Acoustic recordings, biological observations, and genetic identification of a rare(?) beaked whale in the North Pacific:Mesoplodon carlhubbsi
Lisa T. Ballance, Robert L. Pitman, Jay Barlow, Todd Pusser, Annamaria I. DeAngelis, Craig Hayslip, Ladd Irvine, Debbie Steel, C. Scott Baker, Daniel Gillies, Simone Baumann‐Pickering, Jennifer S. Trickey, Brian Gisborne- Aquatic Science
- Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics
Abstract
Although Hubbs' beaked whale (Mesoplodon carlhubbsi) was previously known from over 60 strandings on both sides of the North Pacific, it had been identified alive in the wild only once, off Oregon in 1994. In September 2021, we conducted a search effort for beaked whales off the coast of Oregon using a towed hydrophone array and a visual search team. Approximately 350 km off the Columbia River mouth, we detected the vocalizations of an unidentified mesoplodont whale; we stopped our vessel and waited in the area until two unidentified juvenileMesoplodonsurfaced and stayed near our vessel for almost 2 hr. During that time, we took numerous photographs and videos, made behavioral observations, and recorded their vocalizations. The DNA sequence from a biopsy sample identified them asM. carlhubbsi. In this paper, we discuss our biological observations, including color patterning and acquired markings, behavioral observations, and describe for the first time the acoustic characteristics of this species. We confirm thatM. carlhubbsiis the source of a previously unidentified acoustic signal known as BW37V, and we update what is known about the at‐sea distribution of this species based on previous recordings and observational records.