Ten months of broadband seismic data, recorded on six ocean-bottom seismographs located in the Lau Basin, were examined to identify baleen whale species. As the first systematic survey of baleen whales in this part of the southwest Pacific Ocean, this study reveals the variety of species present and their temporal occurrence in and near the basin. Baleen whales produce species-specific low frequency calls that can be identified by distinct patterns in data spectrograms. By matching spectrograms with published accounts, fin, Bryde's, Antarctic blue, and New Zealand blue whale calls were identified. Probable whale sounds that could not be matched to published spectrograms, as well as non-biologic sounds that are likely of volcanogenic origin, were also recorded. Detections of fin whale calls (mid-June to mid-October) and blue whale calls (June through September) suggest that these species migrate through the region seasonally. Detections of Bryde's whale calls (primarily February to June, but also other times of the year) suggest this species resides around the basin nearly year round. The discovery of previously unpublished call types emphasizes the limited knowledge of the full call repertoires of baleen whales and the utility of using seismic survey data to enhance understanding in understudied regions.
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January 2015
January 01 2015
Low frequency baleen whale calls detected on ocean-bottom seismometers in the Lau basin, southwest Pacific Ocean
Dana C. Brodie;
Dana C. Brodie
a)
Department of Geology and Geophysics,
University of Hawaii at Manoa
, 1680 East-West Road, Honolulu, Hawaii 96822
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Robert A. Dunn
Robert A. Dunn
Department of Geology and Geophysics,
University of Hawaii at Manoa
, 1680 East-West Road, Honolulu, Hawaii 96822
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a)
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed. Electronic mail: dbrodie@hawaii.edu
J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 137, 53–62 (2015)
Article history
Received:
July 09 2013
Accepted:
November 30 2014
Citation
Dana C. Brodie, Robert A. Dunn; Low frequency baleen whale calls detected on ocean-bottom seismometers in the Lau basin, southwest Pacific Ocean. J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 1 January 2015; 137 (1): 53–62. https://doi.org/10.1121/1.4904556
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