Is the length distribution of C1 and C3 humpback whale catches consistent with an age-structured version of the resident model
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2009
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University of Cape Town
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Abstract
A sex- and age-structured BALEEN II population model is fitted to population abundance and trend as well as photo-id capture-recapture data for the C1 and C3 humpback whale breeding sub-stocks. The model is of the “Resident” type, i.e. no interchange between breeding grounds, though the whales do mix on the feeding grounds. Uniform selectivity on the 1+ population is assumed for both regions. A particular aim is to address the question of whether length distribution differences between the two regions are a reflection of different levels of past exploitation. Comparison with length distribution data for both regions does however indicate a greater proportion of larger males than anticipated in the C3 catches, and the reverse effect for both males and females in the C1 catches.
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Müller, A., Butterworth, D. S., & Johnston, S. J. (2009). Is the length distribution of c1 and c3 humpback whale catches consistent with an age-structured version of the resident model?. International Whaling commission Document: sc/61/sh29, 1-34.