Changes in cetacean occurrence in Faxaflói Bay, Iceland, as observed from whale watching vessels
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.7557/3.7386Keywords:
climate change, long-term, marine mammals, North Atlantic, SPUE, whale-watchingAbstract
The distribution of animal species is shaped by environmental conditions and their ecological niches. The understanding of these niches is essential for conservation, especially for cetaceans, as cetacean species may adjust their geographical range in response to ecological changes. Long-term data is vital to monitor these shifts and guide conservation efforts. While environmental changes are occurring globally, localised effects on specific species and habitats, particularly marine ecosystems, remain understudied. This gap in knowledge is evident in Artic regions. As key trophic species, cetaceans can act as indicators of potential significance and contribute significantly to the economy of local communities via the practice of whale watching. Iceland, a biodiversity hotspot, has experienced significant warming as part of global climate change, possibly affecting the abundance of prey species. Cetaceans such as humpback whales, minke whales, white-beaked dolphins, and harbour porpoises inhabit these waters year-round and may be affected by such changes. This paper focuses on the bay of Faxaflói in southwest Iceland, utilising semi long-term data (2016-2023) from whale watching tours to discern potential changes in the occurrence of these four species.
Sightings Per Unit Effort (SPUE) for the four targeted species was calculated for each month and year. ANOVA test (p<.005) and Tukey HSD test were conducted for humpback whales revealing significant differences in Spue in the years 2022-2017 (p=0.006), 2023-2017 (p=0.003), 2023-2018 (p=0.04), 2022-2019 (p=0.02), and 2023-2019 (p=0.009). Seasonal analysis suggests shifts in SPUE, with increased observations during non-touristic periods after 2021. Results indicate intriguing trends in species occurrence, with a significant increase in humpback whale sightings and a steady decline in mine whale sightings since 2018. The inverse relationship between minke and humpback whales suggests possible competition or distributional shifts.
Acknowledging limitations and biases from tourism-centric data collection his study highlights the importance of whale watching records as a year-round monitoring tool. Collaborative efforts between operators and researchers are crucial to enhance data quality. Understanding and addressing the observational changes in cetaceans in Faxaflói is imperative for effective conservation measures in this ecologically significant region.
References
AMAP (2021). Arctic Climate Change Update 2021: Key Trends and Impacts report. Summary for Policy-makers. Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme (AMAP), Tromsø, Norway. 16 pp
Bas, A. A., Affinito, F., Martin, S., Vollmer, A., Gansen, C., Morris, N., … & Vujović, A. (2018). Bottlenose dolphins and striped dolphins: Species distribution, behavioural patterns, encounter rates, residency patterns and hotspots in Montenegro, South Adriatic. Montenegro Dolphin Project Annual report, Marine Mammal Research Association, Bar. https://doi. org/10.13140/RG.2.2.26977.35683/1
Baum, J. K., & Worm, B. (2009). Cascading top-down effects of changing oceanic predator abundances. Journal of Animal Ecology, 78, 699-714. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2656.2009.01531.x
Bejder, L., Samuels, A., Whitehead, H., & Gales, N. (2006). Interpreting short-term behavioural responses to disturbance within a longitudinal perspective. Animal Behaviour, 72(5), 1149-1158. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anbehav.2006.04.003
Bertulli, C. G. (2010). Minke whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata) and white-beaked dolphin (Lagenorhynchus albirostris) feeding behaviour in Faxaflói bay, south-west Iceland (Master's thesis). University of Iceland: Iceland.
Bertulli, C. G., Tetley, M. J., Magnusdottir, E. E., & Rasmussen, M. H. (2015). Observations of movement and site fidelity of white-beaked dolphins (Lagenorhynchus albirostris) in Icelandic coastal waters using photo-identification. Journal of Cetacean Research and Management, 15(1), 27-34. https://doi.org/10.47536/jcrm.v15i1.512
Blankenstein, R., (2021). The effectiveness and potential improvements of a voluntary code of conduct for whale watching in Iceland (Master's thesis). University of Iceland: Iceland.
Carwardine, M. (2016). Mark Carwardine’s Guide To Whale Watching In Britain And Europe: Second Edition (2nd ed.). Bloomsbury Natural History.
Chambers, J. M., Freeny, A and Heiberger, R. M. (1992) Analysis of variance; designed experiments. Chapter 5 of Statistical Models in S eds J. M. Chambers and T. J. Hastie, Wadsworth & Brooks/Cole.
Christiansen, F., & Lusseau, D. (2014). Understanding the ecological effects of whale watching on cetaceans. In Higham, J., Bejder, L., & Williams, R. (Eds), Whale watching: Sustainable Tourism and Ecological Management (177-192). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. 10.1017/CBO9781139018166.016
Fox, J. (2016). Applied Regression Analysis and Generalized Linear Models, Third Edition. Sage Publications.
Gilles, A., Gunnlaugsson, T., Mikkelsen, B. Pike, D. G., & Víkingsson, G. A. (2020) Summer abundance of harbour porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) in the coastal waters of Iceland and the Faroe Islands. NAMMCO Scientific Publications, 11, 117-142. https://doi.org/10.7557/3.4939
Gislason, A., Petursdottir, H., Astthorsson, O. S., Gudmundsson, K., & Valdimarrson, H. (2009). Inter-annual variability in abundance and community structure of zooplankton south and north of Iceland in relation to environmental conditions in spring 1990-2007. Journal of Plankton Research, 31(5), 541-551. https://doi.org/10.1093/plankt/fbp007
Gissi, E., Manea, E., Mazaris, A. D., Fraschetti, S., Almpanidou, V., Bevilacqua, S., … Katsanevakis, S. (2021). A review of the combined effects of climate change and other local human stressors on the marine environment. Science of the Total Environment, 755, 142564; https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.142564
Gregr, E. J., Baumgartner, M. F., Laidre, K. L., & Palacios, D. M. (2013). Marine mammal habitat models come of age: the emergence of ecological and management relevance. Endangered Species Research, 22, 205-212. https://doi.org/10.3354/esr00476
Greenhalgh, H. (2016). Temporal and environmental variables affecting the foraging behaviour of minke whales (Balaenoptera acutorostrata) (Bachelor's thesis). Murdoch University: Australia.
Hanna, E., Jónsson, T., Ólafsson, J., & Valdimarsson, H. (2006). Icelandic coastal sea surface temperature records constructed: putting the pulse on air–sea–climate interactions in the northern North Atlantic. Part I: comparison with HadISST1 open-ocean surface temperatures and preliminary analysis of long-term patterns and anomalies of SSTs around Iceland. Journal of Climate, 19(21), 5652-5666. https://doi.org/10.1175/JCLI3933.1
Hátún, H., Hansen, B., Sandø, A. B., Drange, H., & Valdimarsson, H. (2005). De−stabilization of the North Atlantic thermohaline circulation by a gyre mode. Science, 309, 1841-1844. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1114777
Hjörvarsdóttir, F. Ó. (2014). The importance of sandeel (Ammodytes marinus) for minke whales (Balaenoptera acutorostrata) and white-beaked dolphins (Lagenorhynchus albirostris) in Faxaflói Bay, Iceland (Master's thesis). University of Iceland.
Hoyt, E., & Parsons, E.C.M. (2014). The whale watching industry: Historical development. In Higham, J., Bejder, L., & Williams, R. (Eds), Whale watching: Sustainable Tourism and Ecological Management (57-70). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9781139018166.006
IceWhale (2016). IceWhale’s Code of conduct for Responsible Whale Watching: Operators Manual. https://s3-eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/wwhandbook/guideline-documents/Iceland_IceWhale-CoC-OperatorsManual.pdf
IPCC (2021) Climate Change 2021: The Physical Science Basis. Contribution of Working Group I to the Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change [Masson-Delmotte, V., P. Zhai, A. Pirani, S. L. Connors, C. Péan, S. Berger, … B. Zhou (Eds.)]. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, United Kingdom and New York, NY, USA, 2391 pp. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009157896
Learmonth, J. A., MacLeod, C. D., Santos Vazquez, M. B., Pierce, G. J., Crick, H. Q. P., & Robinson, R. A. (2006). Potential effects of climate change on marine mammals. Oceanography and Marine Biology: An Annual Review, 44, 431-464. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envint.2009.10.008
MacLeod, C. D. (2009). Global climate change, range changes and potential implications for the conservation of marine cetaceans: A review and synthesis. Endangered Species Research, 7(2), 125-136. https://doi.org/10.3354/esr00197
Magnúsdóttir, E., Víkingsson, G., Hali, A., Whittaker, M., Chosson, V., Pampoulie, … & Miller, P. (2019). Subarctic winter whales: An overwintering strategy of humpback whales in Icelandic waters. http://dx.doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.18733.03047
Malinauskaite, L., Cook, D., Davíðsdottir, B., & Ogmundardottir, H. (2021). Whale ecosystem services and Co-production processes underpinning human wellbeing in the arctic: case studies from Greenland, Iceland, and Norway. In D.C., Nord (Ed.), Nordic Perspectives on the Responsible Development of the Arctic: Pathways to Action (181-202). Springer International Publishing. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-52324-4_9
Moore, S. E., Haug, T., Víkingsson, G. A., & Stenson, G. B. (2019). Baleen whale ecology in arctic and subarctic seas in an era of rapid habitat alteration. Progress in Oceanography, 176, 102118. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pocean.2019.05.010
Nye, J. A., Link, J. S., Hare, J. A., & Overholtz, W. J. (2009). Changing spatial distribution of fish stocks in relation to climate and population size on the Northeast United States continental shelf. Marine Ecology Progress Series, 393, 111-129 http://dx.doi.org/10.3354/meps08220
O'Connor, S., Campbell, R., Cortez, H., & Knowles, T. (2009). Whale Watching Worldwide: Tourism numbers, expenditures, and expanding economic benefits. Report to the International Fund for Animal Welfare. Melbourne, AU: Economics at Large.
Pállson, J., Sigurðsson, G. M., Jónsdóttir, I. J., Jakobsdóttir, K. B., Hoad, N., Bogason, V., & Sólmundsson, J. (2017). Brislingur, Sprattus sprattus (Linneaus, 1758), ný fisktegund við Íslandsstrendur. Náttúrufræðingurinn. nfr_2021_91_3-4_brislingur.pdf (hafogvatn.is)
Pearce-Higgins, J. W., Beale, C. M., Oliver, T. H., August, T. A., Carroll, M., Massimino, D., … Crick, H. Q. P. (2017). A national-scale assessment of climate change impacts on species: assessing the balance of risks and opportunities for multiple taxa. Biological Conservation, 213, 124–134. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2017.06.035
Piatt, J. F., Methven, D. A., Burger, A. E., McLagan, R. L., Mercer, V., & Creelman, E. (1989). Baleen whales and their prey in a coastal environment. Canadian Journal of Zoology, 67, 1523-1530. https://doi.org/10.1139/z89-217
Pike, D. G., Gunnlaugsson, T., & Víkingsson, G. A. (2008) T-NASS Icelandic aerial survey: Survey reports and preliminary abundance estimate for minke whales. SC/60/PFI/12 for the IWC Scientific Committee.
Poloczanska, E. S., Brown, C. J., Sydeman, W. J., Kiessling, W., Schoeman, D. S., Moore, P. J., … & Richardson, A. J. (2013). Global imprint of climate change on marine life. Nature Climate Change, 3, 919-925. https://doi.org/10.1038/nclimate1958
Poupard, M., Best, P., Ferrari, M., Spong, P., Symonds, H., Prévot, J. -M., Soriano, T., & Glotin, H. (2020). From massive detections and localisations of orca at Orcalab over three years to real-time survey joint to environmental conditions. Forum Acusticum, 3235–3237. https://dx.doi.org/10.48465/fa.2020.1093
Robbins, J. (2000). A review of scientific contributions from commercial whale watching platforms. Report presented to the Scientific Committee of the International Whaling Commission SC/52/WW9, 10 (2000).
Robbins, J., & Mattila, D. (2000). The use of commercial whale watching platforms in the study of cetaceans: benefits and limitations. Report presented to the meeting of the Conservation Committee of the International Whaling Commission SC/52/WW8, 7 (2000).
Royston P. (1982). Algorithm AS 181: The W-test for Normality. Applied Statistics, 31, 176-180. https://doi.org/10.2307/2347986.
Royston P. (1995). Remark AS R94: A remark on Algorithm AS 181: The W-test for normality. Applied Statistics, 44, 547-551. https://doi.org/10.2307/2986146
Sigurjónsson, J., & Víkingsson, G. A. (1997). Seasonal abundance of and estimated food consumption by cetaceans in Icelandic and adjacent waters. Journal of Northwest Atlantic Fishery Science, 22, 27-287. https://doi.org/10.2960/J.v22.a20
Silber, G. K., Lettrich, M. D., Thomas, P. O., Baker, J. D., Baumgarten, M., Becker, E. A., … Waples, R. S. (2017) Projecting marine mammal distribution in a changing climate. Frontiers of Marine Science, 4. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2017.00413
Stefansson, U., & Guðmundsson, G. (1978). The Freshwater regime of Faxaflói, Southwest Iceland, and its relationship to meteorological Variables. Estuarine and Coastal Marine Science, 6, 535-551. https://doi.org/10.1016/0302-3524(78)90030-0
Valdimarsson, H., & Malmberg, S. -A. (1999). Near-surface circulation in Icelandic waters derived from satellite tracked drifters. Rit Fiskideildar, 16, 23-39.
Víkingsson, G. A., Pike, D. G., Valdimarsson, H., Schleimer, A., Gunnlaugsson, T., Silva, T., … Hammond, P. S. (2015). Distribution, abundance, and feeding ecology of baleen whales in Icelandic waters: Have recent environmental changes had an effect?. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution, 3. https://doi.org/10.3389/fevo.2015.00006
Vinding, K., Bester, M., Kirkman, S. P., Chivell, W., & Elwen, S H. (2015). The use of data from a platform of opportunity (whale watching) to study coastal cetaceans on the southwest coast of South Africa. Tourism in Marine Environments, 11(1), 33-54. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3727/154427315X14398263718439
Wiens, J. J., & Graham, C. H. (2005). Niche conservatism: integrating evolution, ecology, and conservation biology. Annual Review of Ecology, Evolution, and Systematics, 36, 519–539. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.ecolsys.36.102803.095431
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2024 Giulia Bellon, Heleen Middel, Carola Chicco, Jonathan Neil Rempel
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.