Pygmy Blue Whale Distribution and Threat Exposure in the Eastern Indian Ocean

Spatial layers compiled for the eastern Indian Ocean pygmy blue whale subspecies, ranging from ~40-45°S to ~2°S. The dataset quantifies the species' full and foraging distribution and assesses exposure to cumulative anthropogenic threats, with a focus on offshore renewable energy development areas. The analysis incorporated expert elicitation and was published by the Australian Ocean Data Network in 2026.

Use Cases

• Assessing spatial overlap between whale foraging grounds and offshore wind development zones based on compiled distribution data.
• Modeling cumulative exposure to anthropogenic threats using expert-elicited probability estimates.
• Establishing a baseline for environmental impact statements based on the provided spatial layers.
• Identifying data and knowledge gaps for future marine spatial planning as highlighted in the analysis.

Strengths

• Analysis incorporates expert elicitation to estimate threat exposure probabilities.
• Spatial layers provide a baseline for impact assessment across the species' documented range.
• Focus on a government-identified priority species for offshore renewable energy impact studies.

Limitations

• Description metadata is limited; actual data quality requires manual inspection after download.
• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.

Provenance

Source

Australian Ocean Data Network

Collection Method

Compilation of available spatial information and expert elicitation.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-06-04 18:31:47.662097; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Eastern Indian Ocean, from the Subtropical Convergence (~40-45°S) to Southeast Asia (~2°S), largely within Australia’s Exclusive Economic Zone.