Zoogeography of Cetaceans off Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands
Mignucci-Giannoni A. 1998. Zoogeography of Cetaceans off Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. Caribbean Journal of Science. 34(3-4):173 - 190
A zoogeographical analysis of cetaceans in the waters of Puerto Rico, US Virgin Islands, and British Virgin Islands was conducted to document the different species found, and to relate their occurrences to patterns of ocean floor topography. A total of 2,016 sighting records was entered into a specially formatted database system, and analyzed for distributional and temporal patterns. Species included 13 odontocetes and four mysticetes. The hypothesis that the spatial distribution of cetaceans is highly correlated to the area's bathymetric relief, whether high or low, was generally supported. Through the use of a relative slope index measure, each sighting was characterized by depth classes (shelf, shelf edge, or offshore), and by sea floor relief.
- Type
- Journal Article
- Authors
- Mignucci-Giannoni, Antonio
- Units
- SFCN , VICR , VIIS
- Keywords
- breeding grounds, dolphins, Geography, marine ecosystem, Topography, Water Quality, Water Temperature, Whales