Details:

Personal Author:
Palka, Debra L., 1959-
Corporate Authors:
Northeast Fisheries Science Center (U.S.)
NOAA Program & Office:
NMFS (National Marine Fisheries Service) ; NEFSC (Northeast Fisheries Science Center)
NMFS (National Marine Fisheries Service) ; NEFSC (Northeast Fisheries Science Center) Less -
Description:
The Northeast Fisheries Science Center (NEFSC) conducted a line transect sighting survey that covered waters from Cape Cod to the Gulf of St. Lawrence during 28 July to 31 August 1999. An airplane and ship surveyed 8,212 km of track lines within a region of 225,400 km². Over 91% of the survey time was conducted in sighting conditions less than or equal to Beaufort sea state two. In total, 12 cetacean species, 2 seal species, and 2 turtle species were detected. The abundance estimate (and CV) of harbor porpoise was 89,700 (CV=22%). This estimate is greater than previous estimates made in 1991, 1992, and 1995. The 1999 estimate is significantly different from only the smallest estimate, which was made in1991. The main difference between the 1999 and previous surveys was in 1999 an additional region of 12,500 km² had harbor porpoise present. Within the sub-region surveyed during all years, the 1999 encounter rate was less than that from 1995 and greater than that from 1991 and 1992, the estimates of g(0) and average group size were similar for all years, and the 1999 effective strip half-width, and density estimates were slightly larger than that from previous years. The inter-annual changes in abundance could be due to experimental variability, population growth, small-scale changes in distribution of harbor porpoise and/or their prey, heterogeneities due to, for example, inter-annual differences in the observer skills or sighting conditions, or, most likely, some combination of these. Because the region where harbor porpoise were detected in 1999 was slightly larger than that from previous surveys, the time interval between surveys is fairly long (4 to 9 years), and the possibility of a positive growth rate, the best current abundance estimate for the Gulf of Maine/Bay of Fundy harbor porpoise stock is 89,700 (CV=22%), the 1999 estimate not averaged with other years. The 1999 and previous abundance estimates are minimum estimates because the shipboard surveys were not corrected for effects from responsive movement or dive time
Content Notes:
by Debra Palka.

"May 2000."

"Web version posted June 19, 2003."

Also available online in PDF via the NOAA Central Library and the Northeast Fisheries Science Center's web site

Includes bibliographical references (pages 13-14)


Keywords:
[+]
Aerial Surveys In Wildlife Management Cetacea Populations Conservation Estimates Geographical Distribution Harbor Porpoise Marine Mammals
Series:
Northeast Fisheries Science Center reference document ; 00-07
Document Type:
Miscellaneous
Place as Subject:
Maine, Gulf of ; Fundy, Bay of ; North Atlantic Ocean
Maine, Gulf of ; Fundy, Bay of ; North Atlantic Ocean Less -
Rights Information:
Public Domain
Compliance:
Library
Main Document Checksum:
[+]
urn:sha256:23cab0e2997f60004b267d69a44042e56f4672e1b09a459ef59473159cb0678d
Download URL:
https://repository.library.noaa.gov/view/noaa/3290/noaa_3290_DS1.pdf
File Type:

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