Cruise Report: NOAA Ship Gordon Gunter Cruise GU19-01, May 29 – August 1, 2019, Trophic Interactions and Habitat Requirements of Rice’s Whales

As part of a Resources and Ecosystems Sustainability, Tourist Opportunities, and Revived Economies (RESTORE) Science Program project, the Southeast Fisheries Science Center (SEFSC), in collaboration with Scripps Institute of Oceanography (SIO) and Florida International University (FIU), conducted a third research cruise dedicated to Rice’s whales (Balaenoptera ricei). The current known habitat area for the Rice’s whale around the De Soto Canyon region (roughly from the Florida Panhandle to Tampa) in the northeast Gulf of Mexico (GoMex) was designated as the primary study area based on previously documented sightings (Figure 1). This report was created in 2020 and published at NOAA’s Institutional Repository in January 2025.