Cetacean Density Predictions in the California Current Ecosystem, 1991-2014

Predictive Models of Cetacean Densities in the California Current Ecosystem, 2020 is a dataset from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. It contains results from species distribution models comparing Generalized Additive Models and Boosted Regression Trees for a taxonomically diverse suite of cetaceans. The models are based on systematic survey data collected between 1991 and 2014.

Use Cases

• Comparing predictive performance of Generalized Additive Models (GAMs) and Boosted Regression Trees (BRTs) for species distribution modeling.
• Assessing cetacean habitat suitability and density (animals km-2) in the California Current Ecosystem.
• Evaluating model explanatory and predictive power for spatial management of marine species.
• Studying how species distribution characteristics affect model performance for highly mobile marine animals.

Strengths

• Models are based on a robust set of systematic survey data spanning 24 years (1991-2014).
• Compares two prevalent modeling frameworks (GAMs and BRTs) for a taxonomically diverse suite of cetacean species.
• Includes both habitat suitability (presence/absence) and species density (animals km-2) model outputs.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Data is delivered in PDF format, which may require extraction for computational analysis.

Provenance

Source

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce

Collection Method

Species distribution models (SDMs) developed from systematic survey data.

Time Range

1991-2014

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-14 22:57:46.579865; freshness should be verified.

Geography

California Current Ecosystem, Eastern Pacific Ocean