Partial funding provided by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management
Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary
located between Cape Ann and Cape Cod
off the coast of Massachusetts.
It spans more than 800 square miles
and is a premier destination
for whale watching,
fishing and significant marine research.
It is home to a vast array of marine species
some of which have captured the public's attention.
While others have not made it into the limelight, all are greatly interconnected
and essential to maintaining a beautiful balance within this marine ecosystem.
In this video, we will explore the links among sanctuary species
by means of another type of connection,
through music.
We will explore selected sanctuary species
first through music that imitates the specific ways in which they move through the water,
and the sky
and then through a musical cycle
that demonstrates the connections between these species.
Before we dive into the water, let's start in the sky with an important seabird.
Stellwagen is host to many bird species
including the great shearwater,
one of the largest of the shearwaters.
These birds can be seen flocking over fishing boats
or gliding above feeding humpback whales.
The shearwater moves in a flap and glide flight pattern
with frequent dives into the water to catch its prey of small fish and squid.
Here is a graph showing a melody that flaps and dives like the shear water.
The melody features an up and down, undulating, flapping motion
Near the end of the melody
we hear a sudden descent as the shearwater dives
into the water to catch its prey.
Shearwater music playing
Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary is also home to huge humpback whales
that migrate north from warmer waters to New England during the months of April
through November.
Humpback whales feed on small fish near the surface of the water
and at times they also dive down and roll on their sides to forage along the ocean bottom.
In this melody graph, we can hear the melody the melody notes
descend and roll, imitating this humpback whale feeding behavior.
Humpback whale music playing
Some of the tiniest species in the sanctuary are phytoplankton which benefit greatly
from the whales as they absorb nutrients from the whale's feces.
Larger animal plankton, or zooplankton then feed on the tiny phytoplankton
drifting with the currents and wind.
Although they are capable of swimming independently as well,
moving up and down in the water often in a spiraling motion to avoid predators.
In this melody graph we hear the spiral motion of the plankton
in various musical parts each moving at different speeds.
Plankton music playing
While not as well known as some other species in the sanctuary,
the sand lance is a critically important species
in the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary.
The sand lance is a small fish
only about three to six inches in length,
and they feed on the plankton during the day,
then partially bury themselves in the sand at night to hide from predators.
These little fish are an essential food source providing nutrition for many marine species
including humpback whales and the great shearwater.
A healthy sand lance population is crucial
to maintaining the presence of whales in the sanctuary.
and with more whales the plankton benefit from the increased food source.
The quick darting motion of the sand lance
as it emerges from the sand
is represented in the musical example
as an abrupt leap from lower notes to higher notes at the end of its melody.
Sand Lance music playing
We have now heard four different melodies each imitating the motion of four species
in the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary.
In this image we see the species linked into one connected loop.
The shearwater, whale and plankton segments are linked
or joined together by repeated, shorter sand lance segments.
In the music, we will hear the sand lance melody function as a connector.
A musical segment that joins together all other musical phrases
into one cohesive whole.
Let's listen to these musical phrases combined into one complete cycle.
Musical Cycle playing
The composer has created a seamless cycle by overlapping the entrances
of different musical instrument groups.
In addition, the composer also starts and ends the musical phrases on the same note
to create a seamless connection from one species to the next.
This composing technique takes separate musical ideas and joins them together
into one connected whole just as our species are joined and connected within the food web.
There are situations that can result in either a positive or negative impact
on species' well-being and population.
For example, the fishing gear used in commercial fishing
can create problems for whales.
Some types of traditional fishing gear use vertical lines that anchor floating buoys to
the traps or nets along the bottom,
increasing the risk of whales getting entangled in these vertical lines.
Here we see a whale that has become entangled in fishing lines
with the heartbreaking footage of her calf swimming closely by her side.
Buoy-less gear is a new and innovative solution
where the gear remains submerged without vertical lines connected to a floating buoy.
When the vessel sends an acoustic signal to the gear,
a pop-up buoy or a floating spool is released
to lift the traps to the surface.
Buoy-less gear allows for undisrupted commercial fishing
while greatly reducing the risk of entanglements for the whales.
Fishermen, regulators, and the industry
are teaming up to make the challenge of transitioning to buoy-less gear feasible.
From cargo ships to recreational motor boats,
vessel traffic poses other risks to whales.
It is estimated that vessel strikes kill thousands of whales each year.
Since a whale strike may go unnoticed by the vessel operator
and most deceased whales sink to the ocean bottom,
it is difficult to know the true extent of these incidents.
Additionally, engine noise from vessel traffic can also interfere with
whale communication and cause interruptions to their normal feeding behaviors.
Lowering vessel speed can help to reduce noise and air pollution.
Vessels traveling below 10 knots are less likely to cause a whale fatality
even when a strike occurs.
Alterations to shipping routes can help to minimize whale strikes
especially on routes that travel through whale migration, calving, and feeding areas.
There are some human actions that can have a catastrophic
impact on marine life within the sanctuary.
For example, the burning of fossil fuels
increases co2 levels in the atmosphere of our planet.
A significant amount of that increased co2
is subsequently absorbed into our oceans
greatly increasing the acidity of the ocean's water.
Warmer, more acidic oceans negatively affect species habitats, migration patterns,
available food sources, and population.
While it is not possible to reverse the world's co2 levels,
it is possible to stabilize it
through a range of human interventions
that reduce our carbon footprint.
Now it's your turn to experience the beauty and connectivity
of Stellwagen Bank marine species
in an interactive musical game
where you can observe both positive and negative consequences
of various human impacts represented through music.
Thank you for watching.
Thank you for caring.