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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Mar. Sci.
Sec. Marine Megafauna
Volume 11 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fmars.2024.1460314

Killer whales in the Gulf of Mexico and North Atlantic off the Southeastern United States

Provisionally accepted
Kevin P. Barry Kevin P. Barry 1Keith D. Mullin Keith D. Mullin 1*Katherine Maze-Foley Katherine Maze-Foley 2,3Lynsey A. Wilcox Talbot Lynsey A. Wilcox Talbot 4Patricia E. Rosel Patricia E. Rosel 4Melissa S. Soldevilla Melissa S. Soldevilla 2Laura A. Dias Laura A. Dias 2,3M. R. Ramírez-León M. R. Ramírez-León 5Jenny Litz Jenny Litz 2
  • 1 Marine Mammal and Turtle Division, Southeast Fisheries Science Center (NOAA), Pascagoula, MS, United States
  • 2 Marine Mammal and Turtle Division, Southeast Fisheries Science Center (NOAA), Miami, FL, United States
  • 3 Cooperative Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Studies, Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science, University of Miami, Miami, Florida, United States
  • 4 Marine Mammal and Turtle Division, Southeast Fisheries Science Center (NOAA), Lafayette, LA, United States
  • 5 Departamento de Oceanografía Biológica, Centro de Investigación Científicas y de Educación, Superior de Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Killer whales occur in the Gulf of Mexico (GoMex) and the North Atlantic, including off the southeastern United States (SEUS). Data from cetacean surveys during 1990 -2021 and other sources were combined to assess killer whale biology, including spatial and temporal distribution, social structure, genetics, morphology, acoustics, and predatory behavior. GoMex records occurred predominantly in oceanic waters (>200 m) during spring and summer. SEUS records occurred primarily in winter and spring off the North Carolina region along the shelfedge and deeper waters, and off the east coast of Florida. Photo-identification analysis of GoMex killer whales resulted in 49 individuals sighted up to seven times with sighting histories up to 26 years, and social analysis provided evidence of long-term relationships up to 16 years.The GoMex genetic samples revealed two mtDNA haplotypes, one of which does not match any outside the GoMex. Most GoMex whales had wide non-faint saddle patches and many had cookiecutter shark scars while no scars were noted on SEUS whales. Three groups recorded in the GoMex made few calls, but a group harassing sperm whales produced many. Cetaceans and tuna are known prey in the GoMex and SEUS, respectively. Directed studies of killer whales in the GoMex areas would be difficult to implement as this species is very rare. It is therefore important to pursue ongoing efforts to collect behavioral, acoustic and any biological samples that will contribute to improve our understanding of the biology and ecology of killer whales in tropical and subtropical regions.

    Keywords: Acoustics, Genetics, Gulf of Mexico, Killer whale, morphology, North Atlantic Ocean, social structure 1 Introduction

    Received: 05 Jul 2024; Accepted: 03 Oct 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Barry, Mullin, Maze-Foley, Wilcox Talbot, Rosel, Soldevilla, Dias, Ramírez-León and Litz. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Keith D. Mullin, Marine Mammal and Turtle Division, Southeast Fisheries Science Center (NOAA), Pascagoula, MS, United States

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