Polar Ecosystems Program research projects focus primarily on abundance, trends, distribution, health and condition, and foraging behavior of phocids (harbor, bearded, ringed, spotted, and ribbon seals) in Alaska. This database contains health and disease data obtained by analysis of different blood parameters, molecular analysis of swabs, stable isotope analysis, and contaminant analysis from seals across a variety of research projects. Biological samples (e.g. blood, tissue, hair, nasal swabs, and whiskers) have been collected from ribbon and spotted seals in the Bering Sea, bearded seals in the Bering and Chukchi Seas, and harbor seals in the north Pacific and Bering Sea. Ribbon seal samples were collected in 2005-2010, 2014; spotted seal samples were collected in 2005-2010, 2014; bearded seal samples were collected in 2007, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2014; ringed seal samples were collected in 2007-2009; harbor seal samples were collected in 2004-2006, 2012.

Polar Ecosystems Program research projects focus primarily on abundance, trends, distribution, health and condition, and foraging behavior of phocids (harbor, bearded, ringed, spotted, and ribbon seals) in Alaska. This database represents a collection of morphometrics obtained from all of these species across a variety of research projects. Morphometric data were collected from seals that were captured and sampled in the north Pacific, Bering and Chukchi Seas, in 2004-2012, 2014, 2015. There are also morphometric data from ribbon, spotted, and bearded seals that were collected during a research cruise in 1991. Data collected include lengths, girths, mass, and blubber thickness.

This data set contains food habits determined from stomachs of northern fur seals collected from pelagic waters during 1981-1985. Prey items were identified using hard parts including bones, otoliths, and cephalopod beaks.

This data set contains Steller sea lion diet data based on analysis of scats collected during summer (May-September) and winter (November-April) rookeries and haulouts in Alaska during 1990 to 2009. Prey items from 87 prey taxa were identified using hard parts including bones, otoliths, and cephalopod beaks. Frequency of occurrence was calculated for 375 site-year-season combinations, and used in the analysis published by Sinclair et al. (2013). This dataset includes the thirteen primary prey taxa (frequency of occurrence >= 5%) identified in the Sinclair et al. (2013) study.

Polar Ecosystems Program research projects focus primarily on abundance, trends, distribution, health and condition, and foraging behavior of phocids (harbor, bearded, ringed, spotted, and ribbon seals) in Alaska. This database represents data associated with live captures and specimen collection of all these species across a variety of research projects. Data include information such as capture date, location, time, and handling time, as well as information about each animal (e.g., age, sex, molt, pregnancy status, pelage type). These data are most useful when combined in a relational manner with other datasets (e.g. telemetry, health and disease, morphometrics).

The Marine Mammal Laboratory (MML) Food Habits Reference Collection, containing over 1000 specimens of cephalopod beaks and fish bones and otoliths, is used to identify undigested prey remains found in scats or stomachs of stranded or incidentally taken pinnipeds and cetaceans. Marine mammal food habits data are used in conjunction with satellite telemetry and dive records to better understand foraging behavior and prey selection. This information is critical to understanding how commercial fisheries and changing environmental conditions impact these animals. The Food Habits Collection includes fish and cephalopod species that are commonly consumed by pinnipeds along the Pacific Northwest coast and in Alaska, but we are in the process of adding other potential prey species and specimens to fill unrepresented size ranges. We are very appreciative of NMFS/AFSC/RACE fisheries biologists, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game and the University of Washington for their ongoing donations to our collection. With the help and cooperation of researchers such as these, our collection continues to grow in size and usefulness. The Marine Mammal Food Habits Reference Collection is an important research tool within NMML, and is also used several times a year by graduate students and researchers from universities, government agencies and private institutions. These collections have contributed to food habits research on Magister armhook squid, Northern fulmar, Newells shearwater, Hawaiian petrel, river otters and marine mammals. The collections are also used by archeologists to identify fish and mammal bones found in Native American middens from Alaska to Mexico. The database is comprised of a table detailing specimens and associated data and measurements for fish and cephalopod soft tissue and hard parts contained within the reference collection.

Floating glacial ice serves as a haul-out substrate for a significant number (10-15%) of Alaskan harbor seals, and thus surveying tidewater glacial fjords is an important component of statewide efforts to estimate seal abundance. Surveys conducted during pupping suggest that glacial haul outs have higher than average productivity and thus may serve as important source populations statewide. The availability of ice for hauling out varies with seasonal glacial dynamics, but over decades of climate change most tidewater glaciers are now retreating toward eventual grounding with many already ceasing to calve ice into the water. Compounding glacial retreat and thinning is the trend at most of these sites toward increasing tourism and a low compliance of tour vessels to seal approach guidelines and regulations. It is thus important to track glacial populations over the long-term especially as various impacts may degrade seal habitat leading to fewer glacial seals and potential impacts to the population state-wide. There are currently 28 glacial sites that have at least one actively calving tidewater glacier and in turn seals that haul out on the ice during the seals’ molting period, when most surveys have occurred. Due to concerns about vessel disturbance, Disenchantment and Icy Bays have been surveyed during molting almost annually between 2001-2011 (ex 2003); surveys occurred during pupping and molting in 2004 and 2005, and have occurred just during molting apx. every other year since 2011. Johns Hopkins Inlet in Glacier Bay has been surveyed annually using these methods since 2007, with surveys occurring during both pupping and molting. The remaining 25 sites have been surveyed on an opportunistic schedule (based on weather and aircraft availability), which for most sites equates to about every 2-3 years. Some of the smallest sites have been surveyed on a 4-5 year schedule. These schedules will likely continue with more abundant sites in Prince William Sound (e.g., College Fjord and Columbia) and Southeast Alaska (Tracy Arm, Endicott Arm, LeConte Bay, and Glacier Bay) having higher priority and contingent on management concerns.

Groundfish diet data collected during the Alaska Fisheries Science Center (NOAA/NMFS) groundfish surveys in the eastern Bering Sea, Aleutian Islands, and Gulf of Alaska regions from 1981 to the present. Groundfish diet data are also collected by fishery observers aboard commercial fishing vessels. Diet data is associated with corresponding haul location data. Diet data is described to the lowest practical taxon with the exception of fish and crab prey which a generally described to the species level. These data are in an Oracle 11g.

Diel epipelagic sampling for juvenile Pacific salmon (Oncorhynchus spp.), rockfish (Sebastes spp.), sablefish (Anoplopoma fimbria), and associated species was conducted in order to identify factors that may affect year-class success of these commercially important species. Sampling occurred in offshore marine habitats of the coastal northeast Pacific Ocean from 10-20 August 2005 and was conducted with a surface trawl fishing the upper 20 m of the water column along transects up to78 km offshore near 58 N. Three habitats were sampled along each transect over a 24-hr period: the continental shelf (<200 m depth), the continental slope (400-750 m depth), and the abyss (>2,000 m depth). A total of 38,747 fish and squid representing 24 species were sampled in 56 trawl hauls. Of the targeted juvenile fish species, a total of 587 salmon, 11 rockfish, and 70 sablefish were captured. Sampling during day (1500-1900) and night (2200-0200) periods indicated that biomass of fish and squid was 2-4 times higher at night at (each?)all habitat types pooled across transects. No distinct patterns between day or night occurrence were noted for juvenile pink salmon (O. gorbuscha), chum salmon (O. keta), sockeye salmon (O. nerka), or coho salmon (O. kisutch), however, juvenile Chinook salmon (O. tshawytscha) were encountered only at night. Catches of juvenile rockfish and juvenile sablefish were quite low in this study, and larger sample sizes of these fish are needed to adequately determine their diel distribution. Diel differences were apparent with forage species such as Pacific herring (Clupea pallasi), capelin (Mallotus villosus), and eulachon (Thaleichthys pacificus) that were almost exclusively sampled at night. The offshore distribution patterns of target species were distinctly different, with the most common occurrences of juvenile salmon over continental shelf habitats, juvenile sablefish over continental shelf and slope habitats, and juvenile rockfish over slope and abyss habitats. Pacific herring, capelin, eulachon, and Pacific sardines (Sardinops sagax) were found over continental shelf habitats, whereas small squid and myctophids occurred primarily at slope and abyssal habitats. The greatest overall catch biomass was of gelatinous species (jellyfish), which was consistently higher than that of all fish and squid combined, usually by an order of magnitude. Individual fish or squid species with highest average weight per haul were pomfret (Brama japonica), adult coho salmon, Humboldt squid (Dosidicus gigas), and blue sharks (Prionace glauca). The occurrence of the latter two warm-water species and Pacific sardines were of interest because this study occurred during an anomalously warm year and the capture of Pacific sardines and Humboldt squid represent northern range extensions for these species. Stomach content analysis of potential predator species of the target species showed that only adult coho salmon were predating on juvenile salmon and sablefish, and only pomfret were predating on juvenile rockfish. Further sampling of the target species is needed in these habitats during more normal environmental conditions to validate these observations.

These data are part of North Pacific Research Board Project 414 and Project 514. Project 514 provided a second year of data collection to the study detailed in Banks et al. (2006; North Pacific Research Board Project 414 Final Report; https://workspace.aoos.org/published/file/48ffae91-0274-4b2b-bc84-5378554070c1/f0414_final_report.pdf?source=catalog&portalId=92), and are summarized together in Springer et al. (2008; North Pacific Research Board Project 514 Final Report; https://workspace.aoos.org/files/2580819/514_Final%20report.pdf?source=catalog&portalId=92 Adult female northern fur seals were captured with hoop nets at 2 breeding colonies (Reef and Vostochni Rookeries) on St. Paul Island, Alaska, and at the single breeding colony on Bogoslof Island, Alaska. Captures occurred during November, 2004 (St. Paul Island only); July, 2005; October-November, 2005; and July 2006. 20 seals at each island and during each capture period were weighed, measured, flipper tagged, and instrumented with satellite tags (platform transmitter terminals, or PTTs), for a total of 140 deployments. Seals were also instrumented with archival time-depth recorders (TDRs) during the July, 2005 (n = 20 TDRs at each island) and July, 2006 (n = 17 TDRs at each island) capture periods. Seals were recaptured, and the instruments recovered, at the end of the each summer. Data collection began on 11/06/2004 and ended on 10/19/2006; data represent 2 winter (fur seal migration) and 2 summer (fur seal lactation) study seasons. PTT (model: Kiwisat 101 and 202; Sirtrack Limited, Havelock North, New Zealand) transmissions were programmed to duty cycle at 4 hours on, 8 hours off during the winter study seasons and at 4 hours on, 4 hours off during the summer study seasons. TDRs (model Mk9; Wildlife Computers, Redmond, WA) sampled depth and temperature every 5 second. Data are composed of: fur seal capture and instrument deployment histories (1 spreadsheet); seal locations obtained from PTT deployments (4 spreadsheets, each containing all seal locations during a study season); TDR environmental sampling records (65 text files in 4 folders, each file representing a single TDR deployment and each folder representing the deployment island and summer study year for the included TDR files).