# Abundance estimates of common minke whales in the Northeast Atlantic based on survey data collected over the period 2008-2013

 Title Abundance estimates of common minke whales in the Northeast Atlantic based on survey data collected over the period 2008-2013 Publication Type Report Year of Publication 2015 Authors Solvang, HKato, Skaug, HJ, Øien, NI Document Number Paper SC/66a/RMP8 Pagination 10 pp Institution International Whaling Commission Scientific Committee Keywords abundance estimate, Minke whale, North Atlantic, vessel survey Abstract An estimate of abundance of common minke whales in the northeast Atlantic based on data collected over the period 2008-2013 is presented. The abundance estimate for the total covered area has decreased by 7 % compared to the two preceding survey periods, i.e. from about 108,000 to about 101,000 minke whales. The decrease is attributed to a considerable change within the Small Management Area CM with an estimate now being 40 % of those from the 1996-2001 and 2002-2007 survey cycles. Within the Eastern Medium Area, the recent estimate is 10 % higher than in the previous two cycles, i.e. about 90,000 animals. However, within this region there are signs of a north- and eastwards distributional shift from the Norwegian Sea towards the Svalbard area and the Barents Sea. URL https://nammco.no/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/o06-iwc-sc-66a-rmp-8_abundance-estimates-of-common-minke-2008-2013.pdf