PAM of Odontocetes at Pu‘uloa UNDET Range, HRC

About

Naval Facilities Engineering and Expeditionary Warfare Center (NAVFAC EXWC) was tasked with conducting a thorough investigation and analysis of a passive acoustic data set recorded off Oahu (Hawaii) from 2010-2013. Passive ecological acoustic recorders (EARs) were deployed in waters adjacent to the Puuloa Underwater Detonation Range off the coast of Oahu from 2010-2013. Findings of note include: Of the over 133,000 files analyzed manually, approximately 850 contained odontocete whistles (0.6%); The low number of whistle detections is consistent with relationships between the coastal shelf bathymetry and odontocete foraging behavior established in similar studies in various locations in the main Hawaiian Islands; and Regulation detonation training in this area has a low chance of detrimental effects to transiting odontocetes.