“Playing mysterious”: occurrence of Bio-duck calls in Brazil reveals a complex acoustic behaviour for the Antarctic minke whale (Balaenoptera bonaerensis)

Abstract

AbstractAcoustic methods can provide important data on the occurrence and distribution of migratory species. Information about Antarctic Minke whale (Balaenoptera bonaerensis) occurrence in the winter breeding grounds is scarce, mostly limited to old records from whaling stations before 1960’s international moratory, such as Costinha Station in Northeastern Brazil (6° S / 34° W). This work describes the occurrence of the Antarctic minke whale (AMW) through Bio-duck acoustic detections in the Santos Basin, South-Southeastern Brazil (22° and 28° S / 42° and 48° W), registered between November 12 and December 19, 2015. AMW calls were detected for 12 days. We detected and classified 9 different Bio-duck calls in Brazilian coast waters, evidencing a high diverse acoustic behaviour for the minke whale breeding ground. This is the first study to describe the acoustic diversity of AMW vocalizations in lower latitudes, constituting important information to the conservation and management of cetaceans and their habitat. Therefore, our study presents the foremost acoustic evidence of the Antarctic minke whale in Brazil, utilizing high technological passive acoustic methods, such as autonomous underwater vehicle (SeaGlider) sampling.