title: Characterizing a Foraging Hotspot for Short-Finned Pilot Whales and Blainville's Beaked Whales Located off the West Side of Hawai'i Island by Using Tagging and Oceanographic Data.
abstract: Satellite tagging data for short-finned pilot whales (Globicephala macrorhynchus) and Blainville's beaked whales (Mesoplodon densirostris) were used to identify core insular foraging regions off the Kona (west) Coast of Hawai'i Island. Ship-based active acoustic surveys and oceanographic model output were used in generalized additive models (GAMs) and mixed models to characterize the oceanography of these regions and to examine relationships between whale density and the environment. The regions of highest density for pilot whales and Blainville's beaked whales were located between the 1000 and 2500 m isobaths and the 250 and 2000 m isobaths, respectively. Both species were associated with slope waters, but given the topography of the area, the horizontal distribution of beaked whales was narrower and located in shallower waters than that of pilot whales. The key oceanographic parameters characterizing the foraging regions were bathymetry, temperature at depth, and a high density of midwater micronekton scattering at 70 kHz in 400-650 m depths that likely represent the island-associated deep mesopelagic boundary community and serve as prey for the prey of the whales. Thus, our results suggest that off the Kona Coast, and potentially around other main Hawaiian Islands, the deep mesopelagic boundary community is key to a food web that supports insular cetacean populations.
authors.affiliation: Joint Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Research, University of Hawai'i, Honolulu, HI, United States of America.
authors.forename: Melanie
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Abecassis
authors.affiliation: Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center, NOAA Fisheries, Honolulu, HI, United States of America.
authors.forename: Jeffrey
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Polovina
authors.affiliation: Cascadia Research Collective, Olympia, WA, United States of America.
authors.forename: Robin W
authors.initials: RW
authors.lastname: Baird
authors.affiliation: Hawai'i Institute of Marine Biology, University of Hawai'i, Kāne'ohe, HI, United States of America.
authors.forename: Adrienne
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Copeland
authors.affiliation: Department of Oceanography, University of Hawai'i, Honolulu, HI, United States of America.
authors.forename: Jeffrey C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Drazen
authors.affiliation: Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center, NOAA Fisheries, Honolulu, HI, United States of America.
authors.forename: Reka
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Domokos
authors.affiliation: Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center, NOAA Fisheries, Honolulu, HI, United States of America.
authors.forename: Erin
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Oleson
authors.affiliation: International Pacific Research Center, School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology, University of Hawai'i, Honolulu, HI, United States of America.
authors.forename: Yanli
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Jia
authors.affiliation: Cascadia Research Collective, Olympia, WA, United States of America.
authors.forename: Gregory S
authors.initials: GS
authors.lastname: Schorr
authors.affiliation: Cascadia Research Collective, Olympia, WA, United States of America.
authors.forename: Daniel L
authors.initials: DL
authors.lastname: Webster
authors.affiliation: Alaska SeaLife Center, Seward, AK, United States of America.|School of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Fairbanks, AK, United States of America.
authors.forename: Russel D
authors.initials: RD
authors.lastname: Andrews
mesh_terms: D000162:Acoustics; D025041:Animal Migration / Q000502:physiology*; D000818:Animals; D004242:Diving; D004455:Echolocation; D020387:Food Chain; D006254:Hawaii; D062312:Islands; D009791:Oceanography; D011156:Population Density; D011235:Predatory Behavior / Q000502:physiology*; D063809:Satellite Imagery; D013997:Time Factors; D014828:Vocalization, Animal / Q000502:physiology; D014907:Whales / Q000502:physiology*; D050686:Whales, Pilot / Q000502:physiology*