Dear Colleagues,
I am pleased to announce the following paper recently published in Marine
Ecology Progress Series.
Spring distribution and density of minke whale Balaenoptera acutorostrata along
an offshore bank in the central North Sea.
M.N. de Boer
Vol. 408: 265–274, 2010
Abstract
ABSTRACT: Minke whales were recorded in the central North Sea in an area
characterised by frontal features and high productivity northeast of the Dogger
Bank (4677 km2). Survey efforts were carried out from 28 March to 2 July 2007,
at a finer scale than in earlier studies in the region, using 2 vessels as
platforms of opportunity and a dedicated line-transect survey vessel following
distance sampling methods. The high density of whales indicated that this
offshore bank slope is an important spring habitat for minke whales in the
North Sea. In total, 77 sightings of minke whales comprising 130 individuals
were recorded. The peak density of minke whales was estimated to be 0.029
whales km–2 (minimum estimate, 95% CI: 0.012 to 0.070) in May. During peak
abundance, the minke whales temporarily congregated in the area, suggesting
that the whales were taking advantage of the local spring abundance of
sandeels. The density found was higher than previous
studies have suggested for the central North Sea. The results correspond to
recent observations of minke whale redistribution within the North Sea, and
these may be related to a decline in sandeel availability elsewhere in the
North Sea. Offshore banks that aggregate prey may therefore become increasingly
important feeding habitats for minke whales and other top predators in the
North Sea. The observed habitat preference of minke whales along this offshore
bank appeared to be similar to that observed in coastal areas, and this
suggests some degree of generality regarding the preference for this type of
habitat.
This article is now available online at:
http://www.int-res.com/abstracts/meps/v408/p265-274/
Thanks!
Marijke de Boer, Ph.D.
[email protected]
Wageningen IMARES, Institute for Marine Resources and Ecosystem Studies,
Postbus 167, 1790 AD Den Burg, The Netherlands
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