Influence of environmental variability on distribution and relative abundance of baleen whales (suborder Mysticeti) in the Gulf of California

The Gulf of California (GC) is one of the most productive seas in the Pacific Ocean because of several oceanographic phenomena that support many marine mammal species, particularly of the cetacean order. The environmental variability of the GC was analysed during the cold and warm periods of 2005 an...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Marine ecology (Berlin, West) West), 2017-12, Vol.38 (6), p.n/a
Main Authors: García‐Morales, Ricardo, Pérez‐Lezama, Edgar Leonardo, Shirasago‐Germán, Bernardo
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Abundance
Aquatic mammals
Balaenoptera
baleen whales
Baleens
Chlorophyll
Chlorophyll a
Distribution
distribution and abundance
environmental variability
Image analysis
Image detection
Image processing
Marine mammals
Relative abundance
Satellite imagery
Satellites
Sea surface
Sea surface temperature
temperature
Variability
Whales
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Summary:The Gulf of California (GC) is one of the most productive seas in the Pacific Ocean because of several oceanographic phenomena that support many marine mammal species, particularly of the cetacean order. The environmental variability of the GC was analysed during the cold and warm periods of 2005 and 2006 and its effects on the distribution and relative abundance of baleen whales using sea surface temperature (SST) and chlorophyll a (Chl a) concentration. Satellite image analysis allowed us to detect important differences in both Chl a concentration and SST including cold to warm periods, even between the two cold periods and between the two warm periods. The cold periods had the highest number of whales: 99 individuals in 2005 and 183 in 2006, which were distributed along the entire gulf. Fewer animals were recorded in the warm period: 46 individuals in 2005 and 30 in 2006, which were mainly distributed in the northern part of the gulf. We concluded that SST influenced the relative abundance of baleen whales while Chl a concentration influenced their distribution.
ISSN:0173-9565
1439-0485
DOI:10.1111/maec.12479