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Fin Whale Sighting North of Kaua'i, Hawai'i

Authors:
Joseph R Mobley at University of Hawai'i at Manoa
Joseph R Mobley
  • University of Hawai'i at Manoa
Mari Ann Smultea at Smultea Environmental Sciences, Preston, WA USA
Mari Ann Smultea
  • Smultea Environmental Sciences, Preston, WA USA
Thomas Norris
Thomas Norris
David W. Weller at Southwest Fisheries Science Center
David W. Weller
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Abstract and Figures

A rare fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus) sighting occurred on 26 February 1994 during an aerial survey of waters north of the Hawaiian island of Kaua'i. The sighting occurred ca. 24 nm north of Makaha Point, at 220 31.5' N, 1590 44.5' W. The fin whale was accompanied by an adult humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) during the entire 25 min of observation. Fin whales are not unknown in Hawaiian waters, but the most recent confirmed sighting on record for Hawaiian waters was 16 February 1979.
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1Manuscript accepted
27
September
1995.
2Social Sciences, University
of
Hawai'i-West Oahu,
96-043 Ala 'Ike, Pearl City, Hawai'i 96782.
3Foster Wheeler Environmental, Inc., 10900
NE
8th
St., Bellevue, Washington 98004-4405.
4Moss Landing Marine Laboratories, P.O. Box 450,
Moss Landing, California 96039-0450.
5Marine Mammal Research Program, Texas A&M
University at Galveston, 4700 Avenue U, Bldg 303,
Galveston, Texas 77551-5923.
ON
26
FEBRUARY
1994, during amarine
mammal aerial survey
of
waters north
of
the
Hawaiian island
of
Kaua'i, alarge balae-
nopterid whale was sighted ca. 24
nm
north
of
Makaha
Point (22031.5'
N,
159044.5' W)
in waters
of
ca. 2000 fathoms (3700 m). The
whale was circled for
25
min
at
an
altitude
of
250 m, during which time verbal observa-
tions
of
behavior
and
diagnostic character-
istics were recorded
on
audio tape
and
still
photographs
and
video footage were col-
lected. Approximately 4min after the initial
sighting, alarge adult humpback whale
(Megaptera novaeangliae Borowski, 1781)
was sighted within one whale-body length
of
the balaenopterid
and
in the same general
orientation. The humpback remained in as-
sociation with the balaenopterid throughout
the entire observation period,
but
was visible
only upon surfacings spaced ca.
10
min apart.
The presence
of
the humpback whale afforded
an
opportunity for interspecific comparisons
of
relative size and behavior (Figure
1).
Real-time identification
of
the balaenop-
terid whale was made difficult by anomalous
lighting conditions resulting from glare
and
Pacific Science (1996), vol. 50, no.
2:
230-233
©1996 by University
of
Hawai'i Press. All rights reserved
Fin Whale Sighting North
of
Kaua'i, Hawai'i1
J. R.
MOBLEY,
JR.,2
M.
SMULTEA,3
T.
NORRIs,4
AND
D.
WELLER
5
ABSTRACT: Arare fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus) sighting occurred
on
26 February 1994 during
an
aerial survey
of
waters north
of
the Hawaiian
island
of
Kaua'i. The sighting occurred ca. 24 nm north
of
Makaha
Point,
at
22031.5'
N,
159044.5' W. The
fin
whale was accompanied by
an
adult hump-
back whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) during the entire
25
min
of
observation.
Fin
whales are
not
unknown in Hawaiian waters,
but
the most recent confirmed
sighting on record for Hawaiian waters was
16
February 1979.
sun-streak effects; however, the tentative
identification by the survey team was
that
of
a
fin
whale (Balaenoptera physalus Linnaeus,
1758).
In
an
attempt to validate this tentative
identification, apanel
of
eight reviewers, all
skilled in the identification
of
balaenopterids
in the field
and
from the air, was asked to
provide their respective identifications after
review
of
photographs, videotape,
and
field
notes provided by the survey team. Each
of
the reviewers identified the subject as afin
whale; however, only four
of
them expressed
ahigh degree
of
confidence in their identi-
fication.
Positive identification was made difficult
by the fact
that
not
all
of
the distinguishing
characteristics typically used to identify
fin
whales were present
or
clearly visible (i.e.,
chevron
and
white coloration on right lower
jaw). Observations
of
the whale from the
aircraft clearly showed the slender fusiform
body shape
of
abalaenopterid. After re-
peated passes
at
constant altitude, the sug-
gestion
of
some white coloration on the right
lower
jaw
was noted and was also sub-
sequently noted from portions
of
the video
footage,
but
in neither case was this ob-
servation clear enough to rule
out
the possi-
bility
of
reflection from the water's surface.
Similarly, acharacteristic dorsal chevron was
not
clearly visible during observations; how-
ever, this feature
is
not
universal in all
fin
whales (Leatherwood et al. 1988). The clear-
est diagnostic characteristics observed were
the shape
of
the head, shape
of
the flukes,
size and placement
of
the dorsal fin,
and
the
230
FIGURE
1.
Fin whale sighted in waters north
of
Kaua'i, Hawai'i (26 February 1994,22031.5' N,
159
044.5' W).
Shown with accompanying adult humpback whale (above) and after breaking surface to blow (below) (photos by M.
Smultea).
_MlfiMEfflt.p"iM@€¥#N
tmiti#
•.
·J2#€W:iit!1!ir.mxr~~1Il!8.!!-
232
estimated body length. The head shape was
intermediate between a U shape and aV
shape, relatively flat, and characterized by a
single, prominent median ridge. The flukes
were slender and rather narrow from verte-
bral insertion to fluke notch. The dorsal
fin
was relatively large and clearly falcate, ap-
pearing on the caudal third
of
the body.
Based on aseries
of
measurements taken
from the photographs and video images, and
the fact
that
the humpback whale accom-
panying the
fin
whale was judged to
be
a
large adult, ca.
16
mlong, body length was
estimated by
S.
Leatherwood (pers. comm.)
to
be
ca. 22-23 m. The prominent falcate
dorsal
fin
and more V-shaped head appeared
to rule out identification as ablue whale
(Balaenoptera musculus Linnaeus, 1758), and
the estimated body
size
also ruled out a
sei
whale (Balaenoptera borealis Lesson,
1828)
or
aBryde's whale (Balaenoptera edeni An-
derson, 1878) as possibilities (Leatherwood et
al. 1988).
During the entire observation session, the
whale remained motionless just beneath the
surface
of
the water, rising vertically only to
breathe. Surfacing behavior was charac-
terized by the top
of
the head breaking the
surface first, agradual arching
of
the back
while rolling forward, and finally exposure
of
the dorsal
fin.
The head and the dorsal
fin
were not observed
at
the surface simulta-
neously. The blow characteristic was colum-
nar for approximately the first half
of
the
blow and developed into abushy appearance
toward the latter half
of
the blow. The blow
was very tall and powerful, extending
4-5
m
into the air.
Fin whales are not unknown in Hawaiian
waters, but are sufficiently rare to be worthy
of
note. Balcomb (1987) reported 8to
12
fin
whales ca.
400
km south
of
Honolulu on
20
May 1966 and noted another sighting "near
Hawaii" as well as astranding, without fur-
ther detail. Shallenberger (1981) reported a
sighting made by National Marine Fisheries
Service personnel north
of
O'ahu
in May
1976. Rice (cited in Shallenberger 1981)
sighted alone
fin
whale at
21
024' N,
158
023'
Win the Kaua'i Channel on
16
February
1979. Nitta (1987) noted asingle stranding
of
PACIFIC SCIENCE, Volume 50, April
1996
a
fin
whale off Kohakuloa, Maui, between
1936 and 1988, but gave no specific date. An
acoustic monitoring study, recording from
two bottom-mounted hydrophones located
off northern O'ahu, identified
fin
whale
vocalizations during every month
of
the
year except June and July during the period
December
1978
to April
1981
(Thompson
and Friedl 1982).
Fin whales
of
the eastern North Pacific
show seasonal variations and range as far
north as the Bering Sea to as far south as
central Baja California (Leatherwood et al.
1988). Tagging
of
fin
whales has revealed
movement from winter (November-January)
grounds off southern California to summer
(May-July) grounds off central California,
Oregon, and British Columbia, and into the
Gulf
of
Alaska. They are believed to winter
far offshore
of
the North American coast,
during which time sightings in Hawaiian
waters are more likely. Leatherwood et al.
(1988) estimated the
North
Pacific popula-
tion
of
fin
whales to
be
ca. 16,000.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
We extend our appreciation to Steve
Leatherwood, Sally Mizroch, Dale W. Rice,
Richard Rowlett, Steve Katona, Robert Pit-
man, Wayne Hoggard, and Keith Mullin, all
of
whom took the time to review our sighting
documentation and give us written replies.
Thanks also to John (Keoni) McFadden, our
pilot. Our surveys were supported by the
Strategic Environmental Research and De-
velopment Program through the Advanced
Research Projects Agency (ARPA) (Grant
MDA972-93-1-003) as
part
of
the Acoustic
Thermometry
of
OceanClimate, Marine Mam-
mal Research Program (ATOC MMRP).
LITERATURE
CITED
BALCOMB,
K.
c.,
III.
1987.
The whales
of
Hawaii. Marine Mammal Fund, San
Francisco, California.
LEATHERWOOD,
S.,
R. R.
REEVES,
W.
F.
PERRIN,
and W. E.
EVANS.
1988. Whales,
"2
Fin Whale Sighting in Hawai'i-MoBLEY
ET
AL.
dolphins and porpoises
of
the eastern
North
Pacific and adjacent Arctic waters.
Dover Publications, New York.
NI1TA,
G. 1987. The marine mammal
stranding network for Hawaii: An over-
view. Pages 55-62
in
J.
E.
Reynolds III
and D. K. Odell, eds. Proceedings
of
the
2nd Marine Mammal Stranding Work-
shop, Miami, Florida,
3-5
December
1987. National Technical Information
Service, Springfield, Virginia.
233
SHALLENBERGER,
E.
W. 1981. The status
of
Hawaiian cetaceans. Final Report to U.S.
Marine Mammal Commission. Report
No. MMC-77/23. (Available from
Na-
tional Technical Information Services,
U.S. Department
of
Commerce, Spring-
field, Virginia 22151.)
THOMPSON,
P.O.,
and
W.
A.
FRIEDL.
1982.
Along term study
of
low frequency
sounds from several species
of
whales off
Oahu, Hawaii. Cetology 45: 1-19.
... Some fin whale calls have also been recorded in the Hawaiian portion of the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone in all months except June and July Friedl 1982, McDonald andFox 1999). Sightings of fin whales in Hawaii are extremely rare: there was a sighting in 1976 (Shallenberger 1981), a sighting in 1979 (Mizroch et al. 2009), a sighting during an aerial survey in 1994 (Mobley et al. 1996), and five sightings during a survey in 2002 (Barlow 2006). ...
View
... Some fin whale calls have also been recorded in the Hawaiian portion of the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone in all months except June and July Friedl 1982, McDonald andFox 1999). Sightings of fin whales in Hawaii are extremely rare: there was a sighting in 1976 (Shallenberger 1981), a sighting in 1979 (Mizroch et al. 2009), a sighting during an aerial survey in 1994 (Mobley et al. 1996), and five sightings during a survey in 2002 . ...
View
... Some fin whale calls have also been recorded in the Hawaiian portion of the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone in all months except June and July Friedl 1982, McDonald andFox 1999). Sightings of fin whales in Hawaii are extremely rare: there was a sighting in 1976 (Shallenberger 1981), a sighting in 1979 (Mizroch et al. 2009), a sighting during an aerial survey in 1994 (Mobley et al. 1996), and five sightings during a survey in 2002 (Barlow 2006). ...
View
... Some fin whale calls have also been recorded in the Hawaiian portion of the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone in all months except June and July Friedl 1982, McDonald andFox 1999). Sightings of fin whales in Hawaii are extremely rare: there was a sighting in 1976 (Shallenberger 1981), a sighting in 1979 (Mizroch et al. 2009), a sighting during an aerial survey in 1994 (Mobley et al. 1996), and five sightings during a survey in 2002 (Barlow 2006). ...
View
... Some fin whale calls have also been recorded in the Hawaiian portion of the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone in all months except June and July Friedl 1982, McDonald andFox 1999). Sightings of fin whales in Hawaii are extremely rare: there was a sighting in 1976 (Shallenberger 1981), a sighting in 1979 (Mizroch et al. 2009), a sighting during an aerial survey in 1994 (Mobley et al. 1996), and five sightings during a survey in 2002 (Barlow 2006). ...
View
... Some fin whale calls have also been recorded in the Hawaiian Exclusive Economic Zone in all months except June and July Friedl 1982, McDonald andFox 1999). Sightings of fin whales in Hawaii are extremely rare: there was a sighting in 1976 (Shallenberger 1981), a sighting in 1979 (Mizroch et al. 2009), a sighting during an aerial survey in 1994 (Mobley et al. 1996), and five sightings during a survey in 2002 (Barlow 2006). ...
View
... The fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus) is a cosmopolitan cetacean distributed in most oceans and open seas from the tropics to the ice edge (Mizroch et al., 1984). In the North Pacific region, fin whales have been sighted or recorded in the Sea of Cortez (Thompson et al., 1992;Croll et al., 2002); off Hawaii (Mobley et al., 1996;McDonald and Fox, 1999); along the west coast of the United States, including California (Barlow and Forney, 2007) and Oregon (McDonald et al., 1995); in the central (Moore et al., , 2000Watkins et al., 2000) and western north Pacific ; and in the Bering Sea and the Gulf of Alaska (Watkins et al., 2000;Moore et al., 2002Moore et al., , 2006Stafford et al., 2007). In the eastern Bering Sea, fin whales are the most common large whale, numbering more than 4000 individuals . ...
Acoustic Occurrence and Affiliation of Fin Whales Detected in the Northeastern Chukchi Sea, July to October 2007–10
Article
Full-text available
  • Oct 2012
  • ARCTIC
Fin whales are common throughout the North Pacific region, particularly in the Gulf of Alaska and the Bering Sea, even though these areas were heavily depleted by decades of whaling. Whalers also took fin whales in the southwestern Chukchi Sea, but only five sightings have been reported for the entire Chukchi Sea in the past 30 years. Large-scale arrays consisting of 26 - 44 bottom-mounted acoustic recorders were deployed in the northeastern Chukchi Sea from July to October in 2007 to 2010. Fin whales were detected off Cape Lisburne and Point Lay in 2007, 2009, and 2010. Large interannual variations in the number of acoustic detections may be related to environmental conditions. Calls detected during summer months consisted primarily of irregular sequences. Stereotyped sequences, called songs, were also detected at the end of the recording period in 2007 and 2010. Their structure matched that of one of the songs recorded in the Bering Sea, suggesting that only one of the stocks occurring in the Bering Sea extends its range into the northeastern Chukchi Sea. These detections currently represent the northernmost fin whale records in the North Pacific region.
View
... Since the 1970s, aerial surveys flown within about 45 km of the coast of the main Hawaiian Islands have never reported any Bryde's or sei whales, although fin whales have occasionally Figure 4 (also see text for species diagnostics). been seen (e.g., Herman and Antinoja 1977, Mobley et al. 1996, 2000, Mobley 2004). Many small-boat surveys have also been conducted in coastal Hawaiian waters, mostly near the ''Four-Island'' (Maui, Moloka'i, Lāna'i and Kaho'olawe), the island of Hawai'i, and Kaua'i areas (e.g., Baker and Herman 1981, Darling and McSweeney 1985, Cerchio et al. 1998, Baird et al. 2008a. ...
Rare Sightings of a Bryde's Whale (Balaenoptera edeni) and Sei Whales
Article
Full-text available
  • Jul 2010
In the Hawaiian Islands small numbers of Bryde's whales (Balaenoptera edeni) have been documented only in the Northwestern (leeward) Hawaiian Islands, and sei whales (B. borealis) have only recently been confirmed near the islands of Maui and Hawai'i. In November 2007, one Bryde's whale and two sei whale groups (including three subadults) were documented during a 7-day, systematic vessel-transect survey conducted east and northeast of O'ahu. The Bryde's whale sighting is the first in nearshore (<70 km) waters of the main Hawaiian Islands, and the two sei whale sightings are the first near O'ahu, including the first documented subadult sei whales there. The latter information suggests that Hawai'i may be a reproductive area for the endangered sei whale, whose breeding and calving ground locations remain unknown in the Pacific Ocean. Other than rare incidence, the lack of historical sightings of these two species despite many years of previous shipboard and aerial surveys off Hawai'i may be due to misidentification and/or poor sea conditions prevalent in deep, offshore windward waters of the Hawaiian Islands. We recommend conducting more offshore vessel surveys for, and biopsy sampling of, these species to clarify habitat use and current stock boundaries and numbers, information important for management of Pacific populations.
View
View
Global distribution of fin whales Balaenoptera physalus in the post-whaling era (1980–2012)
Article
Full-text available
  • Oct 2015
  • MAMMAL REV
The global distribution of fin whales B alaenoptera physalus is not fully understood. Existing maps can be divided into two conflicting categories: one showing a continuous global distribution and another showing an equatorial hiatus (gap in the global distribution) between approximately 20° N and 20° S . Questions also remain about the seasonal distribution of fin whales. To explore the suggested equatorial hiatus and seasonal distribution patterns, we synthesised information on fin whale distribution in the post‐whaling era (1980–2012) from published literature, publicly available reports and studies conducted by various organisations. We created four seasonally stratified maps showing line‐transect density estimates, line‐transect survey effort, acoustic detections, and sightings. An equatorial hiatus in the global distribution of fin whales during the post‐whaling era is supported by numerous line‐transect surveys and by the rarity of equatorial acoustic detections and sightings, and corroborated by whaling era reports, morphological analyses, and genetic analyses. Our synthesis of post‐whaling era data is consistent with results from other studies indicating that fin whales are more abundant at higher latitudes during warmer months and more abundant at lower latitudes (although these latitudes are still greater than 20°) during colder months. However, our synthesis and results from other studies also indicate that some fin whales in both hemispheres remain in higher latitudes (50°–60° north or south) during colder months and in lower latitudes (to approximately 20°–30° north or south) during warmer months, indicating that seasonal fin whale movements differ from the seasonal migrations of blue whales B alaenoptera musculus and humpback whales M egaptera novaeangliae . Our maps of global fin whale distribution provide a comprehensive picture of current knowledge and highlight important geographical and temporal data gaps. Surveys should be conducted within the identified data gaps in order to increase fine‐scale spatial and temporal knowledge of distribution patterns, improve fin whale taxonomy, and identify areas of elevated fin whale densities that may require management of threats, such as ship strikes.
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dolphins and porpoises of the eastern North Pacific and adjacent Arctic waters The marine mammal stranding network for Hawaii: An overview . Pages 55-62 in
  • Jan 1988
  • 3-5
  • Whale Sighting In Hawai 'i-Mobley
  • Et Al
Whale Sighting in Hawai'i-MoBLEY ET AL. dolphins and porpoises of the eastern North Pacific and adjacent Arctic waters. Dover Publications, New York. NI1TA, G. 1987. The marine mammal stranding network for Hawaii: An overview. Pages 55-62 in J. E. Reynolds III and D. K. Odell, eds. Proceedings of the 2nd Marine Mammal Stranding Workshop, Miami, Florida, 3-5 December 1987. National Technical Information Service, Springfield, Virginia. 233
The marine mammal stranding network for Hawaii: An overview. Pages 55-62 in
  • Dec 1987
  • 233
and porpoises of the eastern North Pacific and adjacent Arctic waters. Dover Publications, New York. NI1TA, G. 1987. The marine mammal stranding network for Hawaii: An overview. Pages 55-62 in J. E. Reynolds III and D. K. Odell, eds. Proceedings of the 2nd Marine Mammal Stranding Workshop, Miami, Florida, 3-5 December 1987. National Technical Information Service, Springfield, Virginia. 233
The status of Hawaiian cetaceans. Final Report to U.S. Marine Mammal Commission
  • Jan 1981
  • E W Shallenberger
SHALLENBERGER, E. W. 1981. The status of Hawaiian cetaceans. Final Report to U.S. Marine Mammal Commission. Report No. MMC-77/23. (Available from National Technical Information Services, U.S. Department of Commerce, Springfield, Virginia 22151.)