ИСТИНА

Commander Islands is a convenient place to observe and research Baird's beaked whales, because a deep underwater trench is situated close to the shore. During nine field seasons from 2008 - 2016 we encountered 52 groups of Baird's beaked whales. The total number of identified animals was 163 individuals. A significant proportion (27%) of the whales was encountered repeatedly in different years, but most whales (73%) were encountered only once. We performed mark-recapture analysis using ‘openp’ function from ‘Rcapture’ package in R software. The estimated total number of animals that visited our study area during the research period was (N±SE) 254.5±22 individuals. The accumulation of scars from cookie-cutter shark bites (which were found in 98% of individuals) suggests that Baird's beaked whales regularly migrate from the Commander Islands to the lower latitudes. For some animals the waters of the Commander Islands are apparently a transit zone, while others return to this area yearly, comprising a stable "resident" community.