General information
This year’s tagging effort was a collaboration between the Alaska Department of Fish and Game’s Arctic Marine Mammal Program and the North Slope Borough Department of Wildlife Management. Funding is provided by the Bureau of Ocean and Energy Management and Office of Naval Research and the NSB. Tagging activities are conducted under NMFS permit #18890 issued to ADF&G and under an approved ADF&G Animal Care and Use Committee Protocol #0027-2018-29. For updates on whale locations, you will find updated maps and archives at this ADFG website. There are also maps showing the locations of bowhead whales tagged in Canada. Maps provided by Justin Crawford (ADFG). Sea ice data are courtesy of the U.S. National Ice Center.
2019 Bowhead Satellite Tagging Season
January 2, 2019
Bowhead whale movements. During the last seventeen days we have received locations from 7 tags deployed on bowhead whales; 2 were deployed near Tuktoyaktuk, Canada, in 2017 and 5 were deployed near Utqiaġvik, Alaska, in 2018. All seven of the bowheads have now moved into the Bering Sea. Four of the bowheads are located in the Chirikov Basin, generally between St. Lawrence Island and the Diomede Islands. Three bowheads are in Anadyr Strait, between St. Lawrence Island and the Chukotka Peninsula. During this period, bowhead B18-03 (black arrow) moved south from the Chirikov Basin to near the edge of the marginal ice zone, then north to Anadyr Strait.
January 16, 2019
Bowhead whale movements. During the last fifteen days we have received locations from 6 tags deployed on bowhead whales; 1 was deployed near Tuktoyaktuk, Canada, in 2017 and 5 were deployed near Utqiaġvik, Alaska, in 2018. All six bowheads are in the Bering Sea. Four of the bowheads are generally located in Anadyr Strait, between St. Lawrence Island and the Chukotka Peninsula, Russia. During this period, bowhead B18-04 (gray arrow) moved south of St. Lawrence Island and bowhead B18-05 (white arrow) stayed between St. Lawrence Island and the Seward Peninsula, Alaska.
February 4, 2019
Bowhead whale movements. During the last twenty days we have received locations from 4 tags deployed on bowhead whales near Utqiaġvik, Alaska, in 2018. We did not receive any locations from tags deployed in 2017. All four bowheads are in the Bering Sea. Two of the bowheads are generally located in Anadyr Gulf, one is southwest of St. Lawrence Island, and one is north of St. Lawrence Island, offshore of the Chukotka Peninsula, Russia.
February 19, 2019
Bowhead whale movements. During the last sixteen days we have received locations from 3 tags deployed on bowhead whales near Utqiaġvik, Alaska, in 2018. All three bowheads are in the Bering Sea. Two of the bowheads are generally located west of St. Lawrence Island and one is north of St. Lawrence Island, in Chirikov Basin.
March 11, 2019
Bowhead whale movements. During the last 21 days we have received locations from 2 tags deployed on bowhead whales near Utqiaġvik, Alaska, in 2018. Bowhead B18-03 (black) moved north, through Bering Strait and into the Chukchi Sea on 25 February and is currently in Hope Basin in the southern Chukchi Sea. Bowhead B18-09 (teal) is generally near Anadyr Strait, between St. Lawrence Island and the Chukotka Peninsula, Russia.
March 26, 2019
Bowhead whale movements. During the last 16 days we have received locations from 2 tags deployed on bowhead whales near Utqiaġvik, Alaska, in 2018. Bowhead B18-03 (black) has remained in the southern Chukchi Sea and is currently offshore of Shishmaref, Alaska. Bowhead B18-09 (teal) has moved west and south, through Anadyr Strait, across Anadyr Gulf, and is currently near the ice edge and offshore of Cape Navarin, Russia.
April 1, 2019
Bowhead whale movements. From 19 March to 1 April, we received locations from 3 tags deployed on bowhead whales; one was deployed near Tuktoyaktuk, Canada, in 2017 and 2 were deployed near Utqiaġvik, Alaska, in 2018. Bowheads B17-03 (yellow) and B18-03 (black) were in the southern Chukchi Sea, generally near Point Hope, Alaska. Bowhead B18-09 (teal) was in Anadyr Strait.
April 15, 2019
Bowhead whale movements. From 1 to 15 April, we received locations from 2 tags deployed on bowhead whales. Bowhead B18-03 (black) was in the southern Chukchi Sea, generally near Point Hope, Alaska. Bowhead B18-09 (teal) moved north through Bering Strait into in the southern Chukchi Sea.
June 10, 2019
Bowhead whale movements. From 28 May to 10 June, we received locations from one tag deployed on bowhead whales. Bowhead B17-03 (yellow) is moving between Banks Island and Cape Bathurst in Amundsen Gulf, Canada. Bowhead B17-03 was tagged in August 2017 near Atkinson Point, Canada. Prior to 28 May, the last location we received from this whale’s tag was from the Bering Strait region on 28 March, 2019; we did not receive any locations for this whale during its migration north to the eastern Beaufort Sea.
June 30, 2019
Bowhead whale movements. From 10 to 30 June, we received locations from one tag deployed on bowhead whales. Bowhead B17-03 (yellow) moved within the eastern Beaufort Sea, primarily along the 200 meter isobath. Bowhead B17-03 was tagged in August 2017 near Atkinson Point, Canada.
July 15, 2019
Bowhead whale movements. From 1 to 15 July, we received locations from two tags deployed on bowhead whales in the eastern Beaufort Sea. Bowhead B17-03 (yellow) moved along the northeast coast of Cape Bathurst. Bowhead B18-03 (black with blue outline) was between Banks Island and Atkinson Point. We last received a location from the tag deployed on B18-03 on 3 April 2019 when this whale was located in the southern Chukchi Sea, offshore of Point Hope, AK, USA. Bowhead B17-03 was tagged in August 2017 near Atkinson Point, Canada and B18-03 was tagged in September 2018 near Utqiaġvik, Alaska, USA.
July 29, 2019
Bowhead whale movements. From 15 to 29 July, we received locations from two tags deployed on bowhead whales in the eastern Beaufort Sea. Bowhead B17-03 (yellow) moved into Amundsen Gulf and was located between Banks Island and Cape Parry. Bowhead B18-03 (black with blue outline) was offshore of Cape Bathurst in the eastern Beaufort Sea. Bowhead B17-03 was tagged in August 2017 near Atkinson Point, Canada and B18-03 was tagged in September 2018 near Utqiaġvik, Alaska, USA.
August 12, 2019
Bowhead whale movements. From 29 July to 12 August, we received locations from two tags deployed on bowhead whales. Bowhead B17-03 (yellow) was located in Amundsen Gulf and made localized movements along Cape Bathurst. Bowhead B18-03 (black with blue outline) was north of Atkinson Point in the eastern Beaufort Sea. Bowhead B17-03 was tagged in August 2017 near Atkinson Point, Canada and B18-03 was tagged in September 2018 near Utqiaġvik, Alaska, USA.
August 26, 2019
Bowhead whale movements. From 12 to 26 August, we received locations from two tags deployed on bowhead whales. Bowhead B17-03 (yellow) was located between Banks Island and Cape Bathurst in the eastern Beaufort Sea. Bowhead B18-03 (black with blue outline) was north of Atkinson Point in the eastern Beaufort Sea. Bowhead B17-03 was tagged in August 2017 near Atkinson Point, Canada and B18-03 was tagged in September 2018 near Utqiaġvik, Alaska, USA.
September 10, 2019
Bowhead whale movements. From 26 August to 10 September, we received locations from one tag deployed on a bowhead whale. Bowhead B18-03 (black with blue outline) was west of Atkinson Point and Tuktoyaktuk, Canada, in the eastern Beaufort Sea. This whale was tagged in September 2018 near Utqiaġvik, Alaska, USA.
