PROJECTS

We are conducting passive acoustic monitoring using a linear array of marine autonomous recording units (MARUs), deployed on the continental shelf off Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, during right whale migratory periods. MARUs are bottom-mounted, archival recording instruments, capable of collecting continuous low-frequency acoustic recordings for up to six months at a time. The array consists of five MARUs, spaced 10 km apart in a line extending from shore out to the shelf break (200-m isobath). The MARUs are programmed to collect continuous acoustic recordings at a sample rate of 2 kHz for the full deployment period of 4-5 months for each season. Thus, to ensure full coverage of the entire right whale migratory period, we are replacing the first set of MARUs mid-way through the study period. After retrieval and data extraction, we will analyze acoustic recordings using an automated detection and classification system designed specifically for low-frequency baleen whale calls. In addition to North Atlantic right whales, we expect to detect the calls of humpback, fin, and minke whales on these recorders. We will involve undergraduate and graduate students at Duke University in analysis of these calls. Our analysis will include an evaluation of detector performance and an examination of temporal patterns in detected right whale calls.