IMIS

Southeast Cetacean Aerial Survey, SECAS, was conducted in 1992 by NOAA Southeast Fisheries Science Center (SEFSC) to estimate cetaceans abundance. This data set contains sightings of cetaceans and sea turtles as well as other species, including fish and shark, observed during the aerial survey. Marine mammals and sea turtles observed were:

Cetaceans:
• - Atlantic spotted dolphin
• - Northern right whale
• - Standard Bottlenose dolphin Sea Turtles:
• - Green turtle
• - Hardshell
• - Kemp's ridley
• - Leatherback
• - Loggerhead

This survey's transects are available in the 'SECAS91Efforts' table/shapefile. ESRI coverage and shapefiles are available for this data set. Purpose The purpose of this data set was to collect Cetacean distribution data and allow for estimating Cetacean abundance in the Southeast. These abundance estimates were expected to serve as a basis for estimating Potential Biological Removals (PBR) for the species stocks in the region in support of Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) requirements. More specifically, the survey was to obtain an index of abundance for Tursiops truncatus so as to detect population trends by comparison with historical abundance data (SETS).