Routine monitoring of cetaceans is imperative for understanding their population trends and making informed management decisions. However, the inherent nature of cetaceans and the marine ecosystems they inhabit make annual population surveys logistically and economically challenging with current survey methods. One emerging solution is utilizing very high‐resolution (VHR) satellite imagery, which is a logistically efficient method for providing an instantaneous view of areas spanning hundreds of square kilometers. The objective of this study was to determine two factors required to reliably conduct beluga whale population abundance estimates with VHR satellite imagery: (1) depths that beluga whales are visible in VHR satellite images, which are used to define availability bias correction factors, and (2) a comparison of abundance estimates in VHR satellite imagery to current aerial methods. We submerged beluga whale models to different depths in two different water clarities and determined that beluga whales are distinguished only at the surface in turbid water (Secchi depth: 2.56 m) and at depths of 0–2 m in clear water (Secchi depth: 4.04 m). Based on the proportion of time beluga whales spend at these depths, an availability bias correction factor for Western Hudson Bay beluga whales was defined as 2.40 ± 0.16 for turbid water and 1.89 ± 0.05 for clear water. Synchronous ground‐validation surveys determined availability corrected beluga whale abundance estimates in 0.31 m VHR satellite imagery (n = 173 beluga whales) and imagery that was HD sharpened using a proprietary algorithm to approximate 0.15 m resolution (n = 170) to be comparable to drone imagery (n = 164). VHR satellite imagery has the potential to increase the frequency of beluga whale population surveys, which has become increasingly important as beluga whales face rapid ecosystem changes and increased anthropogenic disturbances.

中文翻译：

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从太空估算白鲸丰度：使用无人机对 VHR 卫星图像进行地面验证

对鲸类动物进行例行监测对于了解其种群趋势并做出明智的管理决策至关重要。然而，鲸目动物及其栖息的海洋生态系统的固有性质使得当前调查方法的年度种群调查在后勤和经济上都面临挑战。一种新兴的解决方案是利用超高分辨率 (VHR) 卫星图像，这是一种后勤有效的方法，可以提供数百平方公里区域的即时视图。本研究的目的是确定利用 VHR 卫星图像可靠地进行白鲸种群丰度估计所需的两个因素：(1) VHR 卫星图像中白鲸可见的深度，用于定义可用性偏差校正因子，以及（ 2) VHR 卫星图像丰度估计值与当前航空方法的比较。我们将白鲸模型在两种不同的水体透明度下浸入不同的深度，并确定白鲸仅在浑水的表面（塞基深度：2.56 m）和清水中0-2 m的深度（塞基深度：4.04）进行区分。米）。根据白鲸在这些深度停留的时间比例，西哈德逊湾白鲸的可用性偏差修正系数被定义为：浑水为 2.40 ± 0.16，清水为 1.89 ± 0.05。同步地面验证调查确定了 0.31 m VHR 卫星图像中的可用性校正白鲸丰度估计值（n= 173 头白鲸）以及使用专有算法进行高清锐化的图像，分辨率约为 0.15 m（n= 170）与无人机图像相当（n= 164）。 VHR 卫星图像有可能增加白鲸种群调查的频率，随着白鲸面临快速的生态系统变化和人为干扰的增加，这一点变得越来越重要。