Research Programs
By: A. H. Kopelman, Ph.D.
FIN WHALE STUDIES: Long term photo-identification for population, distribution and behavioral studies.
GREAT SOUTH CHANNEL and NY BIGHT HUMPBACK WHALE STUDIES: Long term photo-identification for population, distribution and behavioral studies of humpback whales in the Great South Channel and the eastern NY Bight. Data are shared with the Western NY Bight (NYC) Humpback Catalogue (Gotham Whale), North Atlantic Humpback Whale Catalogue (Allied Whale), and the Gulf of Maine Humpback Catalogue (Center for Coastal Studies), as well many other of researchers analyzing humpback whale populations in the NY Bight (WCS and SBU SoMAS), Gulf of Maine and elsewhere in the North Atlantic.
SPECIES COMPOSITION AND DISTRIBUTION IN THE NEW YORK BIGHT: an ongoing project to determine the diversity of cetaceans which utilize this region. While CRESLI works in the Eastern NY Bight, we've teamed up with colleagues at Gotham Whale, Wild Conservation Society (WCS), and others (Thorne Lab at SBU SoMAS), to develop models for the entire NY Bight. CRESLI's data are share and viewable on the NY Geographic Information Gateway, OBIS-SEAMAP (Ocean Biogeographic Information System Spatial Ecological Analysis of Megavertebrate Population), Flukebook, and Happy Whale. Please see the Research abstracts available with links to publications
HARBOR AND GRAY SEAL STUDIES: Long term photo-identification of harbor and gray seals at Cupsogue Beach and elsewhere for population and distribution studies.