Bowhead and beluga distribution and abundance aerial survey field report, 2025

The Western Arctic stock of bowhead whales (also known as the Bering-Chukchi-Beaufort [BCB] population of bowhead whales, Balaena mysticetus) is a critical subsistence resource for U.S. Alaska Native Iñupiat communities and is listed as endangered under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. To satisfy International Whaling Commission (IWC) mandates requiring updated abundance estimates at least once every 10 years, the Alaska Fisheries Science Center (NOAA Fisheries) conducted a large-scale aerial line-transect survey from 28 July to 24 August 2025.