Atlas of Cetacean Sightings for Southwest Fisheries Science Center Cetacean and Ecosystem Surveys: 1986-2005

摘要

The Southwest Fisheries Science Center (SWFSC) has surveyed the eastern Pacific Ocean to determine marine mammal abundance and distribution since the mid 1970s. Surveys covered areas from the Bering Sea in the north to Peru in the south and as far west as the Northwest Hawaiian Islands. These efforts have yielded one of the largest collections of marine mammal sightings in the world. These data represent an invaluable resource for understanding how cetaceans are distributed and for addressing marine mammal management and conservation questions. SWFSC cetacean distribution data have not been mapped in their entirety. Lee (1993) mapped the distribution of cetaceans frequently detected on surveys conducted by the SWFSC from 1974 and 1985. In this report, we plot cruise tracklines and sighting locations for cetacean species that were seen on SWFSC surveys in the eastern Pacific Ocean from 1986 to 2005.