Baseline Data Collection on Cetaceans and Seabirds in the Outer Continental Shelf and Slope of Northern California and Oregon to Inform Offshore Wind Energy Development

PI: Lisa T. Ballance, Oregon State University
Start Year: 2022 | Duration: 4 years
Partners: DOE, BOEM, Oregon State University, Cascadia Research Collective, ManTech International Corporation

Project Abstract:

We propose a multidisciplinary, four-year project that will combine complementary data streams in synergistic ways to provide spatially and temporally explicit distribution and density maps and models for cetaceans and seabirds. Our geographic region of focus is the US West Coast from Cape Mendocino, California, north to the Columbia River mouth (Oregon/Washington border), and seaward to the continental slope at a depth of 3000 m. This region represents a distinct oceanographic province that naturally defines an ecologically meaningful study area in the context of cetaceans and seabirds (Checkley and Barth 2009) and includes the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management’s Humboldt Call Area and Oregon State University’s PacWave South Proposed Lease Area. Two research components will form the backbone of the project: visual surveys (using distance sampling and strip transect methods for cetaceans and seabirds, respectively) and passive acoustic monitoring (using bottom-mounted hydrophones and echolocation click detectors), to provide complementary data on species occurrence, distribution, and abundance. Three additional data elements will be strategically added to allow for deeper interpretation: (1) identification photographs (collected during this project) and sighting histories of individual baleen whales (based on comparisons with previously photographed whales in curated catalogs) to characterize movements, site fidelity at the individual and population level, and link humpback whales to Distinct Population Segments (DPS); (2) data from tagged whales (using recoverable, medium-duration archival tags equipped with high-resolution accelerometers) to characterize site fidelity, behavior, and (for blue whales) record call rates (to better interpret acoustic detections from passive acoustic monitoring); and (3) DNA profiles of cetaceans (through mitochondrial haplotype sequencing and nuclear microsatellite genotyping) to provide supporting information on migratory fidelity and individual assignment to DPS. Data will be collected during multiple years and all seasons. Our project will be leveraged with ongoing and currently funded research (visual surveys, collection of large whale identification photographs and biopsy samples) and existing historical data and data products. These data streams will be integrated using state-of-the-art statistical methods to generate species distribution models (SDMs) capable of predicting species density and distribution throughout this region. SDMs will resolve seasonal and interannual variation; a temporally integrated climatological product will also be provided. These density maps provide critical information for siting decisions required for offshore wind energy development, for obtaining necessary permits for moving forward, and for assessing their impacts.