Data Name (This will be the displayed title in Catalog)
Cetacean Distribution Shifts
Indicator Name (as exists in ecodata)
cetacean_dist
Family (Which group is this indicator associated with?)
[ ] Oceanographic
[ ] Habitat
[ ] Lower trophic levels
[X] Megafauna
[ ] Social
[ ] Economic
Data Description
The data presented here are the locations of the center of core habitat for cetaceans by season as documented in 2010 versus 2017.
Introduction to Indicator (Please explain your indicator)
Marine species are being affected by global climate changes, and in most cases the documented responses include distribution shifts from their historical habitat. In addition, human-caused drivers such as the noise and physical disturbances from oil and gas exploration, fishing, boat traffic and infrastructure such as offshore renewable energy developments, as well as other maritime activities could also result in shifts. [@chavez-rosales_detection_2022] used Northwest Atlantic cetacean location data collected in its changing environment to investigate if their habitats are changing, and if so, to what extent.
A climate vulnerability assessment is published for Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico marine mammal populations [@lettrich_vulnerability_2023].
Key Results and Visualization
For seasons and cetacean species with the movements greater then 70 km, the season plots show the direction and magnitude of core habitat shifts. The locations of the tip and end of the arrow is the seasonal weighted centroid locations for 2010 (end of arrow) and 2017 (tip of arrow). The longer the arrow the more the seasonal shift in distribution.
For species that showed a clear displacement of the weighted centroid, the average magnitude of the shift was 178 km shifted towards the northeast and into deeper waters. Bottlenose dolphin habitat showed the most drastic shift for all seasons except during winter: spring= 294 km, summer=505 km, fall= 753 km and winter = 211. There was a clear tendency where the proportion of the estimated population in southern latitudes decreased, while north of 35° the proportion of the estimated population increased, especially during summer 2017. Other species that on average, showed a moderate-to-no spatial shift included humpback whale, minke whale, white-sided dolphin, Sowerby’s beaked whale, and long-finned pilot.
Implications
Shifting species distributions alter both species interactions and fishery interactions. Those shifts affect the interaction of multiple system covariates and can result in ecosystem reorganization. In particular, shifting species distributions can alter expected management outcomes from spatial allocations and affect the efficacy of bycatch measures based on historical fish and protected species distributions. A UME for minke whales began in 2017 and is pending closure in 2024.
Spatial Scale
All U.S. Atlantic waters north of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina. Thus including all EPU and beyond.
Temporal Scale
By each of the 4 seasons in 2010 and in 2017.
Synthesis Theme
[ ] Multiple System Drivers
[X] Regime Shifts
[X] Ecosystem Reorganization
Define Variables
1) Time=time period of centroid location.
2) species=cetacean species.
3) season.
4) wlat=latitude of centroid.
5) wlon=longitude of centroid.
Indicator Category
[X] Published Methods
[ ] Extensive analysis, not yet published
[ ] Syntheses of published information
[ ] Database pull
[ ] Database pull with analysis
[ ] Other
If other, please specify indicator category
No response
Data Contributors
Sam Chavez, Elizabeth Josephson, Debra Palka
Point(s) of Contact
Sam Chavez (samuel.chavez@noaa.gov); Debra Palka (debra.palka@noaa.gov)
Primary Contact
debra.palka@noaa.gov
Secondary Contact
No response
Data Name (This will be the displayed title in Catalog)
Cetacean Distribution Shifts
Indicator Name (as exists in ecodata)
cetacean_dist
Family (Which group is this indicator associated with?)
Data Description
The data presented here are the locations of the center of core habitat for cetaceans by season as documented in 2010 versus 2017.
Introduction to Indicator (Please explain your indicator)
Marine species are being affected by global climate changes, and in most cases the documented responses include distribution shifts from their historical habitat. In addition, human-caused drivers such as the noise and physical disturbances from oil and gas exploration, fishing, boat traffic and infrastructure such as offshore renewable energy developments, as well as other maritime activities could also result in shifts. [@chavez-rosales_detection_2022] used Northwest Atlantic cetacean location data collected in its changing environment to investigate if their habitats are changing, and if so, to what extent.
A climate vulnerability assessment is published for Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico marine mammal populations [@lettrich_vulnerability_2023].
Key Results and Visualization
For seasons and cetacean species with the movements greater then 70 km, the season plots show the direction and magnitude of core habitat shifts. The locations of the tip and end of the arrow is the seasonal weighted centroid locations for 2010 (end of arrow) and 2017 (tip of arrow). The longer the arrow the more the seasonal shift in distribution. For species that showed a clear displacement of the weighted centroid, the average magnitude of the shift was 178 km shifted towards the northeast and into deeper waters. Bottlenose dolphin habitat showed the most drastic shift for all seasons except during winter: spring= 294 km, summer=505 km, fall= 753 km and winter = 211. There was a clear tendency where the proportion of the estimated population in southern latitudes decreased, while north of 35° the proportion of the estimated population increased, especially during summer 2017. Other species that on average, showed a moderate-to-no spatial shift included humpback whale, minke whale, white-sided dolphin, Sowerby’s beaked whale, and long-finned pilot.
Implications
Shifting species distributions alter both species interactions and fishery interactions. Those shifts affect the interaction of multiple system covariates and can result in ecosystem reorganization. In particular, shifting species distributions can alter expected management outcomes from spatial allocations and affect the efficacy of bycatch measures based on historical fish and protected species distributions. A UME for minke whales began in 2017 and is pending closure in 2024.
Spatial Scale
All U.S. Atlantic waters north of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina. Thus including all EPU and beyond.
Temporal Scale
By each of the 4 seasons in 2010 and in 2017.
Synthesis Theme
Define Variables
1) Time=time period of centroid location. 2) species=cetacean species. 3) season. 4) wlat=latitude of centroid. 5) wlon=longitude of centroid.
Indicator Category
If other, please specify indicator category
No response
Data Contributors
Sam Chavez, Elizabeth Josephson, Debra Palka
Point(s) of Contact
Sam Chavez (samuel.chavez@noaa.gov); Debra Palka (debra.palka@noaa.gov)
Affiliation
NEFSC
Public Availability
Source data are publicly available.
Accessibility and Constraints
No response