The North Pacific Pelagic Seabird Database (NPPSD) contains survey transect data designed and conducted by numerous partners primarily to census seabirds at sea. The NPPSD includes more than 486,000 transect segments and includes observations of over 20 million birds of 258 species collected over the span of 50 years (from 1973 to 2022).
Return to Ecosystems >> Marine Ecosystems >> Seabirds and Forage Fish Ecology
The North Pacific Pelagic Seabird Database (NPPSD) is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey Alaska Science Center and contains survey transect data designed and conducted by numerous partners primarily to census seabirds at sea. The recently released version (4.1) of the database includes more than 486,000 transect segments and includes abundance and distribution information on over 20,600,000 birds of 258 species and over 380,000 mammals of 41 species collected over the span of 50 years (from 1973 to 2022). The area of the surveys includes more than 80% of U.S. continental shelf waters, the most productive U.S. commercial fishery, all Pacific U.S. marine sanctuaries, and Alaska Outer Continental Shelf oil and gas leasing areas. Survey efforts include international cooperation between the United States, Canada, Russia, and Japan.
The NPPSD is a powerful tool for examining abundance and distribution of seabirds across marine ecosystems of the Arctic and North Pacific and possible drivers of change to seabird ranges and populations, such as climate, commercial fisheries, vessel traffic and oil and gas development. NPPSD data are available from USGS at the links below.
Data
- NPPSD v.4.1
- Previous Versions
- NPPSD v.4
- NPPSD v.3 Database [91MB]
- includes Access database, csv files, and User's Guide
- NPPSD v.3 Poster
- NPPSD v.2 Database [70MB]
Suggested Citation
Drew, G.S., Schoen, S.K., Hood, M.D., Arimitsu, M.L., Piatt, J.F., 2005, North Pacific Pelagic Seabird Database (NPPSD) (ver. 4.1, May 2023): U.S. Geological Survey data release, https://doi.org/10.5066/F7WQ01T3
Version History:
First release: August 2005
Revised:
August 2015 (ver. 2.0)
February 2020 (ver. 3.0)
January 2023 (ver. 4.0)
May 2023 (ver. 4.1)
NPPSD Sampling Effort Maps
Maps showing the extent of sampling done and entered into the NPPSD.
Making data contributions
The North Pacific Pelagic Seabird Database (NPPSD) is managed by the USGS Alaska Science Center and is compiled from thousands of at-sea surveys of seabirds and marine mammals conducted in the North Pacific since 1973 by numerous partners. While we are continually accepting and archiving datasets, we are beginning a major update of the database and are soliciting contributions of at-sea data from researchers. Contributors can provide raw, cleaned datasets or data summarized by transects. We do not distribute raw data, only summarized data (by transect and behavior). The document, "NPPSD Data Prep.pdf - [PDF file 34 KB]", provides detailed information regarding data preparation for eventual addition to the NPPSD. Contact Sarah Schoen sschoen@usgs.gov for assistance.
Web Apps associated with this project
NPPSD Visualization Tool:
NPPSD data can be extracted using the NPPSD Visualization Tool, which is a R Shiny application developed by the USGS to facilitate viewing and filtering the NPPSD using an interactive leaflet map at the following link: https://rconnect.usgs.gov/nppsd_viz/.
SeaLog:
SeaLog is a robust data-logging application designed to collect at-sea data of marine birds and mammals. This software was developed collaboratively with the U.S. Geological Survey, the National Park Service, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and ABR, Inc. SeaLog is Windows 10 compatible, is highly customizable, and provides user designed maps to allow visual feedback of observations. The software can be found here: https://sealog.abrinc.com/pages/sealog.html.
QA/QSea:
QA/QSea, an application constructed to work in conjunction with SeaLog, provides proofing tools, an interactive map display, the ability to split data at user defined distances, and it generates exportable data files in multiple formats including those used in the North Pacific Pelagic Seabird Database (NPPSD). QA/QSea is a Shiny app written in the R environment that reads comma delimited text files (csv) output directly from SeaLog, and can also read other data files if they are formatted in the same structure as SeaLog files. The program can be found here: https://sealog.abrinc.com/pages/qaqsea.html.
Please contact Sarah Schoen sschoen@usgs.gov with questions.
Below are other science projects associated with this project.
Seabirds and Forage Fish Ecology
The North Pacific Pelagic Seabird Database (NPPSD) contains survey transect data designed and conducted by numerous partners primarily to census seabirds at sea. The NPPSD includes more than 486,000 transect segments and includes observations of over 20 million birds of 258 species collected over the span of 50 years (from 1973 to 2022).
Return to Ecosystems >> Marine Ecosystems >> Seabirds and Forage Fish Ecology
The North Pacific Pelagic Seabird Database (NPPSD) is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey Alaska Science Center and contains survey transect data designed and conducted by numerous partners primarily to census seabirds at sea. The recently released version (4.1) of the database includes more than 486,000 transect segments and includes abundance and distribution information on over 20,600,000 birds of 258 species and over 380,000 mammals of 41 species collected over the span of 50 years (from 1973 to 2022). The area of the surveys includes more than 80% of U.S. continental shelf waters, the most productive U.S. commercial fishery, all Pacific U.S. marine sanctuaries, and Alaska Outer Continental Shelf oil and gas leasing areas. Survey efforts include international cooperation between the United States, Canada, Russia, and Japan.
The NPPSD is a powerful tool for examining abundance and distribution of seabirds across marine ecosystems of the Arctic and North Pacific and possible drivers of change to seabird ranges and populations, such as climate, commercial fisheries, vessel traffic and oil and gas development. NPPSD data are available from USGS at the links below.
Data
- NPPSD v.4.1
- Previous Versions
- NPPSD v.4
- NPPSD v.3 Database [91MB]
- includes Access database, csv files, and User's Guide
- NPPSD v.3 Poster
- NPPSD v.2 Database [70MB]
Suggested Citation
Drew, G.S., Schoen, S.K., Hood, M.D., Arimitsu, M.L., Piatt, J.F., 2005, North Pacific Pelagic Seabird Database (NPPSD) (ver. 4.1, May 2023): U.S. Geological Survey data release, https://doi.org/10.5066/F7WQ01T3
Version History:
First release: August 2005
Revised:
August 2015 (ver. 2.0)
February 2020 (ver. 3.0)
January 2023 (ver. 4.0)
May 2023 (ver. 4.1)
NPPSD Sampling Effort Maps
Maps showing the extent of sampling done and entered into the NPPSD.
Making data contributions
The North Pacific Pelagic Seabird Database (NPPSD) is managed by the USGS Alaska Science Center and is compiled from thousands of at-sea surveys of seabirds and marine mammals conducted in the North Pacific since 1973 by numerous partners. While we are continually accepting and archiving datasets, we are beginning a major update of the database and are soliciting contributions of at-sea data from researchers. Contributors can provide raw, cleaned datasets or data summarized by transects. We do not distribute raw data, only summarized data (by transect and behavior). The document, "NPPSD Data Prep.pdf - [PDF file 34 KB]", provides detailed information regarding data preparation for eventual addition to the NPPSD. Contact Sarah Schoen sschoen@usgs.gov for assistance.
Web Apps associated with this project
NPPSD Visualization Tool:
NPPSD data can be extracted using the NPPSD Visualization Tool, which is a R Shiny application developed by the USGS to facilitate viewing and filtering the NPPSD using an interactive leaflet map at the following link: https://rconnect.usgs.gov/nppsd_viz/.
SeaLog:
SeaLog is a robust data-logging application designed to collect at-sea data of marine birds and mammals. This software was developed collaboratively with the U.S. Geological Survey, the National Park Service, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and ABR, Inc. SeaLog is Windows 10 compatible, is highly customizable, and provides user designed maps to allow visual feedback of observations. The software can be found here: https://sealog.abrinc.com/pages/sealog.html.
QA/QSea:
QA/QSea, an application constructed to work in conjunction with SeaLog, provides proofing tools, an interactive map display, the ability to split data at user defined distances, and it generates exportable data files in multiple formats including those used in the North Pacific Pelagic Seabird Database (NPPSD). QA/QSea is a Shiny app written in the R environment that reads comma delimited text files (csv) output directly from SeaLog, and can also read other data files if they are formatted in the same structure as SeaLog files. The program can be found here: https://sealog.abrinc.com/pages/qaqsea.html.
Please contact Sarah Schoen sschoen@usgs.gov with questions.
Below are other science projects associated with this project.