Automating the Acoustic Monitoring of New Zealand Waters for Migrating Humpback Whales (Megaptera novaeangliae)

Abstract

Historically, some Southern Hemisphere Area V (130 degrees E to 170 degrees W) humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) migrated from Antarctic feeding sites to wintering sites off eastern Australia and the southwestern Pacific through New Zealand waters. During winter months, males appear to advertise their presence by producing lengthy, loud songs, and the presence of singing whales is a reliable indicator of a migratory route. This study describes the results of acoustic monitoring of New Zealand waters for the presence of singing humpback whales. A low-cost, off-the-shelf computer system and shareware was used.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Feb 01, 1998
Accession Number
ADA340481

Entities

People

  • D. A. Helweg

Organizations

  • Naval Information Warfare Systems Command

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Advanced Electronics
  • Materials and Manufacturing Processes

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Acoustic Detection
  • Barrier Islands
  • Computers
  • Correlators
  • Detection
  • Digital Data
  • Digital Information
  • Frequency
  • Indicators
  • Islands
  • Mammals
  • Marine Mammals
  • Monitoring
  • New Zealand
  • Sampling
  • Southern Hemisphere
  • Whales

Readers

  • Database Systems and Applications
  • Marine Mammal Biology
  • Polar and Arctic Studies