The Davis Strait - DCE - Nationalt Center for Miljø og Energi

long-finned squid (Loligo pealei) (Payne & Heinemann 1993, Gannon et al.
1997). Long finned pilot whales are found in groups of up to 100 individuals.
Recently, distribution and abundance of pilot whales were estimated along
the West Greenland coast, based on an aerial survey from 2007. The survey
showed that pilot whales also here preferred deep offshore waters and the
largest abundance was found within the northernmost part of the assessment
area in Store Hellefiskebanke (Hansen 2010). Groups were also found
further South within the assessment area (on Lille Hellefiskebanke and
Danas Banke) and Hansen et al. (2010) estimated the West Greenland population
to constitute 7,440 individuals. Pilot whales occurring in the assessment
area (and the rest of Greenland) probably belong to a large North Atlantic
population whose range extends beyond the assessment area. Based
on comparisons of body measurements of long finned pilot whales from
Newfoundland and the Faroe Islands, Bloch & Lastein (1993) suggested that
pilot whales from the eastern and western North Atlantic are segregated into
two separate stocks. A genetic comparison of long-fined pilot whales from
the US East Coast, West Greenland, the Faeroe Islands and the UK showed
that West Greenland pilot whales are distinct from those in the other locations
and suggests that population isolation occurs between areas of the
ocean which differ in sea surface temperature (Fullard et al. 2000). Abundance
in the Central and Eastern North Atlantic has been estimated to
780,000 animals (Buckland et al. 1993), while relative abundance in Newfoundland
was estimated at 13,200 individuals in 1980 (Hay 1982). Hence pilot
whales are abundant and considered as least concern on the Greenland
Redlist (Boertmann 2007) and as Data deficient on the IUCN Red List (2008)
due to inadequate data on abundance at a global level.
White-beaked dolphin, Lagenorhynchus albirostris
White-beaked dolphins are endemic to the North Atlantic Ocean where they
inhabit cold temperate and sub-Arctic areas (Reeves et al. 1999). Here, they
feed on a variety of small schooling fishes such as herring, cod and whiting,
along with squid and crustaceans (Jefferson et al. 2008). Their diet within
Greenlandic waters is not known, but cod, capelin and sandeels may constitute
prey items. White-beaked dolphins are mostly found in groups of up to
30 individuals but may occur in larger groups of hundreds of individuals
(Rasmussen 1999, Jefferson et al. 2008). They occur in offshore waters and on
continental shelves. In West Greenland a recent study has shown that the
species is found between the coastline and up to 90 km offshore and a positive
correlation between depth, slope and abundance of white beaked dolphins
was documented, with larger abundances on steep slopes and in deep
waters (Hansen 2010). The same study found a correlation between depth
and group size, with smaller groups occurring in deep water while larger
groups were found at depths between 300-1,000 m.
White-beaked dolphins are present within the entire range of the assessment
area, but the majority is found in South Greenland rather than the Disko area,
which appears to represent the northern range of the species (Reeves et
al. 1999, Hansen 2010). However, unverified catch statistics indicate that
white-beaked dolphins may occur as far north as Upernavik (GINR, unpubl.
data). White-beaked dolphins are poorly studied in West Greenland and the
first abundance estimate was only recently calculated to constitute 11,800 animals
in West Greenland (Hansen 2010). White-beaked dolphins are considered
as not applicable on the Greenland Red List (Boertmann 2007).
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