NEFSC Abundance of the Gulf of Maine and Bay of Fundy Harbor Porpoise Based on Aerial Surveys 1999

Beth Josephson; Debi Palka; Debi Palka

doi:10.15468/kwawud

NEFSC Abundance of the Gulf of Maine and Bay of Fundy Harbor Porpoise Based on Aerial Surveys 1999

Citation

Josephson, B. and D. Palka. 2018. NEFSC Abundance of the Gulf of Maine and Bay of Fundy Harbor Porpoise Based on Aerial Surveys 1999. Data downloaded from OBIS-SEAMAP (http://seamap.env.duke.edu/dataset/1895) on yyyy-mm-dd. https://doi.org/10.15468/kwawud accessed via GBIF.org on 2023-12-01.

Description

Original provider: NOAA Northeast Fisheries Science Center (NEFSC) Dataset credits: NOAA Northeast Fisheries Science Center (NEFSC) Abstract: The 1994 Amendments to the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) mandates periodic assessments of all cetacean stocks in US waters. To fulfill this mandate for the Gulf of Maine/Bay of Fundy harbor porpoise stock, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) has conducted line transect abundance surveys during the summers of 1991, 1992, 1995, and 1999 and provided annual estimates of harbor porpoise by-catch from US sink gillnet fisheries. As well, incidental takes of bycatch in the Canadian sink gillnet and herring weir fisheries have also been documented. Abundance estimates increased from 37,000 in 1991 to 74,000 in 1995 (Table 1A; Smith et al. 1993, Palka 1995a, Palka 1996a). By-catch in the US Northeast sink gillnet fishery decreased from 2,900 animals in 1990 to 332 in 1998 (Table 1B; Bravington and Bisack 1996; Bisack 1997; Rossman and Merrick 1999). Harbor porpoise by-catch in the US mid-Atlantic coastal gillnet fisheries varied from a low of 103 in 1995 to a high of 572 in 1997 (Rossman and Merrick 1999). By-catch in the Canadian sink gillnet fishery decreased from 424 in 1993 to 10 in 1998 (Trippel et al. 1996, 1999). By-catch in the Canadian herring weir fishery decreased from 33 observed takes in 1993 to 2 in 1998 (Waring et al. 1999). Study area, field procedures and analysis methods used in the 1999 abundance survey were similar to those used during previous surveys (Smith et al. 1993, Palka 1995a, Palka 1996a). This paper presents a description of the field procedures, analysis methods and results from the 1999 survey and compares the abundance estimates from 1991 to 1999. Supplemental information: Perpendicular distance to the animal is not publicly available.

Purpose

Not available

Sampling Description

Study Extent

NA

Sampling

NA

Method steps

NA

Additional info

marine, harvested by iOBIS

Taxonomic Coverages

Scientific names are based on the Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS).

Cetorhinus maximus
common name: basking shark rank: species
Tursiops
common name: bottlenose dolphins rank: genus
Balaenopteridae
common name: rorquals rank: family
Balaenoptera physalus
common name: Fin Whale rank: species
Grampus griseus
common name: Risso's Dolphin rank: species
Phocoena phocoena
common name: Harbor Porpoise rank: species
Phoca vitulina
common name: Harbor Seal rank: species
Megaptera novaeangliae
common name: Humpback Whale rank: species
Dermochelys coriacea
common name: Leatherback Sea Turtle rank: species
Caretta caretta
common name: Loggerhead Sea Turtle rank: species
Balaenoptera acutorostrata
common name: Minke Whale rank: species
Mola mola
common name: ocean sunfish rank: species
Globicephala melas
common name: Long-finned Pilot Whale rank: species
Delphinus delphis
common name: Short-beaked Common Dolphin rank: species
Delphinidae
common name: dolphins rank: family
Cetacea
common name: cetaceans rank: order
Cheloniidae
common name: Sea Turtles rank: family
Lagenorhynchus
common name: white-beaked dolphins rank: genus

Geographic Coverages

North Atlantic

Bibliographic Citations

Contacts

Beth Josephson
originator
position: Primary contact
NOAA Fisheries
email: elizabeth.josephson@noaa.gov

Debi Palka
originator
position: Secondary contact
NOAA Northeast Fisheries Science Center
email: dpalka@whsun1.wh.whoi.edu

OBIS-SEAMAP
metadata author
Marine Geospatial Ecology Lab, Duke University
A328 LSRC building
Durham
27708
NC
US
email: seamap-contact@duke.edu
homepage: http://seamap.env.duke.edu

OBIS-SEAMAP
distributor
Marine Geospatial Ecology Lab, Duke University
A328 LSRC building
Durham
27708
NC
US
email: seamap-contact@duke.edu
homepage: http://seamap.env.duke.edu

Beth Josephson
owner
position: Primary contact
NOAA Fisheries
email: elizabeth.josephson@noaa.gov

Debi Palka
originator
position: Secondary contact
NOAA Northeast Fisheries Science Center
email: dpalka@whsun1.wh.whoi.edu

Beth Josephson
administrative point of contact
position: Primary contact
NOAA Fisheries
email: elizabeth.josephson@noaa.gov