Bottlenose Whale Presence Likelihood in Bay of Fundy and Port Hawkesbury

June 2018 data estimates the seasonal presence of Northern Bottlenose Whales in the Bay of Fundy and Port Hawkesbury Area Response Plan zones. The dataset was created by Fisheries and Oceans Canada's Coastal Oceanography and Ecosystem Research section, synthesizing reported opportunistic sightings and local knowledge. It is available in formats including CSV and ESRI REST.

Use Cases

• Map the estimated likelihood of whale presence across the Bay of Fundy and Port Hawkesbury areas for marine spatial planning.
• Analyze seasonal presence patterns of Northern Bottlenose Whales derived from opportunistic sighting reports.
• Integrate whale presence likelihood data with other geospatial layers for environmental emergency response planning.

Strengths

• Data originates from Fisheries and Oceans Canada, a national scientific authority.
• Integrates multiple information sources, including reported opportunistic sightings and local knowledge.
• Available in multiple standard geospatial formats (FGDB/GDB, ESRI REST, CSV) for interoperability.

Limitations

• The underlying data model and specific column structure are not described.
• The dataset's creation date is June 2018, which may not reflect current whale distributions.
• The methodology for estimating likelihood from opportunistic reports is not detailed.

Provenance

Source

Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Coastal Ecosystems Science Division.

Collection Method

Review of reported opportunistic whale sightings and local knowledge sources by the Coastal Oceanography and Ecosystem Research section.

Time Range

Published June 2018.

Freshness

Last updated in March 2026, though the core data was published in June 2018.

Geography

Bay of Fundy and the Port Hawkesbury Area Response Plan pilot areas, Canada.