Estimating the Abundance of Marine Mammal Populations
Understanding the abundance of marine mammal populations is a fundamental piece of information for reducing marine mammal bycatch in fisheries. Managers can use this information to set realistic conservation objectives, reduce fisheries bycatch, and monitor progress toward these goals. While numerous methods exist to estimate marine mammal abundance, expertise and resources widely vary.
In order to provide easy access to the way in which marine mammal abundance can be estimated, a new paper from researchers in the Ocean Modeling Forum’s Working Group on Marine Mammal Bycatch provides a summary on the various methods available for pinnipeds, cetaceans, and sirenians. Authors discuss key issues including:
- Defining the population to be estimated
- Considering candidate methods based on strengths and weakness in relation to a range of logistical and practical issues
- Being aware of the resources required to collect and analyze the data
- Understanding the assumptions made during analysis
- Challenges that may arise during implementation of an assessment and guidance when facing these issues
Read the full paper here.
Reference
Hammond, P.S., Francis, T.B., Heinemann, D., Long, K.J., Moore, J.E., Punt, A.E., Reeves, R.R., Sepúlveda, M., Már Sigurðsson, G., Siple, M.C., Víkingsson, G., Wade, P.R., Williams, R., Zerbini, A.N. (2021). Estimating the Abundance of Marine Mammal Populations. Frontiers in Marine Science. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2021.735770
