Foraging Behavior and Ecological Role of the Least Studied Antarctic Krill Predator, the Antarctic Minke Whale (Balaenoptera Bonaerensis)

南极半岛正在变暖，其后果之一是海冰覆盖面积减少。南极小须鲸是该地区最大的冰栖磷虾捕食者，然而，人们对它们的觅食行为和生态知之甚少。该项目的目标是使用一套新的技术工具来测量鲸鱼的水下行为，并更好地了解它们是如何利用海冰栖息地的。利用视频记录的动作感应标签，可以重建鲸鱼的水下运动，并确定它们进食的地点和时间。无人机系统（UAS）将用于生成海冰覆盖的实时图像，这些图像将与标签数据相关联，以确定鲸鱼在海冰和开放水域中花费的时间，以及鲸鱼在这两种栖息地之间的行为变化。最后，科学回声探测仪将用于描述鲸鱼正在利用的猎物区域，并将调查冰内外磷虾可用性的差异。所有这些信息对于了解南极小须鲸的生态作用至关重要，以便更好地预测气候变化不仅对这些动物的影响，而且对南极海洋生态系统的结构和功能的影响。该项目将通过阐明一种鲜为人知的南极捕食者的生态作用，并利用这些信息更好地了解极地地区正在发生的变化的影响，从而促进科学进步。这项教育和推广计划将通过电影、社交媒体和为正式的STEM教育者开发课程，提高人们对小须鲸、南极海洋生态系统、海冰和气候变化动态的认识和理解。要了解海冰的变化将如何体现在依赖海冰栖息地的捕食者的人口统计中，需要了解它们的行为和生态。南极小须鲸（AMW）是南大洋中最大的冰面磷虾捕食者和数量最多的鲸类动物，然而，人们对其觅食行为和生态作用几乎一无所知。因此，了解气候驱动的变化将如何影响这些动物以及整个生态系统的动态的知识是缺乏的。该项目将利用多传感器和视频记录标签、渔业声学、无人机系统，研究南极半岛水域小须鲸的觅食行为和生态作用。将提出以下研究问题：1。amw的饲养性能如何？海冰对海洋生物的觅食行为有多重要？amw是如何直接在海冰下进食的？将使用经过验证的标记和分析方法来表征小须鲸的水下摄食行为和运动学。结合对猎物范围的定量测量，将测量进食的能量成本，并确定小须鲸如何优化能量获取。利用动物传播的视频记录标签和无人机技术，它还将确定直接在海冰下进食的数量，以及这种模式与开放水域进食的区别。这些知识将：(1)显著提高对南极磷虾捕食者研究最少的认识；(2)直接提供给了解气候驱动的变化如何影响南极海洋生态系统结构和功能的国际长期努力。教育和宣传工作旨在提高对以下方面的认识和理解：(i)南极半岛周围小须鲸的生态作用；（ii）环境变化对数量众多但基本上未被研究的海洋捕食者的影响；（iii）鲸类研究人员用以研究这些神秘动物及其猎物的先进方法和技术；（四）通过分享科学家和学生的经验，促进海洋科学领域的各种职业。这些教育目标将通过通过社交媒体渠道向非正式受众持续提供近乎实时的项目活动和数据，以及课程和专业发展计划，为正式的STEM教育工作者提供特定的符合标准的课程计划。

The Antarctic Peninsula is warming and one of the consequences is a decrease in sea ice cover. Antarctic minke whales are the largest ice-obligate krill predator in the region, yet- little is known about their foraging behavior and ecology. The goals of the project are to use a suite of new technological tools to measure the underwater behavior of the whales and better understand how they exploit the sea ice habitat. Using video-recording motion-sensing tags, the underwater movements of the whales can be reconstructed and it can be determine where and when they feed. UAS (unmanned aerial systems) will be used to generate real-time images of sea ice cover that will be linked with tag data to determine how much time whales spend in sea ice versus open water, and how the behavior of the whales changes between these two habitats. Lastly, scientific echosounders will be used to characterize the prey field that the whales are exploiting and differences in krill availability inside and out of the ice will be investigated. All of this information is critical to understand the ecological role of Antarctic minke whales so that better predictions can be made regarding impacts of climate change not only on these animals, but on the structure and function of the Antarctic marine ecosystem. The project will promote the progress of science by elucidating the ecological role of a poorly known Antarctic predator and using this information to better understand the impact of changes that are occurring in Polar Regions. The educational and outreach program will increase awareness and understanding of minke whales, Antarctic marine ecosystems, sea ice, and the dynamics of climate change through the use of film, social media, and curriculum development for formal STEM educators.To understand how changes in sea ice will manifest in the demography of predators that rely on sea ice habitat requires knowledge of their behavior and ecology. The largest ice-dependent krill predator and most abundant cetacean in the Southern Ocean is the Antarctic minke whale (AMW)- yet, virtually nothing is known of its foraging behavior or ecological role. Thus, the knowledge to understand how climate-driven changes will affect these animals and therefore the dynamics of the ecosystem as a whole is lacking. The project will use multi-sensor and video recording tags, fisheries acoustics, and unmanned aerial systems to study the foraging behavior and ecological role of minke whales in the waters of the Antarctic Peninsula. The following research questions will be posed:1. What is the feeding performance of AMWs?2. How important is sea ice to the foraging behavior of AMW?3. How do AMWs feed directly under sea ice?Proven tagging and analytical approaches to characterize the underwater feeding behavior and kinematics of minke whales will be used. Combined with quantitative measurements of the prey field, the energetic costs of feeding will be measured and it will be determined how minke whales optimize energy gain. Using animal-borne video recording tags and UAS technology it will also be determined how much feeding occurs directly under sea ice and how this mode differs from open water feeding. This knowledge will: (1) significantly enhance knowledge of the least-studied Antarctic krill predator; and (2) be made directly available to international, long-term efforts to understand how climate-driven changes will affect the structure and function of the Antarctic marine ecosystem.The educational and outreach efforts aim to increase awareness and understanding of: (i) the ecological role of minke whales around the Antarctic Peninsula; (ii) the effects of environmental change on an abundant but largely unstudied marine predator; (iii) the advanced methods and technologies used by whale researchers to study these cryptic animals and their prey; and (iv) the variety of careers in the ocean sciences by sharing the experiences of scientists and students. These educational aims will be achieved by delivering continuous near-real-time delivery of project events and data to informal audiences through social media channels as well as curricula and professional development programs that will provide formal STEM educators with specific standards-compliant lesson plans.