Marine mammals records in the Haswell archipelago, East Antarctica

This is the first comprehensive review of marine mammal records from the Haswell archipelago (Davis Sea, East Antarctica), collected in 1912-2016. The goal of the review is to provide baseline ecological and faunal information on the marine mammals during the historical period (species diversity and status). Eight marine mammal species were recorded within the survey area. Ross seals (Ommatophoca rossii) and sei whales (Balaenoptera borealis) were seen very rarely. Killer whales (Orcinus orca), southern elephant seals (Mirounga leonina) and leopard seals (Hydrurga leptonyx) appeared rarely and few in numbers. Crabeater seals (Lobodon carcinophaga) were rare in general but common during the rare seasons of early fast ice breaking. Weddell seals (Leptonychotes weddellii) were common year-round. Antarctic minke whales (Balaenoptera bonaerensis) were seasonally common. Weddell seals and Antarctic minke whales were recorded annually. Only Weddell seals were found year-round. Leopard seals were seasonal residents, the remaining species were seasonal visitors in the area. The archipelago is an annual breeding site for Weddell seals (up to 10 pups per breeding season). Rare breeding of crabeater seals is possible. The information presented in this paper was obtained mostly through random observations and few historical records. During the long-term monitoring, a single agreed-upon data collection protocol was not used. As a result, the status of each marine mammal species in this paper should be regarded as preliminary. The review represents a basis for the development of further research programs. A unified protocol for the year-round registration of marine mammals under the conditions of the Mirny Station for the program for monitoring the biota of the Haswell archipelago is proposed.