The relationship between polar bear stress hormones and sea ice change George Durner | U.S. Geological Survey | $120,261 Cortisol will be measured from a rich collection of Southern Beaufort Sea and Chukchi Sea polar bear hair samples from bears captured from 1983-2016. Cortisol concentrations will be related to demographic parameters, body condition, region, and sea ice conditions during the time of fur growth from May-September, the period that polar bears are likely impacted by climate change sea ice declines. Results will provide a 34-year view of the role of diminishing sea ice, reproductive status, and region on the health of the subpop- ulations of polar bears. Reliable areas of uncertainty for vocalizing marine mammals John Spiesberger | Scientific Innovations, Inc. | $80,226 Reliable Areas of Uncertainty (AOUs) for calling mammals and airguns in the Chukchi Sea will be generated in this study based on archival recordings from three pentagonal acoustic arrays in shallowwater between September 2010 and August 2012. AOUs will be determined with mathematical inventions, having been independently tested and evaluated by the Navy for similar problems. Cook Inlet beluga whale reproductive rates Gina Himes-Boor | Montana State University | $176,335 Estimated reproductive rates of Cook Inlet beluga whales will be determined by developing a Bayesian multi-state mark-recapture model using data from the 2005-2016 CIBW Photo-ID study. The estimates will help to better understand and predict what reproductive rates might mean for the health and recovery of Cook Inlet belugas and the health of their habitat .
Resolving the annual pelagic distribution of tufted puffins Kristen Gorman | Prince William Sound Science Center $243,611 Geolocator technology will be used to determine the unknown migratory routes and wintering areas of tufted puffins from a Gulf of Alaska population. Oceanographic and foraging data will be coupled with the geolocator-derived migration and distribution data to examine how tufted puffins use different oceanic habitats throughout the year. Distribution and abundance of Chukchi Sea polar bears and seals Peter Boveng | NOAA AFSC | $207,579 Data from spatially comprehensive, multispecies aerial surveys in the Chukchi Sea will be used to address critical information gaps for polar bears, ringed seals, and bearded seals. The distribution and abundance of polar bears, ringed seals, and bearded seals in the Chukchi Sea will be estimated while also evaluating the spatial and temporal relationships in species occurrence within a unified analytical framework.
2018
Integrated abundance and movement models for marine mammals Sarah Converse | USGS | $283,781 A framework will be developed for integrating spatial capture–recapture (SCR) and telemetry data to simultane- ously estimate density, habitat use, and movement of marine mammals. SCR-telemetry models provide researchers and managers a way to integrate multiple data types, including data from emerging technologies to improve accuracy and efficiency of marine mammal monitoring across the Arctic. Identifying ambiguous Bering Sea calls Aaron Thode | University of California, San Diego $162,042 This researchwill expand upon passive acoustic monitoring calling depth analysis to three baleenwhale species (NPRW, bowhead, humpback) to determine whether call depth provides significant clues to species identification. Two rounds of analysis will be conducted: one on datasets where the calling species is unambiguously known; and one on larger datasets where calling species is inferred from acoustic context, a situation that requires more sophisticated statistical analysis. Establishing baseline ringed seal sea ice breeding habitat Donna Hauser | University of Alaska Fairbanks | $65,345 Critical knowledge gaps will be filled about the breeding habitat of ringed seals by ‘rescuing’ and analyzing data from two regions of the eastern Chukchi Sea in spring 1983 and 1984. These data will quantify snow and sea ice characteristics, distribution, density, and spatial configuration of ringed seal structures, as well as evidence of polar bear ( Ursus maritimus ) and Arctic fox ( Vulpes lagopus ) predation.
Impact of lagoon habitat change on Steller’s eiders Tuula Hollmen | ASLC & UAF | $321,879
This project will characterize physical and biological habitat conditions in Izembek and Nelson lagoons, and compare contemporary foraging conditions to data collected prior to the observed eider declines. The overall goal is to evaluate habitat suitability at Izembek and if it has changed coincident with the observed declines in numbers of eiders.
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2 0 1 7 – 2 0 1 8 B I E N N I A L R E P O R T
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