CRD 07-02

Table 1. Summary of NOAA right whale aerial survey effort and data collection from 1998 through 2006
NERO NEFSC NEFSC/NERO
1998 1999 2000 2001 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006
Total of right whale counts1,2 115 194 187 508 0 92 160 90 824 573 288 870 410
Flight hours2 185 222 214 273 66 96 92 81 520 479 399 567 420
Flights3
     Broadscale 12 57 60 53 93 61
     SCOPEX lines 23 27 24 30 3 1 2 1 18 8 4 7 6
     Haphazard 12 11 10 15 12 18 17 3 24 27 24 16 21
Sensor data4
     GPS time5 ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
     GPS latitude/longitude5 ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
     GPS course over ground ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
     GPS speed over ground6 ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
     Radar altimeter7 ■ ■ ■
     Pitch/roll ■ ■ ■
     Sea surface ºC ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
     Digital photos ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
Sighting conditions8
     Beaufort sea state ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
     Visibility (> 2nmi)9 ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
     Visibility (nmi) ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
     Cloud cover10 ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
     Glare11 ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
     Quality12 ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
Sighting data
     Observer ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
     Species ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
     Species certainty13 ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
     Count (w/calves) ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
     Calf count ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
     Sighting distance ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
     Sighting cue14 ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
     Behavior ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
     Swim direction ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
     Ships ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
     Ship position ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
     Ship heading15 ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
     Fishing gear ■ ■ ■ ■ ■   ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
     Fishing vessels 16 ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
     Fishing vessel behavior17 ■ ■ ■ ■

1 Counts include many of the same individual right whales sighted on different flights.
2 Excludes flights in U.S. Coast Guard airframes and flights two hours or less in duration (typically the result of discovering unacceptable sighting conditions offshore).
3 Flights that included broadscale, SCOPEX lines and haphazard survey effort were counted as broadscale flights only; flights with both SCOPEX lines and haphazard survey effort -- but no broadscale -- were counted as SCOPEX line flights only.  Haphazard flights included exploratory surveys, DAM zone checks, sighting report verifications, and searches for carcasses or entangled whales.
4 Squares indicate in which years these data were recorded directly from sensors by computer data logging systems. 
5 Time and latitude/longitude were recorded on paper datasheets during the 1998 NERO surveys. 
6 Survey speed was assumed to be 100 knots prior to computer logging of the GPS speed over ground. 
7 Survey altitude was assumed to be either 750 or 1000 feet prior to the installation of radar altimeters.
8 Estimated by observers.
9 Visibility scored as either greater or less than 2 nautical miles. 
10 Four intervals: <10%, 10-50%, 51-90%, >90%.
11 Recorded separately for each side of the track line using a ranking scale based on likelihood of a sighting being missed due to glare.  Four ranks: none, slight, moderate and high/severe.
12 Recorded separately for each side of the track line using a ranking scale based on likelihood of sighting a right whale 1.5 nmi from the track line considering all sighting condition variables.  Five ranks: excellent, good, moderate, poor and unacceptable.
13 Four ranks: definite, probable, unsure, possible.
14 Primary categories included body part, splash, blow, footprint, vessel/gear, birds and windrows.
15 Ship heading data in the NERO data from 1998 through 2001 were largely limited to general compass directions.
16 Only collected in the vicinity of right whales from 2000-2004.
17 Categories were fishing, transiting and hove to.

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 (Modified Jun. 13 2008)