10.82144/9a79fb37 f8863ab9-84d6-4c08-b558-4439eeffeadb https://seamap.env.duke.edu/dataset/1817 a646ef47-45d2-489e-9593-a5dfd2173b91 zd_1817 MichelleVukovichNormandeau Associates, Inc.Primary contact jwillmott@normandeau.com https://remote.normandeau.com OBIS-SEAMAP Marine Geospatial Ecology Lab, Duke University

A328 LSRC building Durham NC 27708 US

seamap-contact@duke.edu https://seamap.env.duke.edu OBIS-SEAMAP Marine Geospatial Ecology Lab, Duke University

A328 LSRC building Durham NC 27708 US

seamap-contact@duke.edu https://seamap.env.duke.edu distributor MichelleVukovichNormandeau Associates, Inc.Primary contact jwillmott@normandeau.com https://remote.normandeau.comowner 2026-04-28 eng Original provider: NYSERDA, APEM, Normandeau Associates Dataset credits: NYSERDA, APEM, Normandeau Associates Abstract: In support of New York State's commitment to incorporating offshore wind into its energy portfolio, the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) embarked on a multi-year ultrahigh-resolution aerial digital survey of marine resources in a 12,650 square nautical mile offshore planning area (OPA) in 2016. The OPA encompasses the waters of the New York Bight from Long Island southeast to the continental shelf break. Surveys are conducted on a quarterly basis, timed to coincide with periods of abundance of avian and marine species vulnerable to impacts from offshore wind activities. This report summarizes the results of the first two surveys conducted in July–August and November 2016. Each survey collected images covering at least 7% of the OPA. Of the more than 700,000 images collected within the survey area during these two surveys, 3.8% (27,135 images) contained organisms, including 38 bird, 17 fish, 5 whales, 7 dolphin, 1 seal, and 4 sea turtle species. Some seasonal patterns were evident. During the summer survey, the vast majority of the organisms observed were rays (8,388 images) or birds (1,893 images). During the fall survey, birds predominated (12,352 images). Shearwaters, storm-petrels, and terns were substantially more abundant in the summer while ducks, gannets, gulls and phalaropes were substantially more abundant in the fall. Turtles, sharks, and large bony fishes were all most abundant in the summer, though present in the fall. Number of images with marine mammals was similar in both surveys. Spatial patterns were apparent in some taxonomic groups. A number of species tended to occur in nearshore waters including large gulls and least, royal and Sterna terns. Turtles typically occurred inshore of the 70 m isobath. Audubon's, sooty, and Cory's shearwaters clustered in the northeast corner of the OPA. Whales, Audubon's shearwaters, and black-capped petrels were most common near the shelf break. While sharks exhibited no clear patterns, rays showed some tendency to cluster off the mouth of New York Harbor. Large bony fishes typically occurred in deeper waters. Results from the surveys will be incorporated into efforts to identify suitable areas for development of offshore wind projects. OccurrenceGBIF Dataset Type Vocabulary: http://rs.gbif.org/vocabulary/gbif/dataset_type.xmlObservationGBIF Dataset Subtype Vocabulary: http://rs.gbif.org/vocabulary/gbif/dataset_subtype.xml Marine BiologyVisual sightingMarine Animal SurveySeabirdsMarine mammalsSea turtlesVisual SightingAircraft N/A This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (CC-BY) 4.0 License. https://seamap.env.duke.edu/dataset/1817 North Atlantic,New York Bight -73.9195 41.0759 41.0759 38.4533 2016-07-26 2017-05-21 Scientific names are based on the Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS). speciesAlca tordaRazorbill familyAlcidaeMurres speciesAlle alleDovekie speciesAlopias vulpinusthresher shark speciesAnas streperaGadwall familyAnatidaeDucks speciesAythya affinisLesser scaup speciesBalaenoptera acutorostrataCommon minke whale speciesBalaenoptera musculusBlue whale speciesBalaenoptera physalusFin whale speciesBranta canadensisCanada goose speciesBucephala albeolaBufflehead speciesBucephala clangulaCommon goldeneye speciesCalonectris diomedeaCory's shearwater suborderCaniformiaPinnipeds familyCarcharhinidaerequiem sharks speciesCarcharhinus longimanusOceanic whitetip shark speciesCarcharhinus obscurusDusky shark speciesCarcharodon carchariasGreat white shark speciesCaretta carettaLoggerhead sea turtle familyCentrarchidaeSunfishes speciesCepphus grylleBlack guillemot orderCetaceaCetaceans speciesCetorhinus maximusBasking shark speciesChelonia mydasGreen sea turtle familyCheloniidaeSea turtles speciesChlidonias nigerBlack tern classChondrichthyesCartilaginous fishes speciesChroicocephalus philadelphiaBonaparte's gull orderCiconiiformesCiconiiformes speciesClangula hyemalisLong-tailed duck speciesCoryphaena hippurusDolphinfish speciesDasyatis sayBluntnose stingray familyDelphinidaeDolphins speciesDelphinus delphisShort-beaked common dolphin speciesDermochelys coriaceaLeatherback sea turtle subclassElasmobranchiiCartilaginous fishes speciesEubalaena glacialisNorth Atlantic right whale speciesFratercula arcticaAtlantic puffin speciesFulmarus glacialisNorthern fulmar speciesGaleocerdo cuvierTiger shark speciesGavia immerCommon loon speciesGavia stellataRed-throated loon familyGaviidaeDivers genusGlobicephalaPilot whales speciesGrampus griseusRisso's dolphin speciesHaliaeetus leucocephalusBald eagle speciesHalichoerus grypusAtlantic gray seal speciesHydrocoloeus minutusLittle gull familyIstiophoridaeBillfishes speciesIsurus oxyrinchusShortfin mako speciesLagenorhynchus acutusAtlantic white-sided dolphin familyLaridaeGulls speciesLarus argentatusHerring gull speciesLarus delawarensisRing-billed gull speciesLarus fuscusLesser black-backed gull speciesLarus glaucoidesIceland gull speciesLarus hyperboreusGlaucous gull speciesLarus marinusGreat black-backed gull speciesLepidochelys kempiiKemp's ridley speciesLeucophaeus atricillaLaughing gull classMammaliaMammals speciesManta birostrisAtlantic manta speciesMasturus lanceolatusSharptail mola speciesMegaptera novaeangliaeHumpback whale genusMelanittaScoters speciesMelanitta fuscaVelvet scoter speciesMelanitta nigraBlack scoter speciesMelanitta perspicillataSurf scoter speciesMergus serratorRed-breasted merganser genusMesoplodonBeaked whales speciesMobula mobularGiant Devil Ray speciesMobula tarapacanaSicklefin devil ray speciesMola molaOcean sunfish speciesMorus bassanusNorthern gannet orderMyliobatiformesstingrays speciesOceanites oceanicusWilson's storm petrel speciesOceanodroma castroBand-rumped storm petrel speciesOceanodroma leucorhoaLeach's storm petrel speciesPagophilus groenlandicusHarp seal speciesPandion haliaetusOsprey speciesPelecanus occidentalisBrown pelican orderPerciformesperch-like fishes familyPhalacrocoracidaeCormorants speciesPhalacrocorax auritusDouble-crested cormorant genusPhalaropusPhalaropes speciesPhalaropus fulicariusRed phalarope speciesPhalaropus lobatusRed-necked phalarope speciesPhoca vitulinaHarbor seal speciesPhocoena phocoenaHarbor porpoise speciesPhyseter macrocephalusSperm whale speciesPluvialis squatarolaBlack-bellied plover speciesPodiceps auritusHorned grebe speciesPrionace glaucaBlue shark familyProcellariidaeFulmars / petrels / shearwaters orderProcellariiformesTube-nosed Swimmers speciesPterodroma arminjonianaHerald petrel speciesPterodroma hasitataBlack-capped petrel speciesPuffinus gravisGreat shearwater speciesPuffinus griseusSooty shearwater speciesPuffinus lherminieriAudubon's shearwater speciesRachycentron canadumCobia speciesRhincodon typusWhale shark speciesRhinoptera bonasusCownose ray speciesRissa tridactylaBlack-legged kittiwake speciesSomateria spectabilisKing eider speciesSphyrna lewiniScalloped hammerhead speciesSphyrna mokarrangreat hammerhead speciesSphyrna zygaenaSmooth hammerhead familySphyrnidaeBonnethead sharks speciesSqualus acanthiasPiked dogfish speciesStenella coeruleoalbaStriped dolphin speciesStenella frontalisAtlantic spotted dolphin speciesSteno bredanensisRough-toothed dolphin speciesStercorarius maccormickiSouth polar skua speciesStercorarius parasiticusParasitic jaeger speciesStercorarius pomarinusPomarine jaeger genusSternaTypical Terns speciesSterna dougalliiRoseate tern speciesSterna hirundoCommon tern speciesSternula antillarumLeast tern speciesThalasseus maximusRoyal tern speciesThunnus thynnusAtlantic bluefin tuna speciesTursiops truncatusCommon bottlenose dolphin genusUriaMurres speciesUria aalgeCommon murre N/A notPlanned MichelleVukovichNormandeau Associates, Inc.Primary contact jwillmott@normandeau.com https://remote.normandeau.com NA NA NA MichelleVukovichowner NA 2026-04-28T11:38:09-04:00 dataset Vukovich, M. 2020. Digital Aerial Baseline Survey of Marine Wildlife in Support of Offshore Wind Energy - OPA 2016. Version 1.2.0. Dataset published in OBIS-SEAMAP. https://doi.org/10.82144/9a79fb37. APEM and Normandeau Associates prepared for New York State Energy Research and Development Authority. 2018. Digital Aerial Baseline Survey of Marine Wildlife in Support of Offshore Wind Energy - OPA 2016. Data downloaded from OBIS-SEAMAP (http://seamap.env.duke.edu/dataset/1817) on yyyy-mm-dd OBIS-SEAMAP Dataset Page UTF-8 Interactive map https://seamap.env.duke.edu/dataset/1817 FGDC Metadata UTF-8 XML https://seamap.env.duke.edu/dataset/1817/fgdc EML Metadata UTF-8 XML https://seamap.env.duke.edu/dataset/1817/eml OBIS-SEAMAP zd_1817 zd_1817