Last call: Passive acoustic monitoring shows continued rapid decline of critically endangered vaquita

Len Thomas, Armando Jaramillo-legorreta, Gustavo Cardenas-Hinojosa, Edwyna Nieto-Garcia, Lorenzo Rojas-Bracho, Jay M. Ver Hoef, Jeffrey Moore, Barbara Taylor, Jay Barlow, Nicholas Tregenza

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

The vaquita is a critically endangered species of porpoise. It produces echolocation clicks, making it a good candidate for passive acoustic monitoring. A systematic grid of sensors has been deployed for 3 months annually since 2011; results from 2016 are reported here. Statistical models (to compensate for non-uniform data loss) show an overall decline in the acoustic detection rate between 2015 and 2016 of 49% (95% credible interval 82% decline to 8% increase), and total decline between 2011 and 2016 of over 90%. Assuming the acoustic detection rate is proportional to population size, approximately 30 vaquita (95% credible interval 8–96) remained in November 2016.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)EL512-EL517
Number of pages6
JournalJournal of the Acoustical Society of America
Volume142
Issue number5
Early online date28 Nov 2017
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Nov 2017

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