Whales of Alaska Brittany Amano, Naveen Hrishikesh, Karley Whelan and Tiwatope Ibidapo Information to Address: The 1) life history, 2) evolution 3) ecology and 4) conservation of: Beluga whales Blue whales Bowhead whales Bottlenose whales Gray whales Humpback whales Orca whales (actually dolphins) Minke whales Sperm whales Overview ● Order: Cetacea ● Mammals ○ Warm-blooded ○ Breathe air into lungs ● Most species have a dorsal fin ● Two Suborders ○ Mysticetes or Baleen ■ Comb-like fringe (baleen) on upper jaw to filter plankton, small fish, & crustaceans ■ Largest species of whales ○ Odontocetes or Toothed ■ Teeth ■ Prey on fish, squid, other whales, & marine animals ■ Use echolocation Major Evolution of Whales ● Hippos once thought to be the closest living relatives of whales; but they are not ancestors ● Whales were initially land animals (like Pakicetus) ● similar brain structures is evidence they are related ● Ambulocetus is the first evidence of whales that lived in water; evidenced by isotopes of seawater ● Position of nostril evolved into the modern blowhole of whales; pushed further back on head ● Other evolutionary evidence is the vertebral column and pelvis structure; evolved to allow for undulation in the water ● Recently grouped into mammal lineage due to the discovery of Indohyus, a small deer like mammal; genetic data proves this is actually its closest relative Bowhead Whales: Balaena Mysticetus Iñupiaq Name: Aġviq ● Baleen whales ● Most ice adapted of the larger whales ● 50 to 60 ft long ● 75 to 100 tons ● Very thick blubber (1.5 ft thick) ● No dorsal fin Life History & Evolution ● Migration ○ Spend most of their lives in Bering, Chukchi, & Beaufort Seas near sea ice ● Reproduction ○ Mating occurs during late winter & spring in the Bering Sea ○ Gestation period: 13-14 months ● Life Span ○ 150-200 years ● Evolution ○ Arched upper jaw forms bow shape ● Thought to be the longest-lived mammals on the planet Ecology & Conservation ● Ecology ○ Diet ■ small prey ■ copepods ■ plankton ■ mysids (tiny ■ krill crustaceans) ○ Habitat ■ Artic ● Conservation ○ Favored whale for hunting ■ produce large quantities of oil, baleen, meat, & muktuk (blubbery skin) ■ Slow and nonaggressive ○ Alaska Eskimo Whaling Commision (AEWC) ■ 2013-2018: Alaskan & Chukotkan whalers to land up to 336 Bowhead whales over the next six years Bottlenose Whales Hyperoodon spp. ● Second largest toothed whale ○ Two pairs of large triangular teeth at tip of lower jaw ■ Each tooth projects upward about 4 inches ● Two species ○ Northern - Hyperoodon ampullatus ○ Southern - Hyperoodon planifrons ● 10 to 12 meters long ● 5,800 to 7,500 kilograms (12,800-16,500 lb) Life History & Evolution ● Migration ○ Northern Bottlenose: No seasonal North-South migration ○ Southern Bottlenose: summer migration from Antarctic to temperate waters ● Reproduction ○ Mate during spring & early summer ○ Seual Maturity at 8-10 years of age ○ Gestational period is 10 to 17 months ● Life Span ○ 35 to 40 years ● Evolution ○ Low genetic diversity Ecology & Conservation ● Ecology ○ Diet ■ Sea cucumbers ■ Squid ■ Starfish ■ Fish ■ Shrimp ○ Habitat ■ Cold, deep waters (over 1,000 meters) ■ Temperate to subarctic oceanic waters ● Conservation ○ Most hunted species of beaked whales ○ Current status:Data Deficient (Northern) & Least Concern (Southern) on IUCN Red List of Threatened Species Minke Whales: Balaenoptera acutorostrata 1) Description: ● dark gray on top and lighter on bottom ● stocky because of layers of blubber, two long flippers ● small dorsal fin and small ridges, weighing ten tons http://www.animalplanet.com/tv-shows/whale-wars/about-whaling/whales-whaling-minke-whale/ http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/whales/species/Minke.shtml Life History ● average life span: 50 years ● spend winters in pacific ocean near Baja, California and then migrate to Alaska in the spring and summer ● sexually mature around 3-8 years old ● mate during the winter; gestation around 10-12 months; give birth to single calf ● can become pregnant annually http://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/dwarf-minke-whale-spyhop http://whaleopedia.org/animalfund/store/m ping-western-high-res-stock-photography/73787387 http://www.sci.ccny.cuny.edu/~mcesaire/glacier.html inke-whale-calf-poster-lf2/ Evolution ● members of baleen family; smallest of great whales ● two (sometimes three) species: northern, antarctic and dwarf? http://www.salishsea.org/media/northern-minke-whale http://www.sci-news.com/biology/mariana-trench-minke-wh -balaenoptera-acutorostrata/ ales-call-04455.html https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antarctic_minke_whale Ecology ● Habitat is mainly northern pacific ● prefer temperate to boreal waters ● distribution considered cosmopolitan ● Feed in colder waters; eat crustaceans, plankton and small schooling fish https://amazingseacreatures.wordpress.com/the-facts/crustaceans/ https://www.pinterest.com/pin/207236020329821246/ http://www.mesa.edu.au/crustaceans/default.asp Conservation ● considered stable ● hunting has doubled due to killing of larger whales ● however have increased due to increased availability of food once eaten by larger whales http://takasito.blogspot.com/ Blue Whales: Balaenoptera musculus Description: ● can weight up to 200 tons ● 24-30 meters long ● loudest calls on earth ● small dorsal fin, blue grey, yellow white undersides http://wwf.panda.org/what_we_do/endangered_species/cetaceans/about/blue_whale/ Life History ● average life span: 40-50 years; can vary (have been seen up to 90) ● move towards poles in spring and summer; move to equator in winter ● sexually mature around 5-15 years old ● birth and mating occurs in the winter; 9-10 month gestation period http://www.buzzle.com/articles/why-are-blue-whales-endangered.html http://okcfox.com/archive/study-california-blue-whales-recover-from-whaling-01-27-2016 Evolution ● baleen whales; females are larger than males ● largest animal known to have existed https://www.britannica.com/animal/blue-whale Ecology ● habitat is all oceans except enclosed seas; mostly offshore ● feed on up to 40 million krill a day ● distribution: globally http://wwf.panda.org/what_we_do/endangered_species/cetaceans/about/blue_whale/ http://healthhamster.com/antarctic-krill-oil/ Conservation ● rarest whale; most endangered ● climate change, pollution and vessel strikes are greatest threats http://blogs.mcgill.ca/oss/2016/03/06/time-to-change-the-climate-about-climate-change/ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Blue_Whale_population,_Pengo.svg GRAY WHALES-Eschrichtius robustus Description: ● Gray whales are often covered with parasites and other organisms that make their snouts and backs look like a crusty ocean rock ● Two blowholes on top of head ● Dorsal ridge instead of dorsal fin ● Series of knocking noises is most prevalent call http://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/g/ gray-whale/ https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/originals/85/d1/43/85d14 39d73396834ab6a9e1d7c40054e.jpg Life History ● Average life span: 75-80 years ● Sexually mature at 8 years old ● Swim up to 12,340 miles roundtrip annually from Alaska to Baja California, Mexico in the winter to breed; most whales give birth in January ● Other Gray Whales live in Korea in northern Bering and Chukchi Seas ● 13 ½ month gestation period ● Biennial birthing is common ● Grow to be 40-50 feet, 30-40 tons Migration Route https://www.bajawhale.com/rob-servations/rob-servati on-4-gray-whale-identification/ https://www.learner.org/jnorth/tm/gwhale/annual/map.html Evolution ● Oldest gray whale fossil dates back 2.5 million years ago ● Members of baleen family ● Once thought to feed only by suctioning seafloor sediment and filtering out worms and amphipods ● Population was expected to be 76,000 to 120,000 before humans started hunting https://www.mmc.gov/priority-topics/species-of-conce rn/western-north-pacific-gray-whales/ Ecology ● Feeds mainly on benthic crustaceans which it eats by turning on its right side (often losing eyesight on right eye amongst older whales) and scoops up sediment from sea floor ● Calf gray whales drink 190-300 US gallons of their mother’s 53% fat milk daily ● Primarily bottom feeders and are thus restricted to shallow continental shelf waters for feeding https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benthic_zone Conservation ● According to the IUCN, the gray whale is ranked as being of the least concern for extinction ● Once the target of extensive hunting, and by early in the 20th century they were in serious danger of extinction ● Today gray whales are protected by international law; Removed from US Endangered Species List in 1994 ● Limited hunting in Chukotka Region of Russia for aboriginal/subsistence whaling http://www.slocoe.org/whale/whal e5.html HUMPBACK WHALES-Megaptera novaeangliae Description: ● Primarily dark grey, with some areas of white ● Long "pectoral" fins, which can be up to 15 feet (4.6 m) in length ● Variation is so distinctive that the pigmentation pattern on the undersides of their "flukes" is used to identify individual whales ● Frequently perform aerial displays, such as breaching (jumping out of the water), or slapping the surface with their pectoral fins, tails, or heads ● Length up to 60 feet; 25-40 tons ● Common call includes moans, howls, and cries Photos of Humpback Whale http://marinebio.org/species.asp?id=39 https://www.afsc.noaa.gov/nmml/education/cetaceans/gr ay.php Life History In the North Pacific, there are at least three separate populations: 1 California/Oregon/Washington stock that winters in coastal Central America and Mexico and migrates