This project will use a unique set of individual-based data to quantify and model the behavioral ecology of six Department of Defense priority cetacean species in the Bahamas. Data collected through individual photo-identification, molecular genetics, chemical markers (i.e., stable isotope ratios, persistent organic pollutants, fatty acids), satellite telemetry and acoustic recordings will be integrated to characterize the social structure, residency patterns, reproductive biology, foraging ecology and population structuring of key deep-diving cetaceans in the region. These data will be collected in collaboration with Bahamas Marine Mammal Research Organization, Southwest Fisheries Science Center, Alaska Fisheries Science Center, and the NWFSC, and will be used to model the response of these species to naval sounds. In FY11, the NWFSC analyzed 50 biopsy blubber samples of six priority species of whales from the Bahamas for persistent organic pollutants, fatty acids, lipid classes and percent lipid, as well as the corresponding skin samples for stable isotopes of carbon and nitrogen to help describe the foraging habitats, qualitative prey preferences, and feeding stock structure of these whales. Using these previously collected Bahama whale data as a foundation, we will compare the foraging ecology of sperm, pilot, and melon-headed whales with beaked whales inhabiting the same area. Thus, in like-fashion, using a combination of advanced multivariate statistical methods, the patterns of individual fatty acids (FAs) and persistent organic pollutants (POPs) measured in the blubber of the six priority cetacean species, as well as their skin SI ratios, will be used to do the following: (1) Identify assemblages of individual whales that may represent stable feeding groups (both short- and long-term). (2) Test the extent to which each of these species exhibit site fidelity with respect to their foraging habitats (3) Assess the extent of niche overlap among all these whale species within this ecosystem as indicated by perceived differences in their preferred prey. Because very little is currently known about the foraging behavior of these whales, this represents a significant advance in our understanding of the trophic dynamics, population structure, and feeding ecology of all of these whales. Measures concentrations of POPs and fatty acids, total lipid and lipid profiles, and stable isotopes of carbon and nitrogen in tissues of deep-diving cetaceans and their prey.

The Nutritional Ecology Laboratory maintains a database containing all of the biochemical data we collect. The database includes seasonal information regarding size, age, location, date, developmental stage, and maturity status of all the specimens we have examined. Samples range from phytoplankton to whales and seals. Depending on the objectives of specific studies, these data can be matched to measures of energy content, proximate, lipid class, and fatty acid composition.

With increasing oil exploration and ship traffic in the U.S. Arctic, there is concern about the increased potential for an oil spill event in this region of the world. Baseline exposure levels of oil-spill related contaminants are lacking for marine mammals, particularly endangered or threatened populations (e.g., ice seals, bowhead whales). Identification of the appropriate tissues/fluids to assess recent exposure of marine mammals to oil components must be determined, as well as the type of oil spill-related contaminant (e.g., parent polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), metabolites of PAHs). To help address these data gaps, various matrices of Arctic marine mammals will be collected during subsistence harvests and from fresh dead stranded animals over the next year and these samples will be analyzed for oil-spill related compounds. These tissues will also be analyzed for additional oil-spill related components after the methods have been developed and validated. Under the guidance of NOAA Fisheries Office of Protected Resources, we will collaborate with the National Institute of Standards and Technology to develop and test appropriate standard reference materials and control materials for these analyses to ensure that the chemical contaminant data generated for this project are of known and acceptable quality. Concentrations of PAHs and alkylated PAHs in Arctic marine mammal tissues.

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.

This work uses white muscle tissues collected from sixgill and sevengill sharks to characterize the diet of each species. Tissues from prey species have also been prepared in order to initialize the models. We used mixing models to determine the probabilities of each prey species being in the diet of these top predators. These data will be used to predict which prey groups are impacted by these species, and then used in conjunction with patterns of daily, seasonal, and annual movement patterns to examine the variation in predatory impact across space and time among the various prey groups. Shark tissue stable isotope signatures from Northeast Pacific coastal habitats.

Over the past 15 years, high quality marine mammal tissue and fluid samples collected by subsistence hunters in the North Slope region of Alaska have been archived by the North Slope Borough (NSB). Staff from both the NSB’s Department of Wildlife Management and the NWFSC have selected a subset of the samples for analyses of petroleum-related compounds to establish baseline concentrations in top-level predators in the region. The Environmental Chemistry Program will analyze tissue and stomach content samples of various species of marine mammals harvested in the North Slope region of Alaska for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) including alkylated PAH homologs using gas chromatography / mass spectrometry (GC/MS). The NWFSC will also analyze bile and urine samples collected from a subset of these animals for PAH metabolites using either high-performance liquid chromatography/fluorescence or liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). The findings of this study will be drafted for a peer-reviewed journal publication. Measurements of parent and alkylated PAHs in various matrices of marine mammals.

This project is examining contaminant loads of fish prey species of a resident marine bird (Rhinoceros Auklet) breeding in inland waters (Puget Sound) and in the northern California Current (outer Washington coast). It is being conducted by NMFS FTEs, in collaboration with scientists from the State of Washington and University of Puget Sound. Contaminant loads of fish prey as well as the marine bird predators are being assessed in the context of other upper trophic level predators in Puget Sound (Southern resident killer whales; harbor seals; adult salmonids). Scientific manuscripts and technical reports will be the main products. The target audience includes the Puget Sound Partnership, resource management agencies, stakeholders in the Puget Sound area, and marine scientists in general. This is an on-going, stand-alone project without a firm deadline. POPs and stable isotopes in bird and forage fish tissues.

This data set contains sensitive biological resource data for seals, whales, porpoises, walruses, sea otters, and Steller sea lions in the Bristol Bay Subarea. The Subarea includes marine and coastal areas of Bristol Bay and part of the southern Alaska Peninsula. (This area extends from directly south of Goodnews Bay to slightly north of Port Seniavan along the Bristol Bay side of the Alaska Peninsula, as well as the Pacific Ocean side of the Alaska Peninsula from Cape Providence to Kupreanof Peninsula.) Vector polygons in this data set represent marine mammal distribution, haul-out sites, and rookeries. Species-specific abundance, seasonality, status, life history, and source information are stored in relational data tables (described below) designed to be used in conjunction with this spatial data layer.This data set comprises a portion of the Environmental Sensitivity Index (ESI) data for the Bristol Bay Subarea. ESI data characterize the marine and coastal environments and wildlife by their sensitivity to spilled oil. The ESI data include information for three main components: shoreline habitats, sensitive biological resources, and human-use resources. See also the M_MAMPT (Marine Mammal Points) data layer, part of the larger Bristol Bay Subarea ESI database, for additional marine mammal information.

This layer is intended to represent the geographic extent of NOAA Fisheries’ Pacific Northwest Marine Mammal Survey. The Pacific Northwest Marine Mammal Survey is part of the larger West Coast Marine Mammal Surveys started in 2021 and led by NMFS Alaska Fisheries Science Center. These surveys have a specific focus on small vessel surveys (Class II small vessel, 34-ft LOA) for marine mammals from the western Strait of Juan de Fuca south along the outer coast to Eureka, California. Although focal species vary from year-to-year, surveys have historically prioritized gray whales (Eschrichtius robustus), humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae), and Steller sea lions (Eumetopias jubatus) given the program’s long-term survey efforts for these species. Since 2021, surveys from June through September now represent a substantial increase in both spatial coverage and frequency relative to historical surveys, documenting all opportunistic sightings of marine mammals independent of program priorities. Data are used to derive estimates of species-specific occurrence, density, abundance, and resource utilization. As the length of the time series improves, data will be leveraged to better understand environmental drivers of occurrence, abundance and density, phenology of migration, and the health/condition of individuals and populations.The Pacific Northwest Marine Mammal Survey periodically samples marine mammals along coastal, shelf, and shelf edge ecosystems - out to approximately 20 nautical miles offshore - from northern Washington (including the western Strait of Juan de Fuca) to northern California. Periodic sampling efforts include collection of spatially explicit presence/absence data for all marine mammals, mark-resight observations of individually identifiable large whales (including gray whales, humpback whales, killer whales, blue whales, and fin whales) and Steller sea lions (from branded and tagged animals), boat-based tissue sampling of large whales, boat-based UAS surveys for enumerating pinnipeds at haulouts/rookeries along the PNW coast, and UAS-based photogrammetry for measuring body condition in large whales and pinnipeds.

1) The purpose of this project is to document juvenile salmon habitat occurrence in the Lower Columbia River and estuary, and examine how habitat conditions influence their distribution, health, and abundance. We also want to monitor habitat conditions and indicators of salmon health in these environments. Parameters measured include habitat conditions such as vegetation, water temperature, and dissolved oxygen; salmon diet and prey availability; weight, length, growth rate, lipid content, genetic stock, and chemical contaminant exposure. 2) Lyndal Johnson (NFWSC FTE) is the project lead, and other primary staff involved are Sean Sol and Paul Olson (NWFSC FTEs) and Kate Macneale (NWFSC term employee), but the project also involves other NWFSC FTEs, other term employees, contractors, and staff from other programs (Environmental Chemistry) and Divisions (FE, CB), as well as staff from collaborating agencies (i.e, the Lower Columbia River Estuary Partnership, USGS, PNNL, OHSU). 3) The project involves field surveys in which parameters measured include habitat conditions such as vegetation, water temperature, and dissolved oxygen; salmon diet and prey availability; weight, length, growth rate, lipid content, genetic stock, and chemical contaminant exposure. 4) Specific products include annual reports for the Lower Columbia Estuary Partnership, and manuscripts in peer-reviewed journals. 5) Specific audiences include (but are not limited to) the Bonneville Power Administration and other federal, state, and local agencies involved with salmon recovery and environmental management in the Columbia Basin (e.g., EPA, Washington Department of Ecology, Oregon Department of Environmental Quality, the City of Portland); the NMFS regional office, and other agency and academic scientists. 6) This is a stand-alone project, but it is also a component of a larger monitoring program overseen by the Estuary Partnership in which other tasks are conducted by collaborators in USGS, PNNL, and OHSU. 7) This is an ongoing project with a soft completion deadline; however, there are no final deadlines with specific tasks to be completed on a yearly basis. Concentrations of chemical contaminants in bodies and stomach contents of Chinook salmon from Lower Columbia sampling sites.