We have come to the end of field operations for the SOCAL Behavioral Response Study in 2013 (SOCAL-13). It was a very busy field season with four different periods, each with a slightly different set of objectives and configurations. In May we based from San Clemente Island and worked with colleagues at the SCORE range using a small range vessel to test and operate our new, smaller sound source. In July we used a small boat configuration from several shore bases in partnership with the U.S. Navy to coordinate with ongoing fleet training operations to conduct the first-ever controlled exposure experiment using an operational vessel with mid-frequency active military sonar. This included a tag deployed on and successful CEE with a real Navy ship and a Cuvier’s beaked whale (below: taken under NMFS permit #14534 by J. Calambokidis).
Later in July and into August we completed another such collaboration with both real Navy sources and our simulated source using a more centralized configuration based from the dive vessel Truth (below with a blue whale, taken under NMFS permit #14534 by J. Calambokidis). Finally, ending just recently was our final research phase of the season, which was based from the Truth and included some additional towed listening systems and the use of simulated sonars.
Across the four phases of SOCAL-13 we collected a total of ~165 hours of high-resolution acoustic and movement tag data from deployments on 2 Cuviers beaked whales, 18 Rissos dolphins, 10 fin whales, 8 blue whales and a minke whale (which was the first successful such deployment on this species). There were a total of 20 full sequences in 2013, involving Cuvier’s beaked whales, fin whales, Rissos dolphins, and blue whales. A total of 32 individual tagged animals were involved in these 20 CEEs, which included 7 simulated sonar (using scaled sound source), 5 actual MFA sonar (using real Navy vessels engaged in ongoing training operations), and 8 control sequences (no sound). Many of these involved multiple tagged animals, including at times individuals of multiple species.
We have made great strides in this work through the dedicated effort of a large number of very talented and hard-working people and with the support of the U.S. Navy and the Office of Naval Research. We continue to analyze and publish the work from this project. Look for continued updates here including publications and reports from the project which will be forthcoming over the coming months. We are hoping and planning for two more field seasons on this project in 2014-15, with an increased emphasis on the use of realistic exposure scenarios. For more information on the project, please look for updates at <www.socal-brs.org>.