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Identification of Antarctic minke and killer whales with passive acoustic monitoring in Prydz Bay, Antarctica

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Abstract

Although four species of odontocete and four species of baleen whale have been recorded in Prydz Bay, their vocalizations have been rarely investigated. Underwater vocalizations were recorded during March 2017 in Prydz Bay, Antarctica. Bio-duck sounds, downsweeps, inverted “u” shape signals, whistles, pulsed sounds, and broadband clicks were recorded. Bio-duck sounds and downsweeps were associated with Antarctic minke whales (Balaenoptera bonaerensis) based on visual observations. Similarities between inverted “u” shape signals, biphonic calls, and clicks with vocalizations previously described for killer whales (Orcinus orca) lead us believe the presence of Antarctic killer whales. According to sound structures, signal characteristics, and recording location, Antarctic type C killer whales were the most probable candidates to produce these detected calls. These represent the first detection of inverted “u” shape signals in Antarctic waters, and the first report of Antarctic killer whale in Prydz Bay based on passive acoustic monitoring. The co-existence of Antarctic minke and killer whales may imply that minke whales can detect differences between the sounds of mammal-eating and fish-eating killer whales. Our descriptions of these underwater vocalizations contribute to the limited body of information regarding the distribution and acoustic behavior of cetaceans in Prydz Bay.

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Data Availability Statement

The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.

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Acknowledgment

The authors thank the crew of the Chinese icebreaker Xue Long for support in data collection.

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Author notes

  1. Ying JIANG and Lian-Gang LÜ contributed equally to this work and should be regarded as co-first authors.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. First Institute of Oceanography, Ministry of Natural Resources, Qingdao, 266061, China

    Ying Jiang, Lian-Gang Lü, Zongwei Liu, Chunmei Yang & Jingsong Guo

  2. Laboratory for Regional Oceanography and Numerical Modeling, Pilot National Laboratory for Marine Science and Technology (Qingdao), Qingdao, 266237, China

    Ying Jiang, Lian-Gang Lü, Zongwei Liu, Chunmei Yang & Jingsong Guo

  3. Key Laboratory of Marine Science and Numerical Modeling, Ministry of Natural Resources, Qingdao, 266061, China

    Ying Jiang, Lian-Gang Lü, Zongwei Liu, Chunmei Yang & Jingsong Guo

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  1. Ying Jiang
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  2. Lian-Gang Lü
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jingsong Guo.

Additional information

Supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 41906170), the Indian Ocean Ninety-east Ridge Ecosystem and Marine Environment Monitoring and Protection (No. DY135-E2-4), the Cooperation of Top Predators Observation in the Southern Ocean (No. QT4519003), and the China-ASEAN Maritime Cooperation Fund

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Jiang, Y., Lü, LG., Liu, Z. et al. Identification of Antarctic minke and killer whales with passive acoustic monitoring in Prydz Bay, Antarctica. J. Ocean. Limnol. 40, 485–495 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00343-021-1017-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00343-021-1017-x

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