NOAA Technical Memorandum NMFS-SER-6 

http://doi.org/10.7289/V5/TM-NMFS-SER-6

North Atlantic Right Whale Calving Area 

Surveys: 2015/2016 Results

by

Claire Surrey-Marsden, Kelsey Howe, Melanie White, Clay George, 

Tim Gowan, Philip Hamilton, Katie Jackson, Jen Jakush, Tom Pitchford, 

Cynthia Taylor, Leslie Ward, and Barb Zoodsma

U.S. Department of Commerce 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

National Marine Fisheries Service

Southeast Regional Office 

263 13th Avenue South 

St. Petersburg, FL 33701 

January 2018 

North Atlantic Right Whale Calving Area Surveys: 

2015/2016 Results

Claire Surrey-Marsden1, Kelsey Howe2, Melanie White3, Clay George4, Tim Gowan2, Philip 

Hamilton5, Katie Jackson2, Jen Jakush2, Tom Pitchford2, Cynthia Taylor3, Leslie Ward2, and Barb 

Zoodsma1

1

NOAA Fisheries, Southeast Regional Office, 263 13th Avenue South, St. Petersburg, Florida 33701 

2

 Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, Fish and Wildlife Research Institute, 100 8th Avenue 

Southeast, St. Petersburg, Florida 33701 

3

Sea to Shore Alliance, 4411 Bee Ridge Road #490, Sarasota, FL 34233 

4

Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Nongame Conservation Section, 1 Conservation Way, Brunswick, 

Georgia 31520 5

New England Aquarium, Central Wharf, Boston, MA, 02110

U.S. Department of Commerce 

Wilbur L. Ross, Jr., Secretary 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RDML Tim Gallaudet, Ph.D., Acting Administrator

National Marine Fisheries Service

Chris Oliver, Assistant Administrator for Fisheries

NOAA Technical Memorandum NMFS-SER-6 

January 2018 

http://doi.org/10.7289/V5/TM-NMFS-SER-6
ii

NOTICE

The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) does not approve, recommend, or endorse any 

proprietary product or material mentioned in this publication. No reference shall be made to 

NMFS, or to this publication furnished by NMFS, in any advertising or sales promotion which 

would imply that NMFS approves, recommends, or endorses any propriety product or proprietary 

material mentioned herein or which has as its purpose any intent to cause directly or indirectly the 

advertised product to be used or purchased because of this NMFS publication.

Recommended citation:

Surrey-Marsden, Claire, K. Howe, M. White, C. George, T. Gowan, P. Hamilton, K. Jackson, J. 

Jakush, T. Pitchford, C. Taylor, L. Ward, and Zoodsma, B. 2017. North Atlantic Right Whale 

Calving Area Surveys: 2015/2016 Results. U.S. Dept. of Commerce, NOAA. NOAA Technical 

Memorandum NMFS-SER-6, 13 p

Copies of this report may be obtained from:

Barb Zoodsma

National Marine Fisheries Service 

Southeast Regional Office

263 13th Avenue North

St. Petersburg, FL 33701

Or online at:

http://sero.nmfs.noaa.gov/
iii

Table of Contents

Introduction.....................................................................................................................................................1

Methods ..........................................................................................................................................................1

Aerial Surveys.............................................................................................................................................1

Teams/Platform.......................................................................................................................................1

2015/2016 Survey Zone and Frequency .................................................................................................1

Daily Survey Area...................................................................................................................................2

Aerial Survey Data..................................................................................................................................3

Whale Alerts...............................................................................................................................................3

Results.............................................................................................................................................................4

Aerial Surveys.............................................................................................................................................4

Whale Alerts...............................................................................................................................................9

Miscellaneous ...............................................................................................................................................10

Injured and Entangled Whales..................................................................................................................10

Mortalities.................................................................................................................................................10

Dynamic Management Areas....................................................................................................................10

Inlet Incursion ...........................................................................................................................................11

Key Points.....................................................................................................................................................11

Acknowledgements .....................................................................................................................................11

References....................................................................................................................................................11

Appendix A..................................................................................................................................................13
1

Introduction

Aerial surveys are flown December 01 through March 31 each year in the Southeast United States

to detect North Atlantic right whales in their primary calving area. The purpose of the aerial 

surveys is to contribute to (in prioritized order):

• Population monitoring via detection and identification of individual right whales including 

cow/calf pairs occurring in the Southeast United States.

• Monitoring trends in human-related serious injuries and mortality.

• Vessel-strike reduction.

Given these objectives, we focused aerial surveys in areas where we expected the highest number 

of right whale detections.

Additionally, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric and Administration’s National Marine 

Fisheries Service (NOAA Fisheries), U.S. Navy, U.S. Coast Guard, and U.S. Army Corps of 

Engineers have agreed to implement the “Early Warning System” (EWS) –a system of aerial 

surveys and communications designed to provide mariners with information on whale locations.

The goal of the EWS is vessel-whale collision mitigation.

This report briefly summarizes results from the NOAA Fisheries-administered aerial surveys and 

the EWS during the 2015/2016 North Atlantic right whale calving season.

Methods

Aerial Surveys

Teams/Platform

Two dedicated teams flew aerial surveys in 2015/2016. The Sea to Shore Alliance (S2S) team, 

contracted by the Georgia Department of Natural Resources (GDNR), was based out of St. 

Simons Island, Georgia, and flew aboard a NOAA-owned De Havilland Twin Otter. The flight 

team consisted of 2 observers and a dedicated data recorder. The Florida Fish and Wildlife 

Conservation Commission (FWC) team was based out of St. Augustine, Florida and flew aboard a 

Cessna Skymaster. The FWC flight team consisted of 2 observers; one of these also served as the

data recorder. Two pilots were seated at the controls in each aircraft.

2015/2016 Survey Zone and Frequency

Flight lines were selected from a geographic area ranging from near Savannah, Georgia to just 

north of Cape Canaveral, Florida. Surveys could be shifted if few right whales were sighted in the

main survey area and dynamic combinations of habitat features in adjacent areas were suitable for 

right whales. Transects oriented east-west and parallel to shore were used (Figure 1). Generally, 

each team attempted to fly every day that visibility was greater than 2 nautical miles (nmi) and 

sea state was less than 4 on the Beaufort Wind Scale.
2

Figure 1. Transects available to be flown by aerial survey teams during the 2015/2016

North Atlantic right whale calving season. Thick black lines represent EWS transects.

Daily Survey Area

The aerial survey zone was too large for 2 aerial survey teams to survey in a single day, so a 

subset of the area was selected and flown each day. In general, the following criteria were used in 

daily flight planning:

1. EWS transects

2. Avoiding airspace conflicts with military operations

3. Weather
3

4. Predicted whale locations1

5. Recent whale sightings

6. Distributing effort throughout the survey area

7. NOAA-affiliated, boat-based biopsy/tagging projects

8. Aircraft availability/hours

Aerial Survey Data

Survey data collection methods followed those described in Keller et al. (2012) and Gowan and 

Ortega-Ortiz (2014).

Whale Alerts

Whale alerts were generated from aerial survey sightings or from public sightings which were 

verified by or relayed through a reliable source. Teams issued whale alerts to marine users and 

other users in near-real time using geographically-based email distribution lists2 (Figure 2). 

Figure 2. Areal coverage of whale alert email distribution 

lists.

 1 The FWC produced bimonthly predictions of right whale distribution using methods described by Gowan and Ortiz 

(2014). This paper validated hindcasted predictions, but not forecasted predictions (i.e., before sea surface 

temperature data for the period are available). 2 Users received email or text message alerts; text messages were possible if users provided a short message service 

(SMS) to email gateway.
4

Results

Aerial Surveys

Of the 122 days in the season, FWC and S2S teams conducted surveys on 56 and 44 days,

respectively. Survey duration varied and was limited by weather, military activity in survey area, 

aircraft limitations, etc. On average, survey days were cut short 51% of days that were flown (38 

of 56 days for FWC and 15 of 44 days for S2S). Search effort was unevenly distributed 

throughout the survey season (Table 1) and area (Figure 3). One survey was flown off South 

Carolina for exploratory purposes.

Table 1. Number of Nautical Miles 

(nmi) Flown While On Effort 3

Month On-Effort Trackline 

Distance (nmi)

December 11843

January 10774

February 7160

March 6973

The two survey teams observed and/or verified 111 right whale sightings 4 and 21 sightings of 

those were first reported from other sources (collaborating research vessels, volunteer sighting 

network, public, dredge, U.S. Navy, U.S. Coast Guard, etc.). Most sightings were associated with 

the area of highest effort (Figure 4) and varied by month (Table 2).

 3 “On effort” is defined as those times when the following conditions are met: Beaufort sea state < 4, visibility at least 

2 nmi (3.7 kilometers), altitude < 1200 feet (366 meters), and not circling a sighting, or on verification survey. 4 A “sighting” consists of 1 or more right whales.
5

Figure 3. Density distribution of survey effort in the 2015/2016 survey area. Effort is 

displayed as number of flights in 3- by 3-nmi grid cells or 4- by 4-nmi in SC (gray 

lines). Transects are black and EWS transects are thick black.
6

Figure 4. Geographic distribution of right whales sighted while on effort (black 

symbols) or reported to aerial survey teams and verified (grey symbols) during the 

2015/2016 season. Circles represent sightings of cow/calf pairs and triangles 

represent sightings of other right whales.
7

Table 2. Monthly Number of Right Whales and Right Whale 

Sightings (detected per nautical mile of on-effort trackline).

Month

Number of 

Right 

Whale 

Sighting 

Events

Number

of Right 

Whales**

Sighting 

Events/1,000 

nmi

Individual Right 

Whales/1,000

nmi

December 13 23 1.1 1.9

January 44 76 4.1 7.1

February 41 81 5.7 11.3

March 13 26 1.9 3.7

* A right whale sighting consists of 1 or more right whales.

** Individuals may have been re-sighted within the same or different months.

First sightings of individual right whales (i.e., whale detected for the first time in the season) were 

made throughout the calving season and into mid-February (Figure 5).

Figure 5. Rate of right whale discovery by the S2S and FWC aerial survey teams in the calving area

(calves included). Points represent all flight days. No new whales were sighted after February 17, 

2016. 
8

Fourteen cow/calf pairs were detected in the Southeast United States during the 2015/2016

calving season (Table 3).

5

The mean calving interval observed across known calving females was 6.6 years (median = 7

years). Most of the calving females are seen elsewhere either every year or with occasional one 

year gaps (i.e. calves would have likely been seen); however, 3 of the females (Catalog #1810, 

#2520, and #3180) aren’t seen very regularly and it is possible that previous calves were missed.

Excluding these 3 females results in a mean calving interval of 6.3 years.

Table 3. Catalog Numbers, Ages, and Other Known Calving Information for Calving 

Females observed in the Southeast United States during the 2015/2016 Calving Season

(Note: Numbers reflect known calving information –some calving events may have gone undetected).

Whale ID Age1

Number of Calves

Known to Have 

Been Produced by a 

Given Female1

Age At First 

Known 

Calving1

Last Known 

Calving Year1

Presumed 

Calving 

Interval1

3405 12 1 N/A

3450 >12 1 N/A

3860 8 1 N/A

4094 6 1 N/A

3101 15 2 8 2009 7

3317 13 2 6 2009 7

3440 14 2 7 2009 7

3115 15 3 7 2011 5

3180 15 3 7 2010 6

1810 >28 5 >6 2007 9

2520 >22 5 >1 2009 7

1233 >42 6 >15 2009 7

1812 >28 6 >8 2012 4

1281 >35 8 >5 2009 7 1

Data Source: North Atlantic Right Whale Consortium, 2017

Six right whales other than cow/calf pairs were observed in the Southeast United States calving 

area (Figure 6). These were 4 adult females, 1 juvenile of unknown sex, and 1 adult of unknown 

sex (later identified as female when found dead in the Gulf of Maine in September, 2016). Aerial 

survey teams observed/documented 5of these whales and a member of the public detected the 

sixth, which was identified via photographs. The number of known calves produced for 

2015/2016 and the previous 10 years is included in Appendix A. 

 5

Post-season photo analysis indicates calf swapping/adoption occurred between 3 females. 
9

Figure 6. Demographic information of North Atlantic right whales seen in the Southeast 

United States during the 2015/2016 calving season.

Table 4. Number of Representatives from 

Various Organization Types Receiving Whale 

Alerts at the End of the 2015/2016 Right 

Whale Calving Season

Recipient Type Count

Commercial Fishing 1

Commercial Shipping/Harbor Pilots 41

Law Enforcement (federal, state, local) 23

Resource Managers (Federal, State, 

Local) 31

U.S. Army Corps of 

Engineers/Dredge/Dredge Observers 26

U.S. Coast Guard 9

U.S. Navy 9

Volunteer Sighting Networks 3

Whale Researchers 41

Other 4

Total 188

Female with Calf (n=14)

Adult Female (n=4)

Adult Sex Unknown (n=1)

Juvenile Sex Unknown (n=1)

In all, 20 different right whales (excluding 

calves) were seen in the Southeast United States

calving area during the calving season.

Aerial survey teams also sighted eight different 

humpback whales. No other large whale species 

were observed. 

Whale Alerts

A total of 188 subscribers representing various 

industries, agencies, and organizations were 

receiving whale alerts at the end of March 2016

(Table 4). Some entities (e.g., Navy and Coast 

Guard) subscribed using an email address that 

automatically distributed whale alerts to several 

recipients.

A total of 150 whale alerts were issued for the 

2015/2016 season. Sightings were generated 

from a number of sources (Figure 7).
10

Figure 7. Right whale sighting sources for whale alerts (includes only sightings that were verified).

Miscellaneous

Injured and Entangled Whales

No entangled whales were documented by either survey team.

The New England Aquarium (NEAq) maintains a list of right whales that are either injured or in 

poor condition and are, therefore, monitored. The following right whale was already on that list 

and was observed in the calving area.

• Catalog #3670 was observed in the calving area once on December 12, 2015. The whale 

was in poor health with injuries likely from a previous entanglement.

The following whale, not previously on the NEAq’s monitoring list, was observed in the calving 

area, and was subsequently added to the monitoring list.

• Catalog #1968 was observed in poor health. No gear was seen but there were new 

entanglement wounds on the peduncle and fluke, and a portion of baleen was sticking out 

of the mouth.

Mortalities

No dead whales were observed by the survey teams; however, based on sighting and photo 

history, we suspect that the calf of catalog #3860 died while in the calving area. 

Dynamic Management Areas

No Dynamic Management Areas were established within the Southeast United States during the 

2015/2016 calving season.

FWC Aerial Survey (n=55)

S2S Aerial Survey (n=48)

Marine Resources Council (n=6)

GDNR Boat (n=2)

Marineland Right Whale Project

(n=3)

Public (n=5)

FWC Boat (n=7)

USCG (n=4)

Duke University (n=3)

Dredge (n=3)

Florida Atlantic University -Harbor

Branch (n=13)

NOAA (n=1)
11

Inlet Incursion 

Catalog #3450 and her 2016 calf were initially observed in Sebastian Inlet, FL on February 08, 

2016. On several occasions the pair moved eastward as if they were going to exit the inlet, but 

each time they abruptly and radically changed direction of travel as they approached an overhead 

bridge (and its shadow) crossing the inlet. The pair remained inside the inlet (approximately 3⁄4 

nmi from the ocean) for a total of 28 hours and exited on February 09, 2016 when the tide swept 

the pair under the bridge tail first.

Key Points

• Weather and the EWS lines were substantial factors determining when and where surveys 

were flown.

• Fourteen cow/calf pairs were documented in the Southeast United States during the 

2015/2016 season.

• The mean and median calving interval was 6.6 and 7 years, respectively.

• Six right whales from other demographic groups other than cow/calf pairs were sighted in 

the calving area.

• Individual whales were seen for the first time and, therefore, were potentially arriving in 

the calving area as late as mid-February.

• The New England Aquarium is monitoring the health of 2 of the 20 juvenile or adult right 

whales (10%) that were observed in the calving area.

• One cow/calf pair exhibited avoidance behavior of an overhead bridge.

• One dependent calf disappeared and likely died during the calving season.

• Photo analysis indicated calf swapping/adoption between three female adults. 

Acknowledgements

NOAA Fisheries, U.S. Navy, U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and Georgia 

Department of Natural Resources provided funding. Surveys were flown under NOAA Fisheries 

Permit #15488 issued to GDNR.

References

Gowan, T. A., and J. G. Ortega-Ortiz. 2014. Wintering habitat model for the North Atlantic right 

whale (Eubalaena glacialis) in the southeastern United States. PLoS ONE 9(4):e95126.

Keller, C. A., L. Garrison, R. Baumstark, L. I. Ward-Geiger, and E. Hines. 2012. Application of a 

habitat model to define calving habitat of the North Atlantic right whale in the southeastern 

United States. Endangered Species Research 18(1):73-8.

Right Whale Consortium (2017). North Atlantic Right Whale Consortium Sightings Database 

05/01/2017 (Anderson Cabot Center for Ocean Life at the New England Aquarium, Boston, MA, 

U.S.A.).

Waring, G. T., E. Josephson, K. Maze-Foley, and P. E. Rosel. 2016. US Atlantic and Gulf of 

Mexico Marine Mammal Stock Assessments - 2015. NOAA Technical Memorandum NMFS-NE-
12

238. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Marine Fisheries Service, 

Northeast Fisheries Science Center, Woods Hole, Massachusetts. 501 pp.
13

Appendix A. Known North Atlantic right whale calves born December 2005 - March 

2016 (not exclusive to the SEUS calving area) (Waring et al. 2016, North Atlantic Right 

Whale Consortium 2017). 

North Atlantic right whale calf production, 2006-2016

Year a Reported calf production Reported and assumed calf mortalities b

2006 19 2

2007 23 2

2008 23 2

2009 39 1

2010 19 0

2011 22 0

2012 7 1

2013 20 1

2014 11 1

2015 17 0

2016 14 1 a Includes December of the previous year. b Includes assumed deaths based on observations of mothers seen with a calf and then resighted later that same year 

without a calf.