and Cuvier’s beaked whales in Nicaraguan waters. Limited resources and the advanced decomposition of animals prevented necropsies in most cases, the identification of the causes of mortality in all cases, and the species identification of two dolphins. Information derived from these stranding events offers new insights into the occurrence of marine mammals on the Pacific and Caribbean coasts of Nicaragua and Central America.

show abstract

Section: Humpback Whale (Megaptera Novaeangliae)mentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Humpback Whale (Megaptera Novaeangliae)mentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Cetacean strandings along the Pacific and Caribbean coasts of Nicaragua from 2014 to 2021

Weerdt

Ramos²,

Pouplard³

et al. 2021

Mar Biodivers Rec

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Vessel strikes can also be a serious threat to human welfare and safety, when boats sink after strikes (Neilson et al, 2012;Ritter, 2012;Peel et al, 2018), or due to human injuries (Dolman et al, 2006;Ritter, 2010) and mortalities (De Stephanis and Urquiola, 2006) caused by an impact with a whale. Furthermore, vessel strikes can also have significant economic impacts to multiple maritime industries, such as vessel loss (Laist et al, 2001;Ritter, 2012), re-routing of major shipping lanes and speed limits (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 2012; Gonyo et al, 2019), and cancelations of ferries due to vessel strike risk (e.g., Hawaii Superferry, McGillivary et al, 2009).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Vessel Strikes of Large Whales in the Eastern Tropical Pacific: A Case Study of Regional Underreporting

et al. 2021

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Vessel strike is recognized as a major modern threat to the recovery of large whale populations globally, but the issue is notoriously difficult to assess. Vessel strikes by large ships frequently go unnoticed, and those involving smaller vessels are rarely reported. Interpreting global patterns of vessel strikes is further hindered by underlying reporting biases caused by differences in countries’ research efforts, legislation, reporting structures and enforcement. This leaves global strike data “patchy” and typically scarce outside of developed countries, where resources are more limited. To explore this we investigated vessel strikes with large whales in the Eastern Tropical Pacific (ETP), a coastal region of ten developing countries where heavy shipping and high cetacean densities overlap. Although this is characteristic of vessel strike “hotspots” worldwide, only 11 ETP strike reports from just four countries (∼2% of total reports) existed in the International Whaling Commission’s Global Ship Strike Database (2010). This contrasts greatly with abundant reports from the neighboring state of California (United States), and the greater United States/Canadian west coast, making it a compelling case study for investigating underreporting. By reviewing online media databases and articles, peer review publications and requesting information from government agencies, scientists, and tourism companies, we compiled a regional ETP vessel strike database. We found over three times as many strike reports (n = 40), from twice as many countries (n = 8), identifying the geographic extent and severity of the threat, although likely still underestimating the true number of strikes. Reports were found from 1905 until 2017, showing that strikes are a regional, historic, and present threat to large whales. The humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) was the most commonly hit species, and whale-watch industries involving small vessels in areas of high whale densities were recognized as a conservation and management concern. Industrial fishing fleets and shipping were suggested to be underrepresented sectors in the database, and are likely high-risk vessels for strikes with whales. We demonstrate the implications of known vessel strike reporting biases and conclude a more rapid assessment of global vessel strikes would substantially benefit from prioritized research efforts in developing regions, with known vessel strike “hotspot” characteristics, but few strike reports.

show abstract

“…This population of humpback whales is identified as Breeding Stock G (International Whaling Commission, 1998), which is one of the seven "stocks" inhabiting oceans in the southern hemisphere. This specific population undertakes one of the longest migration distances (Stone et al, 1990;Acevedo et al, 2017) of more than 16,000 km roundtrip from the feeding grounds to the breeding grounds (Rasmussen et al, 2007;Félix and Guzmán, 2014;De Weerdt et al, 2020), with the entire stock swimming along 9,000 km of coastline (Félix et al, 2011). Female and calf pairs tend to remain closer to shore (Glockner and Venus, 1983;Bruce et al, 2014;Oña et al, 2017) while adults prefer more direct routes in deeper waters (Félix and Haase, 2005;Rasmussen et al, 2012;Félix and Guzmán, 2014;Guzman and Félix, 2017).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Impacts of Whale Watching on the Behavior of Humpback Whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) in the Coast of Panama

et al. 2020

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Ecotourism focused on whales and dolphins has become a popular activity and an important source of revenue for many countries. Whale watching is vital to supporting conservation efforts and provides numerous benefits to local communities including educational opportunities and job creation. However, the sustainability of whale-based ecotourism depends on the behavior and health of whale populations and it is crucial that ecotourism industries consider the impact of their activities on whale behavior. To address this statement, we collected behavioral data (e.g., change in swimming direction, frequency of breaching, slap behaviors, diving, and spy hops) from humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) in the marine protected area of Las Perlas Archipelago off the Pacific coast of Panama. The goal was to determine if tourist vessel presence had an influence on whale behaviors. We conducted this study during the humpback whale breeding season from August through September 2019. Based on 47 behavioral observations, we found that higher boat density corresponded with humpback whales’ frequency of direction changes, which based on previous literature is believed to be a sign of disturbance. Alternatively, no changes in behavior were observed with varying boat density. This result is important given Panamanian regulations first implemented in 2007 by Resolution AMD/ARAP No. 01, 2007 prohibit whale-based tourism from disturbing whales, which is explicitly measured by changes in whale behavior. Because there is no systematic monitoring of whale watching activity to enforce the regulations, there is currently little compliance from tour operators and tourists. The integration of animal behavior research into management planning should result in more effective regulation and compliance of such conservation policies.

show abstract

Northernmost records of Southern Hemisphere humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) migrating from the Antarctic Peninsula to the Pacific coast of Nicaragua

Cited by 16 publications

References 29 publications

Cetacean strandings along the Pacific and Caribbean coasts of Nicaragua from 2014 to 2021

Cetacean strandings along the Pacific and Caribbean coasts of Nicaragua from 2014 to 2021

Vessel Strikes of Large Whales in the Eastern Tropical Pacific: A Case Study of Regional Underreporting

Impacts of Whale Watching on the Behavior of Humpback Whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) in the Coast of Panama

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About