Skip to main content

ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Mar. Sci.
Sec. Marine Megafauna
Volume 11 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fmars.2024.1467387

The effects of vessel speed and size on the lethality of strikes of large whales in U.S. waters

Provisionally accepted
Lance P Garrison Lance P Garrison 1*Niki E Lisi Niki E Lisi 2Meghan Gahm Meghan Gahm 2Eric Patterson Eric Patterson 2Hannah Blondin Hannah Blondin 3Caroline P Good Caroline P Good 2
  • 1 Southeast Fisheries Science Center (NOAA), Miami, Florida, United States
  • 2 National Marine Fisheries Service (NOAA), Silver Spring, Maryland, United States
  • 3 Cooperative Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Studies, Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science, University of Miami, Miami, Florida, United States

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

    Vessel strikes are a substantial source of mortality for large whales worldwide and may pose conservation threats for small populations. Model-based estimates of mortality rates, which inform management strategies to reduce vessel strike mortality, typically assume a reduced likelihood that a vessel-whale collision will be lethal to the whale at slower vessel speeds. In this study, we reviewed and updated available data on observed vessel-whale interactions in U.S.waters and developed a new model characterizing the probability that a whale-vessel interaction will be lethal to the whale as a function of vessel speed, length (as a proxy for mass), and whale taxon. We found a significant effect of vessel size class on the probability of lethality. In addition, decreasing vessel speeds reduced the likelihood of a lethal outcome for all vessel size classes, but this effect was strongest for vessels less than 108m in length. The probability that a strike by a very large ocean-going vessel will be lethal exceeded 0.80 at all speeds above 5 knots.Whale taxon also affected both the likelihood of a lethal strike and the effect of vessel speed.Humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) had significantly lower rates of lethal strikes compared to other large whales. This difference may be associated with data limitations, differing behavioral responses between species, varying vessel types between regions or differences in body composition and blubber thickness. The model is consistent with biophysical models that demonstrate a high rate of strike lethality for large vessels with high masses. Vessel speed restrictions are one of the primary approaches to reduce the risk of vessel strikes to whales in the face of continued industrialization of the oceans, and the models presented here will help better inform management efforts.

    Keywords: mysticete whales, Vessel strike, conservation, Endangered Species, Logistic regression

    Received: 19 Jul 2024; Accepted: 24 Dec 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Garrison, Lisi, Gahm, Patterson, Blondin and Good. 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: Lance P Garrison, Southeast Fisheries Science Center (NOAA), Miami, FL 33149, Florida, United States

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.