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

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.