Marine Bird Census Data from Bering Sea and Gulf of Alaska

This dataset contains marine bird sighting and census data collected from the ACONA and R/V THOMAS G. THOMPSON platforms across the Bering Sea, Gulf of Alaska, and North Pacific Ocean. Observations were processed by the National Oceanographic Data Center (NODC) into the standard F033 format, which includes detailed species counts and environmental conditions. The data collection period spans from April 7 to June 17, 1979.

Use Cases

• Analyzing marine bird population density and distribution using species count and location columns.
• Studying the correlation between bird behavior and environmental conditions using columns for meteorological data, sea surface conditions, and species behavior.
• Mapping bird sightings and flight directions against geographical features using start/end position and transect data.

Strengths

• Data is structured according to the detailed NODC F033 standard format, ensuring consistency in recording observations.
• The dataset captures a specific spring migration period (April 7 to June 17, 1979) in a key marine region.

Limitations

• Key quantitative details like total row count, column names, and dataset size are unknown across all sources.
• The NASA EarthData entry contains no descriptive information, limiting cross-platform synthesis.

Provenance

Source

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI).

Collection Method

Field observations from ship (R/V THOMAS G. THOMPSON) and aircraft (ACONA) survey tracks, processed to NODC standard.

Time Range

1979-04-07 to 1979-06-17

Freshness

2026-04-01 15:05:37.340968

Geography

Bering Sea, Coastal Waters of Southeast Alaska and British Columbia, Gulf of Alaska, North Pacific Ocean.