Concern about the effects of maritime vessel collisions with marine animals is increasing worldwide. To date, most scientific publications on this topic have focused on the collisions between large vessels and large whales. However, our review found that at least 75 marine species are affected, including smaller whales, dolphins, porpoises, dugongs, manatees, whale sharks, sharks, seals, sea otters, sea turtles, penguins, and fish. Collision incidents with smaller species are scarce, likely as a result of reporting biases. Some of these biases can be addressed through the establishment of species-specific necropsy protocols to ensure reliable identification of collision related injury, particularly blunt force trauma. In addition, creating a ship strike database for smaller species can assist in identifying the species most frequently involved in collisions, identifying high-risk areas, and determining species-specific relationships between vessel speed and lethal injury. The International Whaling Commission database on collisions with large whales provides a good example of this type of database and its potential uses. Prioritising the establishment of a species-specific necropsy protocol and a database for smaller species as well as the identification of high-risk areas for species other than large whales, would be a valuable step towards the mitigation of collisions with smaller species.

/pdf/a-global-review-of-vessel-collisions-with-marine-animals-4q5sk3j7cg.pdf

A Global Review of Vessel Collisions With Marine Animals

Defining priority areas and risk evaluation is of utmost relevance for endangered species` conservation. For the blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus), we aim to assess environmental habitat selection drivers, priority areas for conservation and overlap with vessel traffic off northern Chilean Patagonia (NCP). For this, we implemented a single-step continuous-time correlated-random-walk model which accommodates observational error and movement parameters variation in relation to oceanographic variables. Spatially explicit predictions of whales’ behavioral responses were combined with density predictions from previous species distribution models (SDM) and vessel tracking data to estimate the relative probability of vessels encountering whales and identifying areas where interaction is likely to occur. These estimations were conducted independently for the aquaculture, transport, artisanal fishery, and industrial fishery fleets operating in NCP. Blue whale movement patterns strongly agreed with SDM results, reinforcing our knowledge regarding oceanographic habitat selection drivers. By combining movement and density modeling approaches we provide a stronger support for purported priority areas for blue whale conservation and how they overlap with the main vessel traffic corridor in the NCP. The aquaculture fleet was one order of magnitude larger than any other fleet, indicating it could play a decisive role in modulating potential negative vessel-whale interactions within NCP.

/pdf/defining-priority-areas-for-blue-whale-conservation-and-4fsu9n5jfq.pdf

Defining priority areas for blue whale conservation and investigating overlap with vessel traffic in Chilean Patagonia, using a fast-fitting movement model

This is an open access article under the terms of the Creat ive Commo ns Attri bution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. © 2019 The Authors. Diversity and Distributions Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd 1Marine Mammal and Turtle Division, Southwest Fisheries Science Center, National Marine Fisheries Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, La Jolla, California 2Marine Mammal and Turtle Division, Southwest Fisheries Science Center, National Marine Fisheries Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration contracted by ManTech International Corporation, Solana Beach, California 3Cascadia Research Collective, Olympia, Washington 4Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary, Office of National Marine Sanctuaries, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Santa Barbara, California 5Marine Mammal Institute and Department of Fisheries and Wildlife, Hatfield Marine Science Center, Oregon State University, Newport, Oregon

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/ddi.12958

Evaluating stakeholder‐derived strategies to reduce the risk of ships striking whales

Recent estimates of blue (Balaenoptera musculus) and humpback (Megaptera novaeangliae) whale ship-strike deaths on the US west coast are above the Potential Biological Removal limit determined by the National Marine Fisheries Service. Beginning in 2015, the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration requested voluntary Vessel Speed Reductions (VSR) in the designated shipping routes off San Francisco, California, USA, in order to decrease whale mortality from ship strikes. We applied a ship strike model based on whale density and Automatic Identification System (AIS) vessel data. We bootstrapped speeds from vessels that transited when no VSR was in place to assess the effect of the VSR on strike mortality rates. Finally, we calculated the expected mortality for hypothetical compliance scenarios by programmatically imposing speed caps. Average predicted mortality for the region was 2.7 blue whales and 7.0 humpback whales in a 4 month period. Compared to years prior to the VSR (2012−2014), vessel speeds during the VSR were slower. This lowered blue whale deaths within the shipping lanes by 11–13% and humpback whale deaths by 9–10% in 2016−2017. If 95% of mariners adhered to recommended 10 knot (kn) limits in the shipping lanes alone, we predicted twice as many blue whale and 3 times as many humpback whale deaths would be avoided relative to current adherence. Adding a 10 kn speed limit (with 95% coope ration) at the ends of each of the lanes would result in about 5and 4-fold reductions in blue whale and humpback whale mortality, respectively, relative to current practices. Our approach can evaluate ship strikes and mitigation measures for whale populations around the globe.

/pdf/estimating-effectiveness-of-speed-reduction-measures-for-4qb0fpi7bf.pdf

Estimating effectiveness of speed reduction measures for decreasing whale-strike mortality in a high-risk region

Collisions with ships (ship strikes) are a pressing conservation concern for fin whales (Balaenoptera physalus) along western North America. Fin whales exhibit strong diel patterns in dive behavior, remaining near the surface for most of the night, but how this behavior affects ship-strike risk is unknown. We combined diel patterns of surface use, habitat suitability predictions, and ship traffic data to evaluate spatial and temporal trends in ship-strike risk to fin whales of the California Current System (CCS). We tested a range of surface-use scenarios and found that both increased use of the upper water column and increased ship traffic contribute to elevated ship-strike risk at night. Lengthening nights elevate risk during winter throughout the CCS, though the Southern California Bight experienced consistently high risk both day and night year-round. Within designated shipping lanes, total annual nighttime strike risk was twice daytime risk. Avoidance probability models based on ship speed were used to compare the potential efficacy of speed restrictions at various scales. Speed reductions within lanes may be an efficient remediation, but they would address only a small fraction (13%) of overall ship-strike risk. Additional speed restrictions in the approaches to lanes would more effectively reduce overall risk.

/pdf/night-and-day-diel-differences-in-ship-strike-risk-for-fin-1i0sz5k1xd.pdf

Night and Day: Diel Differences in Ship Strike Risk for Fin Whales (Balaenoptera physalus) in the California Current System

We are grateful to the pilots, navigational officers, and support staff of Transport Canada's National Aerial Surveillance Program (NASP) and Environment Canada's Marine Aerial Reconnaissance Team (MART), whose expertise and enthusiasm ensured the success of our aerial surveys for cetaceans. We also thank the following individuals for their assistance during the aerial surveys as observers and/or for conducting data entry: Robin Abernethy, Graeme Ellis, Brian Gisborne, James Pilkington, Frances Robertson, Hawsun Sohn, Lisa Spaven, Eva Stredulinsky, and Jared Towers. We thank Christie McMillan for her help in preparing the aerial survey data for spatial analysis. Allan Roberts generously provided code and advice for developing the GAMs in R. Yvan Simard and Nathalie Roy made their 2013 AIS marine traffic dataset available for this study and offered guidance in its use. Angelia Vanderlaan and Robert Kenney gave their advice regarding analytical techniques for evaluating ship strike risk. Thomas Doniol-Valcroze provided recommendations regarding the construction and application of detection functions for large whales. Since its inception in 2011, funding for this project (both financial and in-kind) has been provided by the InterDepartmental Recovery Fund, Transport Canada (NASP), Fisheries and Oceans Canada's Species at Risk Program and Strategic Program for Ecosystem-Based Research and Advice, and the Port of Vancouver.

/pdf/risk-of-lethal-vessel-strikes-to-humpback-and-fin-whales-off-3607erpinq.pdf

Risk of lethal vessel strikes to humpback and fin whales off the west coast of Vancouver Island, Canada

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Risk of lethal vessel strikes to humpback and fin whales off the west coast of Vancouver Island, Canada