The North Pacific Pelagic Seabird Database (NPPSD) is maintained by the USGS Alaska Science Center and includes survey transect data designed and conducted by numerous partners primarily to census seabirds at sea. The data provided here relate to observations of marine birds and mammals observed during at-sea surveys throughout the North Pacific including the Arctic Ocean, Beaufort Sea, Chukchi Sea, Bering Sea, Sea of Okhotsk, and Barents Sea. This data release contains 5 tables including observation data, survey locations, taxonomic designations of observed birds and mammals, summary information about each dataset added to the database, and a table showing changes made to the database from version 4.0 to 4.1.

The North Pacific Pelagic Seabird Database (NPPSD) was created in 2005 to consolidate data on the oceanic distribution of marine bird species in the North Pacific. Most of these data were collected on surveys by counting species within defined areas and at known locations (that is, on strip transects). The NPPSD also contains observations of other bird species and marine mammals. The original NPPSD combined data from 465 surveys conducted between 1973 and 2002, primarily in waters adjacent to Alaska. These surveys included 61,195 sample transects with location, environment, and metadata information, and the data were organized in a flat-file format. In developing NPPSD 2.0, our goals were to add new datasets, to make significant improvements to database functionality and to provide the database online. NPPSD 2.0 includes data from a broader geographic range within the North Pacific, including new observations made offshore of the Russian Federation, Japan, Korea, British Columbia (Canada), Oregon, and California. These data were imported into a relational database, proofed, and structured in a common format. NPPSD 2.0 contains 351,674 samples (transects) collected between 1973 and 2012, representing a total sampled area of 270,259 square kilometers, and extends the time series of samples in some areasâ notably the Bering Seaâ to four decades. It contains observations of 16,988,138 birds and 235,545 marine mammals and is available from https://dx.doi.org/10.5066/F7WQ01T3. Supplementary materials include an updated set of standardized taxonomic codes, reference maps that show the spatial and temporal distribution of the survey efforts and a query tool.

Forty-six species totaling approximately 80 million individual seabirds breed in Alaska and the Russian Far East. During the summer, seabirds gather in groups to breed and nest. A group of nesting birds is referred to as a colony. This dataset contains 1 nautical mile buffers around colonies of 1000 or more of these species. These colonies are distributed on all parts of the Alaskan and Russian Far East coasts. Seabird colonies have been censused for many years and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has compiled much of the census data in the North Pacific Seabird Colony Database. The database stores data on the location, breeding population size, and species composition of seabird colonies in the North Pacific. Documented colonies total 1,801 in Alaska and 484 in Far East Russia, each with a few pair to 5.75 million birds.

The seabird necropsy dataset contains information on seabird specimens that were collected under salvage and scientific collection permits primarily by NMFS-certified fisheries observers deployed by the Pacific Islands Regional Office Observer Program to shallow and deep set pelagic longline fisheries operating in North Pacific waters and fisheries observers deployed by the Alaska Fisheries Science Center Observer Program to groundfish demersal longline, pot, and trawl fisheries in waters off Alaska. The database includes Magnuson-Act protected data on the precise date and location where the specimen was collected and publicly available information on the results of the necropsy work. This includes a suite of data including age class, sex, morphometrics, plumage characteristics, body condition, tissue samples, and plastics ingestion. Food habits are completed as a parallel program.

This data set provides monthly (March–October) gridded density estimates for seabirds in lower Cook Inlet, Alaska. Gridded density estimates were produced by applying spatiotemporal modeling of at-sea survey data collected between 1975 and 2021 of seabird at-sea surveys available in the North Pacific Pelagic Seabird Database (NPPSD; Drew and Piatt 2015). We modeled joint dynamic species distributions of dark shearwaters (Ardenna spp., including A. grisea and A. tenuirostris), black-legged kittiwake (Rissa tridactyla), common murre (Uria aalge), pigeon guillemot (Cepphus columba), Kittlitz’s murrelet (Brachyramphus brevirostris), marbled murrelet (B. marmoratus), horned puffin (Fratercula corniculata), and tufted puffin (F. cirrhata). Together these species compose 77% of all birds counted on surveys in lower Cook Inlet

This dataset contains corrected, processed data for observations from 2008 to 2010. The processed data have density in 3km segments. The goal of this project was to describe the broad-scale distribution of seabirds in conjunction with the Bering Sea Integrated Ecosystem Research Program (BSIERP) funded by the North Pacific Research Board. As a component of BSIERP, observers were placed on selected vessels of opportunity in collaboration with National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), projects funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF), and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). The primary focus was on the Bering Sea, but additional surveys were conducted in collaboration with vessel-based projects in the Arctic (funded by Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation, and Enforcement (BOEMRE)) and in the Gulf of Alaska. The observers used strip-transect methodology and followed USFWS protocol (see observer manual for details). All data have also been submitted to the North Pacific Pelagic Seabird Database (NPPSD).

The seabird food habits dataset contains information on the stomach contents from seabird specimens that were collected under salvage and scientific collection permits primarily by NMFS-certified fisheries observers deployed by the Pacific Islands Regional Office Observer Program to shallow and deep set pelagic longline fisheries operating in North Pacific waters and fisheries observers deployed by the Alaska Fisheries Science Center Observer Program to groundfish demersal longline, pot, and trawl fisheries in waters off Alaska. The database includes Magnuson-Act protected data on the precise date and location where the specimen was collected and publicly available information on the stomach contents. Necropsy data were completed as a parallel program.

Original provider: USGS Alaska Science Center & U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Dataset credits: North Pacific Pelagic Seabird Database

Abstract: This database was prepared by Jenny Wetzel and John Piatt at the United States Geological Survey (USGS) Alaska Science Center for Greg Balogh, United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) Endangered Species Office, Anchorage, as part of a collaborative USGS/FWS project to compile data on seabirds at sea. The North Pacific Pelagic Seabird Database (NPPSD) is a work in progress (contact Gary Drew for information on the NPPSD). Updates to this database can be found on the NPPSD web site. For more information/updated versions of this database, please contact the primary contacts (John Piatt, Greg Balogh, or Gary Drew).

Purpose: This dataset includes short-tailed albatross sightings from different sources that were gathered by many different people over a long period of time. We started with a database compiled by the USFWS, verified records where we could and double-checked computer records against all hard copy reports and publications, cleaned up many mistakes in the data (those which were apparent and fixable), eliminated duplicate records that had crept into the database over time, and added additional records gleaned from new sources.

A frequent source of confusion was determining whether longitude records were in the Eastern or Western hemisphere. When this was not explicitly stated, we made decisions based on available evidence or logic (e.g., STAL do not fly inland). We cannot vouch for the accuracy of most sightings reported in this database, and if you have any doubts about individual records, you should seek out the source of the data, or simply delete it. In addition, there may be duplicate records and typographical errors still present. We noted 'questionable record' where previous investigators raised questions about quality of the observation, or we had some concerns. For all these reasons, you should use some discretion when using these data for analysis and/or interpreting results. If you find an error, please notify one of the people indicated below in the contacts section.

Users of this database should seek permission from the USFWS (Greg Balogh) before reporting or publishing any results of analyses conducted on this database. Two manuscripts describing the distribution of STAL in relation to the environment (1) and other albatrosses (2) are in preparation by USGS and FWS.

In this version of the database, we have excluded confidential information on fishing vessel names, observers, and associated comments, and we deleted all notes about corrections. This database is available at the NPPSD web site, and can be distributed freely. The confidential dataset can only be obtained from the FWS (Greg Balogh).

If you use this database, we would appreciate that you cite NPPSD (2005).

Supplemental information: Before this dataset was incorporated into the OBIS-SEAMAP system, several fields and records were discarded.

We removed those sightings without complete latitude/longitude information or without complete date/time information. We also discarded those fields relating to vessel name, observer name, and comments from all the remaining records. Ancillary sighting information, including fisheries association and bird age class, are available from NSPPD. Please use the individual record numbers to retrieve additional information from the original NPPSD records.

The goal of this project was to describe the broad-scale distribution of seabirds in conjunction with the Bering Sea Integrated Ecosystem Research Program (BSIERP) funded by the North Pacific Research Board. As a component of BSIERP, observers were placed on selected vessels of opportunity in collaboration with National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), projects funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF), and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). The primary focus was on the Bering Sea, but additional surveys were conducted in collaboration with vessel-based projects in the Arctic (funded by Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation, and Enforcement (BOEMRE)) and in the Gulf of Alaska. In 2010, there were 20 cruises in the Chukchi/Beaufort seas, Bering Sea, and Gulf of Alaska from March through October. In the Bering Sea, the observers surveyed 29,451 km of transects. In the Arctic and Gulf of Alaska the observers surveyed 3,014 and 4,964km, respectively. The observers used strip-transect methodology and followed USFWS protocol (see observer manual for details). All data have also been submitted to the North Pacific Pelagic Seabird Database (NPPSD).

This data set includes data from the PROBES area, gathered by multiple observers in multiple projects, since 1975. The data were gathered in strip transects, generally 300 m wide and recorded in the data base as densities. Over that period, there has been a change in the method for recording flying birds. Before the year 2000, most, if not all, data on flying birds were recorded continuously, which can result in an inflated number of birds recorded per unit area. After 2000, most flying birds were recorded with the snap-shot method. The data in this dataset were retrieved from the USGS maintained North Pacific Pelagic Seabird Database, version 2, which is expected to be on line by late 2014, which have not been adjusted for the change in recording methods. Such a calibration was made for the Hunt et al. in press paper listed below, and information on calibration methods are in that paper and in the Renner et al paper below in related links. This data set is part of the Bering Sea Ecosystem Study-Bering Sea Integrated Ecosystem Research Program (BEST-BSIERP). BEST-BSIERP together are the Bering Sea project.

In 2008–2010, data were collected on the distribution and abundance of seabirds in the northeastern Chukchi Sea in the vicinity of several oil and gas lease areas. The 3 study areas were ~110–180 km (~60–100 NM) northwest of the village of Wainwright and known as Klondike, Burger, and Statoil. The objectives of this study were to: (1) describe seasonal, spatial, and interannual variation in the distribution and abundance of seabirds; (2) describe seasonal and interannual changes in species-richness and speciescomposition; (3) compare our results with historical data available in the North Pacific Pelagic Seabird Database (NPPSD); and (4) explore relationships between seabirds and the physical and biological oceanography of the region.

Abundance (birds/km2) of least auklets in four regions (see map) of the eastern Chukchi Sea, 1975-1981 and 2007-2012, based on at-sea surveys (archived in the North Pacific Pelagic Seabird Database). Figures provided by Adrian Gall, ABR, Inc. and reprinted with permission.

STATE OF THE ARCTIC MARINE BIODIVERSITY REPORT - Chapter 3 - Page 138 - Box fig. 3.5.1

The shapefile outlines 4 regions of the eastern Chukchi Sea that were surveyed for seabirds during the open-water seasons of 1976-2012. We compared the density of seabirds in these regions among two time periods (1975-1981 and 2008-2012) to assess changes in seabird abundance over the past 4 decades. We also include a figure showing abundance of Least Auklets 1975-2012. Data are from the North Pacific Pelagic Seabird Database, maintained by the USGS (http://alaska.usgs.gov/science/biology/nppsd/index.php).

This dataset describes marine bird and mammal surveys conducted in August 2012-2014 in the North Pacific Ocean and Bering Sea. Data were collected to document the at-sea distribution and abundance of marine birds and mammals, and were conducted using standard strip width transect protocols (Gould and Forsell 1989). One observer and one recorder identified and counted birds on transect at all times. Surveys were recorded using a DLOG system and exported into a .csv file. This dataset contains survey data consisting of: date, time, latitude, longitude, record number, data type, species, count, behavior, distance, observers, observer conditions, trip ID, beaufort, transect type, transect width (m), and comments.

Longitudinal studies of marked animals provide an opportunity to assess the relative contributions of survival and reproductive output to population dynamics and change. Cassin’s auklets are a long-lived seabird that maximizes annual reproductive effort in resource-rich years through a behavior called double brooding, the initiation of a second breeding attempt following the success of the first during the same season. Our objective was to explore whether double brooding influenced population change by contributing a greater number of future recruits. We fit temporal symmetry models to 32-years of mark-recapture data of Cassin’s auklets to infer the mechanisms underlying the observed variability in per capita recruitment rates. We found that periodic peaks in recruitment were explained by an increase in available nest sites, the proportion of the population double brooding 4 years prior, and spring upwelling conditions. Estimates of population change suggests a relatively stable population throughout the time series, attributable to a “floating” demographic class of sexually mature individuals excluded from breeding by competition which quickly fill vacant sites following periods of low adult survival. Our results highlight the importance of recruitment in maintaining the population of a long-lived seabird periodically impacted by adverse environmental conditions.

Human-induced ecological change in the open oceans appears to be accelerating. Fisheries, climate change and elevated nutrient inputs are variously blamed, at least in part, for altering oceanic ecosystems. Yet it is challenging to assess the extent of anthropogenic change in the open oceans, where historical records of ecological conditions are sparse, and the geographical scale is immense. We developed millennial-scale amino acid nitrogen isotope records preserved in ancient animal remains to understand changes in food web structure and nutrient regimes in the oceanic realm of the North Pacific Ocean (NPO). Our millennial-scale isotope records of amino acids in bone collagen in a wide-ranging oceanic seabird, the Hawaiian petrel (Pterodroma sandwichensis), showed that trophic level declined over time. The amino acid records do not support a broad-scale increase in nitrogen fixation in the North Pacific subtropical gyre, rejecting an earlier interpretation based on bulk and amino acid ...

This dataset contains sea surface temperature and salinity data in August 2012 - 2014 in the North Pacific and Bering Sea. Data were measured continuously during at-sea surveys using a hull-mounted thermosalinograph (SeaBird Electronics Inc® SBE 21). Data are output in a CNV file format to be processed by Seabird Electronics Inc® Software version Seasave V 7.23.2.

Background - Interest in developing alternative sources of renewable energy to reduce dependence on oil has increased in recent years. Some sources of renewable energy being considered will include power generation infrastructure and support activities located within continental shelf waters, and potentially within deeper waters off the U.S. Pacific coast and beyond state waters (i.e., outside three nautical miles). Currently, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) is considering renewable energy proposals off the coast of Oregon, California, and Hawaii. From 1999–2002, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and Humboldt State University (HSU) worked with BOEM (formely known as the Minerals Management Service, MMS) to conduct a multi-year study that quantified the at-sea distribution of seabirds and marine mammals. The aerial at-sea survey team flew over 55,000 kilometers and counted 485,000 seabirds (67 species) and 64,000 marine mammals (19 species). The study provided resource managers with updated information on distribution and abundance patterns and compared results with information from the late 1970s to early 1980s (Briggs et al. 1981, Briggs et al. 1987, see Mason et al. 2007). The California Department of Fish and Game (CDFG; now CA Department of Fish and Wildlife, CADFW) and U.S. Navy also provided significant matching funds. Oceanographic Context - USGS-HSU surveys began in May 1999, immediately following the strong 1997–1998 El Niño event. The 1999–2002 period featured a series of cold-water, La Niña events which led some researchers to postulate that the California Current System (CCS) had undergone a fundamental climate shift, on the scale of those documented in the 1920s, mid 1940s, and mid 1970s (Schwing et al. 2002). Generally, La Niña events have corresponded with stronger than normal upwelling in the CCS, and during this period, resulted in the greatest 4-yr mean upwelling index value on record (Schwing et al. 2002). La Niñas often follow El Niños, and seabird community composition (i.e., relative species-specific abundances) in any given year off southern California, is subject to variability caused by shifts in distribution among both warm- and cool-water affiliated species (Hyrenbach and Veit 2003). In contrast to the Mason et al. (2007) surveys, Briggs et al. (1987) conducted surveys during 1975–1983, coincident with another climate shift—from cold to warm conditions throughout the CCS (Mantua et al. 1997). Briggs et al. surveyed north of Point Conception during 1980–1983, after the transition to warmer water conditions occurred in the CCS. Acknowledgements - This project was funded by BOEM through an Interagency Agreement with the U.S. Geological Survey. The authors of these GIS data require that data users contact them regarding intended use and to assist with understanding limitations and interpretation. Aerial survey fieldwork in 1999-2002 was conducted jointly by the U.S. Geological Survey (Western Ecological Research Center, California: Principal Investigators J.Y, Takekawa and D. Orthmeyer; Key Project Staff: J. Adams, J. Ackerman, W.M. Perry, J.J. Felis, and J.L. Lee) and Humboldt State University (Department of Wildlife, Arcata, California; Principal Investigators: R.T. Golightly and H.R. Carter; Project Leader: G. McChesney; Key Project Staff: J. Mason and W. McIver). Major project cooperators who actively participated in aerial at-sea surveys include the Minerals Management Service (M. Pierson, M. McCrary), California Department of Fish and Wildlife (P. Kelly), and the U.S. Navy (S. Schwartz, T. Keeney). For additional acknowledgments, see Mason et al. (2007). These data are associated with the following publication: Mason, J.W., McChesney, G.J., McIver, W.R., Carter, H.R., Takekawa, J.Y., Golightly, R.T., Ackerman, J.T., Orthmeyer, D.L., Perry, W.M., Yee, J.L. and Pierson, M.O. 2007. At-sea distribution and abundance of seabirds off southern California: a 20-Year comparison. Cooper Ornithological Society, Studies in Avian Biology Vol. 33. References - Briggs, K.T., E.W. Chu, D.B. Lewis, W.B. Tyler, R.L. Pitman, and G.L. Hunt Jr. 1981. Summary of marine mammal and seabird surveys of the Southern California Bight area 1975–1978. Volume III. Investigators’ reports. Part III. USDI Bureau of Land Management BLM/YN/SR-81/01-04 (PB81-248197) and University of California, Institute of Marine Sciences, Santa Cruz, CA. Briggs, K.T., W.B. Tyler, D.B. Lewis, and D.R. Carlson. 1987. Bird communities at sea off California: 1975–1983. Studies in Avian Biology 11. Schwing, F.B., T. Murphree, and P.M. Green. 2002. The Northern Oscillation Index (NOI): a new climate index for the northeast Pacific. Progress in Oceanography 53: 115-139. Hyrenbach, K.D. and R.R. Veit. 2003. Ocean warming and seabird communities of the southern California Current System (1987–98): response at multiple temporal scales. Deep Sea Research Part II: Topical Studies in Oceanography 50: 2537-2565. Mantua, N.J., Hare, S.R., Zhang, Y., Wallace, J.M. and Francis, R.C. 1997. A Pacific interdecadal climate oscillation with impacts on salmon production. Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society, 78: 1069-1079. ESRI. ArcGIS Desktop: Release 10. Redlands, CA: Environmental Systems Research Institute. Mason, J.W., McChesney, G.J., McIver, W.R., Carter, H.R., Takekawa, J.Y., Golightly, R.T., Ackerman, J.T., Orthmeyer, D.L., Perry, W.M., Yee, J.L. and Pierson, M.O. 2007. At-sea distribution and abundance of seabirds off southern California: a 20-Year comparison. Cooper Ornithological Society, Studies in Avian Biology Vol. 33.

The seabird tick (Ixodes uriae) parasitizes over 60 host species in the circumpolar regions of both hemispheres, and acts as a vector for a number of potentially virulent pathogens. On Triangle Island, British Columbia, Canada, the nestlings of Cassin’s Auklet (Ptychoramphus aleuticus) and Rhinoceros Auklet (Cerorhinca monocerata) are often parasitized by seabird ticks, which may affect their growth and survival in the nest. We used a logistic growth model to interpolate between successive measures of mass (g) and wing chord (mm) for 558 Cassin’s Auklet and 344 Rhinoceros Auklet chicks over 11 years from 1996 to 2007. From the model, we estimated the asymptotic measure and the age at inflection point for each chick’s growth trajectory, and assessed the effect of tick load relative to other sources of annual and seasonal variation in growth. Most chicks (72.4% of Cassin’s Auklets, and 62.2% of Rhinoceros Auklets) hosted ≥1 ticks at least once while in the nest, and the median tick load was two in both species. The probability of hosting a tick declined strongly with chick age, such that by day 40 after hatching less than 1% hosted ticks. We found evidence that tick load had a negative effect on asymptotic weights and wing lengths of both species, but the effect was minor relative to that of other sources of annual and seasonal variation. Only at very high loads – which were rare – did ticks have effects on growth that were likely to be biologically relevant. Tick load had little effect on survival to fledging in either species.We argue that these mild effects of ticks on their hosts are consistent with a co-evolutionary process that results in intermediate virulence when parasite transmission is linked to host recovery.

This data provides observation of marine birds and mammals along a 7,500 km east-west CPR transect. Data were collected aboard a platform of opportunity (M/V Skaubryn). Due to the large size of the M/V Skaubryn, modifications were made to the standardized marine bird survey techniques (Tasker et al. 1984, Buckland et al. 1993). Species-specific detection and identification curves revealed that the optimal strip-width for this vessel was 400m (Hyrenbach et al., submitted). Marine mammals were recorded using line transect techniques; sightings from the centerline to the horizon were recorded, and the radial distance and the angle from the track were estimated (Heinemann 1981, Buckland et al. 1993).

The tufted puffin (Fratercula cirrhata) is a medium sized seabird found throughout the North Pacific Ocean. Although populations of tufted puffins appear to be stable or increasing in some parts of their distribution, they are experiencing significant declines in other parts of their distribution, including in the Gulf of Alaska. Assessments of tufted puffin population status in Alaska are currently limited because little is known about population genetic structure. Similarly, there is little information on the amount of dispersal between populations in Alaska, and between populations in Alaska and those in the southern portion of the species’ range. If genetic analyses reveal significant genetic differentiation between tufted puffins nesting in different regions of Alaska, or evidence of local adaptation, then the apparent decline in the Gulf of Alaska becomes more of a conservation concern. There is general consensus within the tufted puffin research and management community that a st..., We isolated high quality genomic DNA from 75 egg, feather, tissue, and blood samples using a salt extraction (Aljanabi and Martinez 1997). Samples were sent off to Université Laval where DNA was digested with three restriction enzymes PstI, NsiI, MspI and a library was prepared.  Sequencing was done at Génome Québec at McGill University on a NovaSeq6000 S4 PE100.,