‘Genoustics’: Combining near-field acoustic records, genetic identity, and photograph records of an individual blue whale off the central Oregon coast

Here we present results of a pilot project to simultaneously collect photographs, acoustic call records, and tissue biopsy sample of a blue whale from the eastern North Pacific, with the goal to assign the individual to a population of origin based on acoustic call records and genetic profile. On 17 October 2018, a pair of blue whales was located ~27 miles off the Oregon coast. Using a small research vessel, we documented the encounter with...