ABSTRACT 



Despite more than 50 years of protection from commercial whaling, the North 

 Atlantic right whale ( Eubalaena glacialis ) continues to be the most endangered of the 

 large cetaceans. There are only an estimated 350 right whales remaining of which 70% 

 are scarred from fishing gear entanglement and ship collisions. This research used 

 satellite-monitored radio tags to study the movements and dive habits of right whales 

 inhabiting the Bay of Fundy (BOF) in the early fall, and determined whether tagging had 

 noticeable adverse affects on the whales. 



Satellite tracking is a powerful tool for studying free-ranging animals and has 

 reshaped much of what we know about right whales. They were previously thought of as 

 a slow-moving and nearshore species. From this study, we know that right whales can 

 dive to 200 m routinely, can travel long distances over short time periods, sometimes at 

 high speed and travel reasonably far from shore (500 km) into deep (4000 -f m) water. 

 There was no coherent migration observed. Individual right whale movements were quite 

 variable. This study provided more specific detail on the movements and round-the-clock 

 dive patterns of right whales than any previously reported. 



Seven North Atlantic right whales were tagged and tracked during 1989 and 1990 

 in the BOF with satellite-monitored (Argos) radio transmitters. These whales traveled at 

 least 9,590 km between 366 locations. In 43 days, one female and her 7-month old calf 

 traveled 3,800 km, while an adult male traveled 3,000 km (although along a different 

 track). All three whales returned to the BOF, changing our previous notion that multiple 

 seasonal sightings are an estimate of the residency time in the BOF. Tagged whales 

 moved both nearshore and offshore. Some movements were associated with 

 oceanographic features including temperature gradients, upwellings, eddies and warm 

 core rings (WCR). These features may have stimulated local primary productivity or 

 resulted in concentrating the density of prey. Surface active breeding groups (SAGs) 

 were common south of Nova Scotia, and many animals moved the 160 km between the 

 BOF and this area within two days. A preference for traveling along the 200 m contour 

 of the continental slope may have increased the whales' risk of collisions with ships. 

 Individual whales averaged 30 - 113 km/day (1.3 - 4.7km/hr.) with an overall average of 

 3.7km/hr. for all whales combined. Surprisingly, speeds as high as 10 km/hr. were 

 recorded; some of these were associated with currents in the same direction. The fastest 

 whale was a pregnant female (Knowlton and Kraus, pers. comm.) who spent more time 

 at the surface (33%) than any other whale. This whale also reported prolonged periods 

 at the surface during 69% of its transmissions. 



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Data were collected from 92,963 dives. Dives averaged 86 ± 48 seconds. Whales 

 were submerged most of the time (x = 78 ± 13%) although some individuals spent long 

 periods at the surface. The shortest dives occurred from dusk to midnight and the 

 longest dives occurred from midnight to dawn. The deep-scattering layer is nearer the 

 surface during both these periods than during daylight hours. There were substantial 



