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Dataset Overview | National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI)

Shore-based counts of the Eastern North Pacific gray whale stock from central California conducted from 1967-12-18 to 2007-02-22 (NCEI Accession 0138007)

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The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) has conducted shore-based counts of the Eastern North Pacific stock of gray whales (Eschrichtius robustus) 26 years from 1967 to 2008 at Granite Canyon (or nearby at Yankee Point), 13 km south of Carmel, in central California. Convenient access to the Granite Canyon research station (owned by NOAA but operated by the State of California Department of Fish and Game) and the narrowness of the whales' migratory corridor in this area permitted an efficient counting process at this site. All counts were conducted during the 2-month southbound migration (mid-December to late February) rather than the protracted 3-month northbound migration. The routine nature of these counts and the consistency in research protocol lend themselves to inter-annual trend analyses. Research protocol has been based on single observers independently searching for whales and recording data on environmental conditions and the time, location, count, and direction of travel for each sighting. The counting system and observer performance has been tested through paired, independent observational effort; aerial surveys; thermal imagery; radio-tagging of whales; systematic observations through high-powered (25x) binoculars; and teams of observers tracking specific whale pods through the viewing area.
  • Cite as: Rugh, David; Laake, Jeff; Hobbs, Roderick; Breiwick, Jeff (2015). Shore-based counts of the Eastern North Pacific gray whale stock from central California conducted from 1967-12-18 to 2007-02-22 (NCEI Accession 0138007). [indicate subset used]. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. Dataset. https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/archive/accession/0138007. Accessed [date].
gov.noaa.nodc:0138007
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Distribution Formats
  • Originator data format
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Distributor NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
+1-301-713-3277
NCEI.Info@noaa.gov
Dataset Point of Contact NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
ncei.info@noaa.gov
Time Period 1967-12-18 to 2007-02-22
Spatial Bounding Box Coordinates
West: -121.94
East: -121.91
South: 36.4
North: 36.5
Spatial Coverage Map
General Documentation
Publication Dates
  • publication: 2015-11-25
Data Presentation Form Digital table - digital representation of facts or figures systematically displayed, especially in columns
Dataset Progress Status Complete - production of the data has been completed
Historical archive - data has been stored in an offline storage facility
Data Update Frequency As needed
Supplemental Information
Submission Package ID: PP7DEL
Purpose Shore-based counts of gray whales have provided the fundamental data used to establish the abundance of the Eastern North Pacific Stock of Gray Whales. These abundance estimates are applied to trends analyses to establish the health of the stock. Results from this study were the basis for removing this stock of whales from the list of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife, the first mammalian species to do so without going extinct. Similarly, results from the shore-based counts are used by the International Whaling Commission to estimate the health of the stock relative to whaling quotas used by the Chukotka Eskimos and Makah Indians.
Use Limitations
  • accessLevel: Public
  • Distribution liability: NOAA and NCEI make no warranty, expressed or implied, regarding these data, nor does the fact of distribution constitute such a warranty. NOAA and NCEI cannot assume liability for any damages caused by any errors or omissions in these data. If appropriate, NCEI can only certify that the data it distributes are an authentic copy of the records that were accepted for inclusion in the NCEI archives.
Dataset Citation
  • Cite as: Rugh, David; Laake, Jeff; Hobbs, Roderick; Breiwick, Jeff (2015). Shore-based counts of the Eastern North Pacific gray whale stock from central California conducted from 1967-12-18 to 2007-02-22 (NCEI Accession 0138007). [indicate subset used]. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. Dataset. https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/archive/accession/0138007. Accessed [date].
Cited Authors
  • Rugh, David
  • Laake, Jeff
  • Hobbs, Roderick
  • Breiwick, Jeff
Principal Investigators
  • David Rugh
Collaborators
  • Jeff Laake
  • Jeff Breiwick
Contributors
Resource Providers
Points of Contact
  • Roderick Hobbs
Publishers
Theme keywords NODC DATA TYPES THESAURUS NODC OBSERVATION TYPES THESAURUS WMO_CategoryCode
  • oceanography
Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Science Keywords Originator Keywords
  • abundance
Data Center keywords NODC COLLECTING INSTITUTION NAMES THESAURUS NODC SUBMITTING INSTITUTION NAMES THESAURUS Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Data Center Keywords
Instrument keywords NODC INSTRUMENT TYPES THESAURUS Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Instrument Keywords
Place keywords NODC SEA AREA NAMES THESAURUS Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Location Keywords
Keywords NCEI ACCESSION NUMBER
Use Constraints
  • Cite as: Rugh, David; Laake, Jeff; Hobbs, Roderick; Breiwick, Jeff (2015). Shore-based counts of the Eastern North Pacific gray whale stock from central California conducted from 1967-12-18 to 2007-02-22 (NCEI Accession 0138007). [indicate subset used]. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. Dataset. https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/archive/accession/0138007. Accessed [date].
Access Constraints
  • Use liability: NOAA and NCEI cannot provide any warranty as to the accuracy, reliability, or completeness of furnished data. Users assume responsibility to determine the usability of these data. The user is responsible for the results of any application of this data for other than its intended purpose.
Fees
  • In most cases, electronic downloads of the data are free. However, fees may apply for custom orders, data certifications, copies of analog materials, and data distribution on physical media.
Lineage information for: dataset
Processing Steps
  • 2015-11-25T14:02:02Z - NCEI Accession 0138007 v1.1 was published.
Output Datasets
Lineage information for: dataset
Processing Steps
  • Data Type: ETIME (measured); Units: Decimal hour; Observation Type: in situ; Sampling Instrument: Watch.
Acquisition Information (collection)
Instrument
  • binoculars
Last Modified: 2023-03-15T01:25:51Z
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