FY 2000

An acoustic link betweeen blue whales in the eastern tropical Pacific and the northeast Pacific

Stafford, K.M., S.L. Nieukirk, and C.G. Fox

Mar. Mamm. Sci., 15(4), doi: 10.1111/j.1748-7692.1999.tb00889.x, 1258–1268 (1999)

Blue whale calls in the eastern North Pacific Ocean consist of a two-part call often termed the A-B call. This call has been described for regions offshore of Oregon, Washington, and California, USA and the Sea of Cortez, Mexico (reviewed in Rivers 1997). Data collected from moored hydrophones in the eastern tropical Pacific (ETP) indicate that the A-B pattern is common in this region as well. There is consistency in this call type throughout the eastern North Pacific and throughout the year. This acoustic evidence indicates continuity between blue whales in the ETP and those found west of North America. The acoustic data suggest that the population of blue whales generally referred to as the "California/Mexico" stock might better be termed the "northeast Pacific" stock of blue whales.