[MARMAM] New Publication: Foraging Behaviour and Ecology of Transient Killer Whales Within a Deep Submarine Canyon System

[McInnes, Joshua]

Dear colleagues,


My co-authors and I are please to announce the publication of our new paper 
titled: Foraging Behaviour and Ecology of Transient Killer Whales Within a Deep 
Submarine Canyon System.


McInnes, J.D., Lester, K.L., Dill, L.M., Mathieson, C.R., West-Stap, P.J., 
Marcos, S.L., and Trites, A.W. (2024). Foraging Behaviour and Ecology of 
Transient Killer Whales Within a Deep Submarine Canyon System. PLoS ONE 19(3): 
e0299291. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0299291.


https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0299291


Summary:

Transient killer whales have been documented hunting marine mammals across a 
variety of
habitats. However, relatively little has been reported about their predatory 
behaviours near
deep submarine canyons and oceanic environments. We used a long-term database of
sightings and encounters with these predators in and around the Monterey 
Submarine Canyon,
California to describe foraging behaviour, diet, seasonal occurrence, and 
habitat use
patterns. Transient killer whales belonging to the outer coast subpopulation 
were observed
within the study area 261 times from 2006–2021. Occurrences, behaviours, and 
group sizes
all varied seasonally, with more encounters occurring in the spring as grey 
whales migrated
northward from their breeding and calving lagoons in Mexico (March-May). Groups 
of killer
whales foraged exclusively in open water, with individuals within the groups 
following the
contours of the submarine canyon as they searched for prey. Focal follows 
revealed that
killer whales spent 51% of their time searching for prey (26% of their time 
along the shelfbreak
and upper slope of the canyon, and 25% in open water). The remainder of their 
time
was spent pursuing prey (10%), feeding (23%), travelling (9%), socializing 
(6%), and resting
(1%). Prey species during 87 observed predation events included California sea 
lions, grey
whale calves, northern elephant seals, minke whales, common dolphins, Pacific 
white-sided
dolphins, Dall’s porpoise, harbour porpoise, harbour seals, and sea birds. The 
calculated kill
rates (based on 270 hours of observing 50 predation events) were 0.26 
California sea lions
per killer whale over 24 hours, 0.11 grey whale calves, and 0.15 for all 
remaining prey species
combined. These behavioural observations provide insights into predator-prey 
interactions
among apex predators over submarine canyons and deep pelagic environments.

Please feel free to email me with any questions: j.mcin...@oceans.ubc.ca

Sincerely,


Josh D. McInnes, MSc Candidate

Marine Mammal Research Unit
Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries

Aquatic Ecosystem Research Laboratory

University of British Columbia

Vancouver, BC Canada V6T 1Z4


Research Associate | Pacific Wildlife Foundation

Port Moody, British Columbia, Canada, V3H 1V6

Centre for Wildlife Ecology

Department of Biological Sciences

 University Drive

Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC



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[MARMAM] New Publication: Evidence for an oceanic population of killer whales (Orcinus orca) in offshore waters of California and Oregon

[McInnes, Joshua]

Dear colleagues,

On behalf of my co-authors, we are pleased to share with you our recent
publication published in Aquatic Mammals:


McInnes, J.D., Trites, A.W., Mathieson, C.R., Dahlheim, M.E., Moore, J.E., 
Olson, P.A., and Lester, K.M. (2024). Evidence for an oceanic population of 
killer whales (Orcinus orca) in offshore waters of California and Oregon. 
Aquatic Mammals 50(2), 93-106, DOI https://doi.org/10.1578/AM.50.2.2024.93.


Summary:

In the northeastern Pacific, sightings of small numbers of killer whales 
(Orcinus orca) of unknown ecotype have been sporadically reported during open 
ocean marine mammal surveys, pelagic birding expeditions, and high seas fishing 
operations. However, it is unknown whether these oceanic killer whales belong 
to a mammal-eating ecotype of killer whale, an offshore fish-eating ecotype, or 
an offshore generalist type. We attempted to determine the ecotype of 49 
unknown individuals observed during nine encounters from 1997 to 2021 in the 
deep oceanic waters far from the coastlines of California and Oregon (> 65 km) 
based on their foraging behaviors, prey species consumed, morphologies, and the 
prevalence of cookiecutter shark (Isistius sp.) bite scars. We hypothesize that 
these killer whales may represent a distinct oceanic subpopulation of transient 
killer whales or an undescribed oceanic population that feeds on marine mammals 
and sea turtles in the open ocean beyond the continental shelf break.


Best regards,


Josh D. McInnes, MSc Candidate

Marine Mammal Research Unit
Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries

Aquatic Ecosystem Research Laboratory

University of British Columbia

Vancouver, BC Canada V6T 1Z4


Research Associate | Pacific Wildlife Foundation

Port Moody, British Columbia, Canada, V3H 1V6

Centre for Wildlife Ecology

Department of Biological Sciences

 University Drive

Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC



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[MARMAM] Identification Catalog and Field Guide to Transient Killer Whales of Monterey Bay

[McInnes, Joshua]

Dear friends and colleagues,
My co-authors and I are thrilled to announce that our new publication titled:
McInnes, J.D., Mathieson, C.R., West-Stap, P.J., Marcos, S.L., Wade, V.L., 
Jeffrey E. Moore, Sarah L. Mesnick, and Lawrence M. Dill (2023). I 
dentification catalog and field guide for transient (Bigg’s) killer whales of 
Monterey Bay and California waters. NOAA Southwest Fisheries Science Center.
This publication, in conjunction with our 2021 published technical memorandum, 
Transient Killer Whales of Central and Northern California and Oregon: a 
Catalog of Photo-identified Individuals, provides additional user friendly 
natural history information on transient killer whales off the California coast.
Our research on transient killer whales in the California Current Ecosystem is 
co-managed by NOAA Southwest Fisheries Science Center, Oceanic Ecology Research 
Group,
 and Monterey Bay Marine Life Studies.

Summary: There is nothing quite like staring out at the open Pacific and seeing 
a group of killer whales (Orcinus orca). Whether from a local whale watch tour 
out of Monterey Bay or from the cliff tops overlooking the open ocean off Point 
Lobos, killer whales are keenly sought by naturalists and visitors alike. The 
Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary and surrounding waters of the California 
Current ecosystem are home to three ecotypes, or forms, of killer whale. One 
may encounter endangered southern residents following seasonally abundant 
Chinook salmon, glimpse a group of rarely sighted offshores hunting deep-water 
sharks, or witness the dramatic hunt of a group of transient killer whales 
trying to separate a gray whale calf from its mother!
Transient (Bigg’s) killer whales are marine mammal-hunting specialists, and by 
far the most commonly encountered ecotype of killer whale in Monterey Bay. 
However, current information regarding their ecology in waters south of the 
Pacific Northwest is scattered and varied. Most of it can only be found in 
unpublished reports or conference abstracts. This publication, in conjunction 
with our 2021 published technical memorandum, Transient Killer Whales of 
Central and Northern California and Oregon: a Catalog of Photo-identified 
Individuals, focuses specifically on transient killer whales identified in the 
Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary (MBNMS). For a comprehensive catalog of 
transient killer whales that use the waters of the outer coast of California 
and Oregon, see our recently published technical memorandum.
>From May 2006 to April 2020 Marine Life Studies and the Transient Killer Whale 
>Research Project have collected data and photographs of killer whales in 
>Monterey Bay and the surrounding waters of California. Here we provide 
>information on our research findings, natural history, and a compilation of 
>134 different individual transient killer whales photographed during our 
>surveys.

This publication was a result of numerous individuals from multiple 
organizations. I want to thank the Marine Mammal Research Unit UBC 
(MMRU),
 Institute for the Oceans and 
Fisheries,
 NOAA Fisheries West 
Coast,
 NOAA Southwest Fisheries Science 
Center,
 Monterey Bay Marine Life 
Studies,
 Noaa's Monterey Bay National Marine 

[MARMAM] Josh McInnes - UBC Marine Mammal Research Unit

[McInnes, Joshua]

Dear Colleagues,

On behalf of my co-authors, I am very pleased to announce that our new 
publication titled: Transient Killer Whales of central and northern California 
and Oregon: A Catalog of Photo-Identified Individuals has been published today 
as part of the NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service Technical Memorandum 
series.


McInnes, Josh D., Chelsea R. Mathieson, Peggy J. West-Stap, Stephanie L. 
Marcos, Victoria L. Wade, Paula A. Olson, and Andrew W. Trites. 2021. Transient 
killer whales of central and northern California and Oregon: A catalog of 
photo-identified individuals. U.S. Department of Commerce, NOAA Technical 
Memorandum NMFS-SWFSC-644. https://doi.org/10.25923/60y3-5m49


The publication is open access and can be found at the following NOAA Southwest 
Fisheries Science Center link: 
https://swfsc-publications.fisheries.noaa.gov/publications/?search=Transient+Killer+Whales+of+central+and+northern+California+and+Oregon=2021


Abstract: Photo-identification studies of transient killer whales (Orcinus 
orca) off western North America have primarily been conducted in the coastal 
inland waterways of Washington State, British Columbia, and southeastern 
Alaska. Less is known about transient killer whales along the outer coast and 
offshore waters of Oregon and central and northern California. We examined 13 
years of photo-identification data to identify individuals and obtain a minimum 
census for this region, and to summarize information that could be useful for 
evaluating a hypothesis that whales using this area belong to a distinct 
assemblage. Data contributions came from opportunistic marine mammal surveys, 
whale watch ecotours, and dedicated line transect surveys. Transient killer 
whale photographs were obtained from 146 encounters between 2006–2018. These 
included 136 encounters in Monterey Bay, California, 5 encounters off central 
and northern California, and 5 encounters off Oregon. The number of unique 
individuals seen during this time totaled 155, of which 150 were considered to 
be alive (as of 2018). These included 34 adult males, 51 adult females, 24 
sub-adults, and 41 juveniles. Through repeated observations of association 
patterns, a total of 30 matrilineal groups were identified. New whales were 
identified each year, including previously unidentified adults and new calves. 
Identification images of the dorsal fins, saddle patches and postocular patches 
were obtained. Details on sex, maternal ancestry, sighting history, and 
distribution are provided where known. These cataloged transient killer whales 
were predominantly encountered off the outer coast near the continental shelf 
break or in deep pelagic waters overlying the Monterey Submarine Canyon. The 
vast majority (>83 %) of whales identified in the study area could not be 
matched to transient killer whales in photo ID catalogs for coastal waters of 
the Pacific Northwest. These factors are consistent with there being a distinct 
“outer coast” assemblage within the west coast population of transient killer 
whales, but more research is needed to investigate this further.


Please feel free to email me if you have additional questions: 
j.mcin...@oceans.ubc.ca


Josh D. McInnes, MSc Candidate

Marine Mammal Research Unit
Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries
University of British Columbia
Vancouver, BC Canada V6T 1Z4




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