Annex A: Marine Mammal Recording Forms

Marine Mammal Recording Forms - General Guidance

Please read the Guide to Using Marine Mammal Recording Forms prior to use - this is available to download from this link: https://data.jncc.gov.uk/data/e2a46de5-43d4-43f0-b296-c62134397ce4/Marine-mammal-recordingforms-guide-rev05.pdf

The Marine Mammal Recording Forms were designed under a project funded by the International Association of Oil and Gas Producers (OGP) Joint Industry Programme (JIP) on Sound and Marine Life. The forms are aimed primarily at seismic surveys, but could also be used for other operations. They are intended for use globally wherever regulators accept their use therefore contain information relevant to several jurisdictions – not all fields will require to be filled in for all jurisdictions (e.g. Time of reduced output and Length of power-down and/or shut-down are not required for UK waters).

To facilitate importation of these forms into a database, please observe the following:

  • Do not change the validation settings
  • Do not leave blank lines between records
  • Do not add extra columns
  • Do not change columns
  • Do not delete columns
  • Do not change the order of columns
  • Do not use formulae
  • Do not use N/A where data are not available, just leave the cell blank
  • Do not submit as a pdf

Please note that new entries should be made on the Effort form each time source activity or weather conditions change, and at least once an hour as a minimum.

General hints:

Date should be entered as dd/mm/yyyy or dd/mm/yy

Times should be entered in UTC, using the format hh:mm

To copy a record between rows (e.g. for regulatory reference number) use Ctrl + D or click on the lower right corner and drag (selecting Copy Cells in the Auto Fill Options).

To facilitate analysis, if a field is not applicable or data is not available, leave the cell blank (do not use N/A or any equivalent entry).

To facilitate analysis, do not start a new line at midnight on the Operations form, but do start a new line at midnight (00:00 UTC) on the Effort form

PAM records:

Where there are both marine mammal observers and PAM operators on a vessel, they should take care not to duplicate data. For example, there should be only one Cover Page and one set of Operations data. Marine mammal observers and PAM operators should each record their own Effort data and Sightings/acoustic detections - these can be included in the same Excel workbook, or separate workbooks if this is easier (although both should ideally be submitted within one report for the survey). Records of animals detected both visually and acoustically should not be duplicated on the Sighting form.

 

Detailed guidance:

For some fields, input messages containing guidance on what to enter pop up as a yellow box when you click on a cell in that field. For more detailed information please consult the Guide to Using Marine Mammal Recording Forms that can be downloaded at the link above.


 

[1] Impacts with a potential to occur during: C = Construction, O = Operation and maintenance, D = Decommissioning