NOAA Contracts With Alaska Aerial Media To Help Monitor Beluga Whales

NOAA has enlisted the help of an aerial media company to assist in gathering information about endangered Cook Inlet beluga whales that might strand themselves in shallow water this season.

The agency has contracted with Alaska Aerial Media, an exempted operator, to gather information about the size, age, and number of whales that might strand that can't be determined from a traditional horizontal view, according to a report from the Peninsula Clarion newspaper. Barbara Mahoney, a biologist with NOAA who works with the Cook Inlet beluga whales, told the paper that the aircraft is a cost-effective way of doing an aerial survey.  She said the system was tested on two belugas that were stranded on a mudflat in the Turnagain Arm in August, and the images the company provided were good.

Mahoney said that the images captured by a UAV are often better than those from a photographer on a manned aircraft, particularly when the winds are strong. Images captured from a manned aircraft can be blurry due to movement, she said.

Better photos of the stranded whales can help with identification of individuals animals that would help researchers follow up with specific whales later.

One limitation of using the UAVs is their range, she said. Whales that strand in more remote areas must be studied using a traditional airplane or boat.

FMI: www.noaa.gov