Marine mammal acoustic detections in the northeastern Chukchi Sea, September 2007–July 2011

Abstract

Several cetacean and pinniped species use the northeastern Chukchi Sea as seasonal or year-round habitat. This area has experienced pronounced reduction in the extent of summer sea ice over the last decade, as well as increased anthropogenic activity, particularly in the form of oil and gas exploration. The effects of these changes on marine mammal species are presently unknown. Autonomous passive acoustic recorders were deployed over a wide area of the northeastern Chukchi Sea off the coast of Alaska from Cape Lisburne to Barrow, at distances from 8 km to 200 km from shore: up to 44 each summer and up to 8 each winter. Acoustic data were acquired at 16 kHz continuously during summer and on a duty cycle of 40 or 48 min within each 4-h period during winter. Recordings were analyzed manually and using automated detection and classification systems to identify calls. Bowhead (Balaena mysticetus) and beluga (Delphinapterus leucas) whale calls were detected primarily from April through June and from September to December during their migrations between the Bering and Beaufort seas. Summer detections were rare and usually concentrated off Wainwright and Barrow, Alaska. Gray (Eschrichtius robustus) whale calls were detected between July and October, their occurrence decreasing with increasing distance from shore. Fin (Balaenoptera physalus), killer (Orcinus orca), minke (Balaenoptera acutorostrata), and humpback (Megaptera novaeangliae) whales were detected sporadically in summer and early fall. Walrus (Odobenus rosmarus) was the most commonly detected species between June and October, primarily occupying the southern edge of Hanna Shoal and haul-outs near coastal recording stations off Wainwright and Point Lay. Ringed (Pusa hispida) and bearded (Erignathus barbatus) seals occur year-round in the Chukchi Sea. Ringed seal acoustic detections occurred throughout the year but detection numbers were low, likely due to low vocalization rates. Bearded seal acoustic detections peaked in April and May during their breeding season, with much lower detection numbers in July and August, likely as a result of reduced calling rates after breeding season. Ribbon seals (Histriophoca fasciata) were only detected in the fall as they migrated south through the study area toward the Bering Sea. These results suggest a regular presence of marine mammals in the Chukchi Sea year-round, with species-dependent seasonal and spatial density variations.