Outer Continental Shelf Environmental Assessment Program Final Reports of Principal Investigators Volume 42 June 1986 U.S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration National Ocean Service Office of Oceanography and Marine Assessment Ocean Assessments Division Alaska Office U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Minerals Management Service OCS Study, MMS 86-0056 "Outer Continental Shelf Environmental Assessment Program Final Reports of Principal Investigators" ("OCSEAP Final Reports") continues the series entitled "Environmental Assessment of the Alaskan Continental Shelf Final Reports of Principal Investigators." It is suggested that sections of this publication be cited as follows: Brueggeman, J. J., R. A. Grotefendt, and A. W. Erickson. 1983. Endangered whale surveys of the Navarin Basin, Alaska. U.S. Dep. Commer., NOAA, OCSEAP Final Rep. 42(1986):1-146 Leatherwood, S., A. E. Bowles, and R. R. Reeves. 1983. Aerial surveys of marine mammals in the sourtheastern Bering Sea. U.S. Dep. Commer., NOAA, OCSEAP Final Rep. 42(1986):147-490 OCSEAP Final Reports are published by the U.S. Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Ocean Service, Office of Oceanography and Marine Assessment, Ocean Assessments Division, Alaska Office, Anchorage, and primarily funded by the Minerals Management Service, U.S. Department of the Interior, through interagency agreement. Requests for receipt of OCSEAP Final Reports on a continuing basis should be addressed to: NOAA-OMA-OAD Alaska Office 701 C Street P.O. Box 56 Anchorage, AK 99513 OUTER CONTINENTAL SHELF ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT PROGRAM FINAL REPORTS OF PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATORS Volume 42 June 1986 U.S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration National Ocean Service Office of Oceanography and Marine Assessment Ocean Assessments Division Alaska Office U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Minerals Management Service Alaska OCS Region OCS Study, MMS 86-0056 Anchorage, Alaska The facts, conclusions, and issues appearing in these reports are based on research results of the Outer Continental Shelf Environmental Assessment Program (OCSEAP), which is managed by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, and funded (wholly or in part) by the Minerals Management Service, U.S. Department of the Interior, through an Interagency Agreement. Mention of a commercial company or product does not constitute endorsement by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Use for publicity or advertising purposes of information from this pub- lication concerning proprietary products or the tests of such products is not authorized. Content of these reports has not been altered from that submitted by the Principal Investigators. In some instances, minor grammatical, spelling, and punctuation errors have been corrected to improve readability; some figures, charts, and tables have been enhanced to improve clarity in reproduction. iii Outer Continental Shelf Environmental Assessment Program Final Reports of Principal Investigators VOLUME 42 JUNE 1986 CONTENTS J. J. BRUEGGEMAN, R. A. GROTEFENDT, and A. W. ERICKSON: Endangered whale surveys of the Navarin Basin, Alaska . .. ... 1 S. LEATHERWOOD, A. E. BOWLES, and R. R. REEVES: Aerial surveys of marine mammals in the southeastern Bering Sea . .... ....... .. 147 v ENDANGERED WHALE SURVEYS OF THE NAVARIN BASIN, ALASKA by John J. Brueggeman, Richard A. Grotefendt, and Albert W. Erickson Envirosphere Company Final Report Outer Continental Shelf Environmental Assessment Program Research Unit 625 1984 1 TABLE OF CONTENTS List of Figures ................ ........................... 5 List of Tables .......................................... 9 ABSTRACT ............................................ 11 INTRODUCTION ............................................ 13 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ............. ....................... ..... 16 STUDY AREA ........................................... 17 METHODS .............................................. 20 Ice-Free Period - Spring, Summer, and Fall .................. 20 Seasonal Ice Period - Winter ................................. 23 Data Analysis ......................................... 27 RESULTS ............................................. 34 Spring Survey Period ........................................ 34 Summer Survey Period ......................................... 43 Fall Survey Period ........................................ 50 Winter Survey Period ........................................ 57 DISCUSSION ............................................ 69 Ice-Free Period ........................................ 69 Seasonal Ice Period ........................................ 76 SUMMARY ............................................. 78 LITERATURE CITED ......................................... 79 APPENDICES: Appendix A ......................................... 87 Appendix B ......................................... 111 Appendix C ......................................... 121 3 LIST OF FIGURES Figure No. 1 STUDY AREA AND SAMPLING DESIGN IN THE NAVARIN BASIN FOR SPRING THROUGH FALL SURVEY PERIOD. 2 HISTORIC ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS OF THE NORTH CENTRAL BERING SEA. 3 TRACKLINE ORIENTATION OF AERIAL AND VESSEL SURVEYS DURING SPRING THROUGH FALL PERIOD. 4 SAMPLING DESIGN AND DISTRIBUTION OF WHALES IN THE SIX SAMPLING UNITS SURVEYED IN THE VICINITY OF THE NAVARIN BASIN DURING WINTER, 19 FEBRUARY - 18 MARCH, 1983. 5 TRACKLINE ORIENTATION OF AERIAL AND VESSEL SURVEYS DURING WINTER. 6 FREQUENCY DISTRIBUTION OF PERPENDICULAR DISTANCES OF LARGE (FIN, GRAY, MINKE) AND KILLER WHALES SIGHTED DURING AERIAL SURVEYS AND DALL'S PORPOISES SIGHTED DURING VESSEL SURVEYS. 7 FREQUENCY DISTRIBUTION OF PERPENDICULAR DISTANCES OF BOWHEAD AND BELUGA WHALES SIGHTED DURING AERIAL SURVEYS. 8 DISTRIBUTION OF WHALES IN THE EIGHT SAMPLING UNITS SURVEYED IN THE NAVARIN BASIN DURING SPRING, 11 MAY - 10 JUNE, 1982. 9 FREQUENCY OF WHALES OBSERVED POINTED IN A GIVEN DIRECTION OF TRAVEL IN THE NAVARIN BASIN DURING SPRING, MAY - JUNE, 1982. 10 DISTRIBUTION OF WHALES IN THE EIGHT SAMPLING UNITS SURVEYED IN THE NAVARIN BASIN DURING SUMMER, 20 JULY - 19 AUGUST 1982. 11 FREQUENCY OF WHALES OBSERVED POINTED IN A GIVEN DIRECTION OF TRAVEL IN THE NAVARIN BASIN DURING SUMMER, JULY - AUGUST 1982. 12 DISTRIBUTION OF WHALES IN THE FIVE SAMPLING UNITS SURVEYED IN THE NAVARIN BASIN DURING FALL, 29 OCTOBER - 12 NOVEMBER 1982. 5 LIST OF FIGURES (Continued) Figure No. 13 FREQUENCY OF WHALES OBSERVED POINTED IN A GIVEN DIRECTION OF TRAVEL IN THE NAVARIN BASIN DURING FALL, OCTOBER - NOVEMBER 1982. 14 FREQUENCY OF WHALES OBSERVED POINTED IN A GIVEN DIRECTION OF TRAVEL IN THE NAVARIN BASIN DURING WINTER, FEBRUARY - MARCH 1983. 15 APPROXIMATE LOCATION OF ICE EDGE DURING 1983 STUDY PERIOD COMPARED TO 5-16 YEAR MEAN IN THE NAVARIN BASIN. 16 FREQUENCY OF WHALE OBSERVATIONS RELATIVE TO FREQUENCY OF ICE CONCENTRATION AND THICKNESS. 17 DISTRIBUTION OF WHALES AND PORPOISES IN THE THREE SURVEY ZONES IN THE NAVARIN BASIN DURING THE ICE-FREE PERIOD. A-1 LOCATION OF AERIAL AND VESSEL TRACKLINES SURVEYED IN THE NAVARIN BASIN DURING SPRING, MAY - JUNE 1982. A-2 LOCATION OF WHALES OBSERVED IN THE NAVARIN BASIN DURING THE SPRING SURVEYS, MAY - JUNE 1982. A-3 LOCATION OF AERIAL AND VESSEL TRACKLINES SURVEYED IN THE NAVARIN BASIN DURING SUMMER, JULY - AUGUST 1982. A-4 LOCATION OF WHALES OBSERVED IN THE NAVARIN BASIN DURING THE SUMMER SURVEYS, JULY - AUGUST 1982. A-5 LOCATION OF AERIAL AND VESSEL TRACKLINES SURVEYED IN THE NAVARIN BASIN DURING FALL, OCTOBER - NOVEMBER 1982. A-6 LOCATION OF WHALES OBSERVED IN THE NAVARIN BASIN DURING THE FALL SURVEY, OCTOBER - NOVEMBER 1982. A-7 LOCATION OF AERIAL AND VESSEL TRACKLINES SURVEYED IN THE NAVARIN BASIN DURING WINTER, FEBRUARY - MARCH 1983. A-8 LOCATION OF WHALES OBSERVED IN THE NAVARIN BASIN DURING THE WINTER SURVEY, FEBRUARY - MARCH 1983. 6 LIST OF FIGURES (Continued) Figure No. B-1 THE FOURIER SERIES ESTIMATOR OF THE PROBABILTY DENSITY FUNCTION OF PERPENDICULAR DISTANCE FIT TO THE HISTOGRAM OF THE DATA FOR ALL LARGE WHALE SIGHTINGS C-1 STAGES OF INITIATION OF DIFFERENT PROGRAMS USED IN NAVIGATING A HELICOPTER ALONG TRACKLINES DURING WHALE SURVEY 7 LIST OF TABLES Table No. 1 ESTIMATED STOCK SIZES OF CETACEAN SPECIES FOUND IN THE NORTHCENTRAL BERING SEA 2 TEST OF UNIFORMITY OF WHALE OBSERVATIONS RECORDED UNDER VARIOUS VISIBILITY CONDITIONS DURING AERIAL AND VESSEL SURVEYS 3 NUMBER OF OBSERVATIONS AND INDIVIDUALS OF WHALES RECORDED DURING THE FOUR SEASONAL SURVEYS OF THE NAVARIN BASIN, 11 MAY-10 JUNE, 20 JULY-19 AUGUST, 29 OCTOBER-12 NOVEMBER 1982, AND 19 FEBRUARY- 18 MARCH 1983 4 NUMBER OF WHALES OBSERVED DURING THE SPRING AERIAL AND VESSEL SURVEYS OF THE NAVARIN BASIN, 11 MAY - 10 JUNE 1982 5 VISIBILITY AND SEA STATE CONDITIONS DURING SPRING AERIAL AND VESSEL SURVEYS OF MARINE MAMMALS IN THE NAVARIN BASIN, 11 MAY - 10 JUNE 1982 6 ESTIMATED ABUNDANCE OF WHALES IN THE NAVARIN BASIN DURING SPRING 7 NUMBER OF WHALES OBSERVED DURING THE SUMMER AERIAL AND VESSEL SURVEYS OF THE NAVARIN BASIN, 20 JULY- 19 AUGUST 1982 8 VISIBILITY AND SEA STATE CONDITIONS DURING SUMMER AERIAL AND VESSEL SURVEYS OF MARINE MAMMALS IN THE NAVARIN BASIN, 20 JULY - 19 AUGUST 1982 9 ESTIMATED ABUNDANCE OF WHALES IN THE NAVARIN BASIN DURING SUMMER, 20 JULY - 19 AUGUST 1982 10 NUMBER OF WHALES OBSERVED DURING THE FALL AERIAL AND VESSEL SURVEYS OF THE NAVARIN BASIN, 29 OCTOBER - 12 NOVEMBER 1982 11 VISIBILITY AND SEA STATE CONDITIONS DURING FALL AERIAL AND VESSEL SURVEYS OF MARINE