Monitoring Whale and Porpoise Activity
Monitoring whale and porpoise activity allows us to gather data on the presence/absence of whales across both the closed season and the open season and help us establish baseline information on if, when and where whales reside in relation to the offshore lobster fishery.
We will deploy acoustic hydrophones during both the open and closed seasons to help monitor whale activities in the offshore fishing grounds. Due to the distance from shore, depths, and high currents, deploying hydrophones offshore is an expensive and difficult task in relation to deploying hydrophones in the inshore fishing grounds. This part of the project will help gather critical information on whale presence/absence on the offshore fishing grounds that may otherwise not be easily obtained. Their purpose is to aid in offshore data collection of the presence or absence of whales and potentially other marine mammals that get caught in lobster fishing gear. Interactions with whales would have a net negative impact on the offshore lobster fishery. Gathering this data will allow us to determine the risk of entanglement of various whale and porpoise species.
