Whales

Mar 2, 2017

Collaborative stewardship for the Pacific coast

Ocean Networks Canada (ONC) applauds the Government of Canada’s recent announcements to protect the Pacific coast. During a February visit to Vancouver, the Honourable Dominic Leblanc, Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and Canadian Coast Guard (DFO) announced a suite of initiatives to ensure that our Pacific coast remains healthy, prosperous and safe for generations.

Protecting sensitive marine areas

The Honourable Dominic Leblanc, Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and Canadian Coast Guard

Figure 1. The...

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MPAs | glass sponge | DFO | ECHO | Port of Vancouver | Vancouver Aquarium | ocean watch | Whales | oceanwatch

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Listening station to study impact of ship noise on whales

September 15, 2015 Vancouver, B.C.: The Vancouver Fraser Port Authority (VFPA), with support from the University of Victoria’s Ocean Networks Canada and JASCO Applied Sciences, has deployed a hydrophone listening station that will monitor underwater vessel noise in the Strait of Georgia. Underwater noise has been identified as a key threat to at-risk whales.

Orca and Freighter​

Orcas in the Strait of Georgia, one of the busiest shipping routes in the world. (Credit: BeamReach.org)

The hydrophone listening station deployment and...

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ECHO | Whales | Acoustics | Hydrophone | underwater vessel noise

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New Online Learning Resource Listens to Orcas

As students in BC and across Canada return to school, Ocean Networks Canada (ONC) and Open School BC (OSBC) are delighted to announce the release of Shouting Whales, a new marine science educational resource for teachers and educators, that is available free of charge. 

Aimed at middle school students from grades six to eight, Shouting Whales is a unique resource that brings together science, problem-based learning, multimedia, and advocacy for an in-depth exploration of the oceanic soundscape.

Exploring noise pollution beneath the surface of the sea

In particular, students are asked to think about the ocean from the perspective of the orca whale, an...

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ocean alive | shouting whales | Whales | Marine Mammals | education | teaching resources | lesson plans | sound pollution | hydrophones | orcas

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Introduction to the Strait of Georgia

A rockfish at ONC's Strait of Georgia observatory.

Strait of Georgia at a Glance:

  • Region: Between southern Vancouver Island and the Fraser River Delta of B.C., in the southern portion of the Strait of Georgia, a major shipping route along the Pacific Northwest coast.
  • Instrument Platforms: 6 (3 at Central node and 3 at East node)
  • Depths:
    • Central node:...
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venus | strait of georgia | Whales | salish sea | Acoustics | BC Ferries | VENUS Ferry System

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Listening to Deep Ocean Whales

“We can’t get there but our technology can” ~ Kristen Kanes, Co-op student

Passive acoustic monitoring of marine mammals is a growing research theme on both the VENUS and NEPTUNE observatories.

UVic Co-op student Kristen Kanes works with the Ocean Networks Canada Innovation Centre (formerly Centre for Enterprise and Engagement, ONCCEE) to process passive acoustic data from their technology demonstrations. Together with John Dorocicz, Acoustic Systems Developer, the two “listeners” publicize the highlights from these data within relevant research communities.

Kristen and John are helping promote Canadian technologies, which is part of ONCCEE’s mandate as a national Center of Excellence for...

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Acoustics | ONCCEE | CECR | Marine Mammals | Whales | sperm whales | fin whales | low-frequency hydrophones | hydrophones | Ocean Sonics | icListen | Canada Research Collective

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Haida Gwaii Rumbles Picked Up on ONC's Hydrophone

From Alaska to Vancouver, residents along the west coast felt the powerful magnitude 7.7 earthquake that struck the Haida Gwaii archipelago at 8:04PM PDT, on October 27th, 2012.

ONC seafloor hydrophones also registered the low-frequency rumbles from this earthquake, along with the calls of humpback whales in the area. This recording is from a hydrophone on Barkley Upper Slope, positioned at a depth of 396 m. In this clip, sound has been sped up 250% to make the earthquake noise audible to the human ear. The squeaking noises prior to the main quake are the sped-up whale calls.

With thanks to John...

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earthquake | Haida Gwaii | Hydrophone | humpbacks | Whales

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Transient Killer Whale Sounds Recorded at Strait of Georgia

Studying marine mammals vocalizations in the ocean has been an ongoing Ocean Networks Canada project. A number of hydrophones have been installed and tested on the VENUS observatory, both in Saanich Inlet and the Strait of Georgia. As identified by the research community, the main area of interest in this research is the Strait of Georgia. A busy marine traffic lane, home to the resident Killer Whales, the Strait also provides a hunting ground for transient Killer Whales.

Today we wanted to feature sounds captured on the deepest (300m) Central Node hydrophone system in the...

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Hyrophone | acoustic | data | venus | saanich inlet | strait of georgia | Whales | killer whales | orcas | Marine Mammals

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Seismic Shift in Whale Studies

Fin whales are the world’s 2nd largest whale species (blue whales are the largest). These majestic creatures inhabit temperate to sub-arctic waters in both the northern and southern hemispheres. Within the Pacific Ocean basin, there are at least 3 geographically distinct populations.

In the North Pacific Ocean, fin whales have been observed as far north as the Chukchi Sea during the summer months while in winter, they spend their time off the coasts of Korea and Japan in the West Pacific, and off northern Baja California in the East Pacific.

...

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Marine Mammals | Whales | Acoustics | Fin Whale | Vocalization | seismic | endeavour | Ocean Bottom Seismometer | Juad de Fuca Ridge

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Listening to the Deep

LIDO: Listening to the Deep-Ocean environment.

The ocean has become a noisy place. Ships, motorboats, offshore construction projects, even aircraft can be heard from the seafloor, and the din can be deafening. Noise pollution is a problem for whales, dolphins and other marine animals that depend on sounds to communicate, hunt, find mates and navigate complex seafloor terrain.

Although underwater sound pollution is suspected to have many...

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LIDO | Listening to the Deep Ocean | Acoustics | Hydrophone | Marine Mammals | Whales | ocean noise

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