How may an annual removal of humpback whales from Godthaabsfjord, West Greenland, affect the within-fjord sighting rate?
Article Sidebar
Main Article Content
Abstract
Photo-identifications of humpback whales in the Godthaabsfjord area were collected from 2007 to 2012 and divided into individuals and number of sightings per individual. Monte Carlo simulations were performed on the sighting distributions of individual humpback whales to investigate the potential impact that local removals (e.g. ship strikes, subsistence hunt) could have on the sighting rate of humpback whales in Godthaabsfjord. Half of the sightings were based on the same six individuals during the six year period. Sighting rate was likely to drop regardless of when (spring, summer or autumn) an individual was removed due to the large degree of site fidelity of several humpback whales in Godthaabsfjord. Removals could affect the whalewatching industry in Godthaabsfjord where humpback whales constitute a key species. The least impact may be achieved by conducting the hunt outside the fjord system or minimising summer or autumn hunts within the fjord, as spring removals tend to have the least effect on summer sighting rates.
Article Details
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
You are free to:
- Share copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format
- Adapt remix, transform, and build upon the material
- The licensor cannot revoke these freedoms as long as you follow the license terms.
Under the following terms:
- Attribution You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use.
- NonCommercial You may not use the material for commercial purposes.
- No additional restrictions You may not apply legal terms or technological measures that legally restrict others from doing anything the license permits.