BOEM Sperm Whale Seismic Study (SWSS) PhotoID 2002-2005

Original provider:
Bureau of Ocean Energy Management

Dataset credits:
Texas A&M University

Oregon State University

Scripps Institution of Oceanography

Texas A&M University-Galveston

University of Colorado

University of Durham

University of Saint Andrews

University of South Florida

Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution

Abstract:
Sperm Whale Seismic Study (SWSS) was a multi-institutional, interdisciplinary research project supported by the then Minerals Management Service (MMS; now Bureau of Ocean Energy Management - BOEM) under Cooperative Agreement 1435-01-02-CA-85186 for Cooperative Research on Sperm Whales and their Response to Seismic Exploration in the Gulf of Mexico through the Texas A&M Research Foundation.

The objectives of SWSS were to

(1) establish baseline information on the biology and behavior of sperm whales in the northern Gulf of Mexico,

(2) characterize sperm whale habitat use in the northern Gulf of Mexico, and

(3) determine possible changes in behavior of sperm whales when subjected to manmade noise, particularly from seismic airgun arrays used for offshore oil and gas exploration and geological monitoring.