ACCESS NUMBER: M12AC00005

STUDY TITLE: Arctic Currents: A Year in the Life of the Bowhead Whale 

REPORT TITLE: OCS Study BOEM 2015-039; Technical Summary 

CONTRACT NUMBER: M12AC00005 

SPONSORING OCS REGION: Alaska

APPLICABLE PLANNING AREA(S): Bering, Chukchi, and Beaufort Seas 

FISCAL YEAR(S) OF PROJECT FUNDING: 2012-2015 

COMPLETION DATE OF REPORT: March, 2015 

COSTS: $87,587 

PROJECT MANAGER(S): Roger Topp, Steve Okkonen 

LEAD AUTHOR OF REPORT: Roger Topp 

AFFILIATION: University of Alaska Fairbanks 

ADDRESS: School of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences/UAF, Fairbanks, AK 99775-7220

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR(S): Steve Okkonen, Roger Topp 

KEY WORDS: bowhead, whale, film, animation, calendar 

BACKGROUND: 

Bowhead whales are a nutritional mainstay and cultural icon of the Inupiat and Siberian Yupik 

peoples. As such, there is an inherent local interest in these animals and the arctic ecosystem of 

which they are a part. This inherent interest provides the opportunity to use results from recent 

MMS/BOEM-supported environmental studies of the Chukchi and Beaufort Seas to illustrate 

not-readily-observable aspects of the arctic ecosystem and how they relate to the bowhead 

whales’ life history. Science and technology increasingly play important roles in the 

development of public policies relating to a wide range of societal issues. Science outreach 

serves to promote an aware and informed public and, in so doing, strengthens public voices in 

crafting policy. Arguably, the signature policy issues currently facing the people of northern 

Alaska are related to offshore mineral exploration, development, and extraction activities in the 

Chukchi and Beaufort Seas. These activities will likely provide employment opportunities and 

other local economic benefits, but they also have the potential to adversely impact the arctic 

marine ecosystem of which the people of northern Alaska are a part and upon which they depend 

for food. 

OBJECTIVE: 

To produce an animated film to improve public understanding of the arctic marine ecosystem, 

with emphasis on those components associated with the bowhead whale and its zooplankton 

prey. 

DESCRIPTION:

We produced an educational, animated film to illustrate how bowhead whales feed on 

zooplankton (krill and copepods) and how winds, ocean currents, and bathymetry interact to 

create favorable feeding opportunities for bowhead whales. The film content represents a 

synthesis of some recent and ongoing BOEM-funded research projects (whale tagging, aerial 

surveys, oceanography) conducted in the Chukchi and Beaufort Seas. We chose an animated film 

as the outreach medium because the aforementioned processes are best visualized through a 

medium that conveys motion and take place in a world largely unseen or un-seeable at any 

significant scale. 
ACCESS NUMBER: M12AC00005

Broadly speaking, the organizing framework for the animated film is the annual migration of the 

bowhead whale encompassing the wintering grounds in the Bering Sea, northward migration 

through the Chukchi and Beaufort Seas during spring to the summer feeding grounds in the 

Canadian Beaufort Sea, westward and southward migration during fall, and finally returning to 

their wintering grounds in the Bering Sea. The inception of the scientific narrative for the 

animated film was developed in the form of a bilingual calendar as an outreach product for a 

Cooperative Institute for Alaska Research-funded project. Each calendar page presented some 

relevant aspect (e.g. biological, oceanographic, behavioral) of the bowhead whales’ life 

associated with that particular month. 

STUDY RESULTS: 

The narrative script for the film was written in English and then translated and recorded in 

Inupiaq and St. Lawrence Island Yupik by native speakers. All three language tracks are 

distributed equally both online and on printed DVD. The DVD of the animated film is provided 

to the North Slope Borough (NSB) School District, Barrow Whaling Captains’ Association, 

Alaska Eskimo Whaling Commission, and collaborating institutions and agencies. 

SIGNIFICANT CONCLUSIONS: 

All principal production and post-production services were carried out successfully by 

University of Alaska Museum of the North staff in collaboration with oceanographers, marine 

mammal biologists and Inupiat whalers who reviewed topical elements of the production 

process. The production stresses the value of locally-directed production of culturally-relevant 

science outreach for local schools, community ownership of regionally-produced content, and 

the distributive power of working directly with multi-mode outreach destination institutions such 

as museums.

STUDY PRODUCT(S): 

Film was produced in three languages (English, Inupiaq, St. Lawrence Island Yupik) on 

YouTube for high definition stream. Film is also available in three languages on iTunesU for 

high definition download as podcasts.

Printed and jacketed DVDs were produced. 200 copies were distributed to partners, schools, and 

villages from Barrow to St. Lawrence Island. 100 additional copies were made to be delivered to 

schools and by request from communities lacking in adequate internet bandwidth for the 

YouTube stream or iTunesU download. 

A multi-year running blog of the production process from animation technical work to the results 

of film review visits to Barrow, Nome, Savoonga, and Gambell was produced and is available at 

arcticcurrets.wordpress.com. 

Daily showing of the film started (in English) in February, 2015, at the auditorium at UAMN

The Alaska Sea Life Center has requested to show the film in their exhibit hall beginning 

summer 2015.