Assessment of remote video for monitoring beluga whales, Delphinapterus leucas, of cook Inlet, Alaska

Alaska's Cook Inlet beluga whales, Delphinapterus leucas, an endangered species, were estimated by the National Marine Fisheries Service, NOAA, at a mere 312 animals in 2012. Understanding the habitat use and defining critical habitat for these whales is crucial for their conservation. The Little Susitna River Delta is thought to be an important summer foraging, mating, and calving habitat area for the species. To investigate the efficiency of new methodologies and increase our understanding of habitat use, the Alaska SeaLife Center initiated the Cook Inlet beluga whale remote monitoring pilot study in the summer of 2011 using video monitoring. Observers used two remotely controlled video cameras mounted on a 9 m tower approximately 1.5 river miles from the confluence of the Little Susitna River and the waters of Cook Inlet. Belugas were observed through the cameras from May to August 2011 as they entered the river mouth and traveled upstream past the camera site. The remotely captured behavioral information in this secluded location added finer-scale information about habitat use and behavior to the existing body of knowledge about Cook Inlet belugas. Behaviors observed and video-recorded included typical beluga behaviors (e.g., travelling, milling, and suspected feeding) along with a higher-than-anticipated occurrence of other behaviors (e.g., breaching, spyhopping, mother/ newborn interactions). Additionally, detailed group composition, distribution, and duration of sighting data was collected, proving both the effectiveness and value of this monitoring method.
Introduction In 1979, Alaska's Cook Inlet beluga whale, Delphinapterus leucas, population was estimated to be 1,300 animals (Calkins'). Abundance surveys in the early 1990's indicated a 47% decline, and in [...]