ACS Conservation Committee Report

ACS Conservation Reports are selected summaries of current news articles on whales, dolphins, porpoises, and their environment. These reports are offered to you under the fair use provisions of U.S. copyright law.

 NMFS Will Not Appeal Decision on Killer Whale Listing ...   NMFS has decided not to appeal the court order in the lawsuit over their July 2002 decision not to list the Southern Resident killer whales under the Endangered Species Act. They stated that inn fact they are pleased with many aspects of the judges ruling, such as the courts affirming their distinct population segment (DPS) policy.

Because they were faced with biological uncertainties about the taxonomy of killer whales, they stated in their status review finding that they would conduct additional research and revisit the conclusions in four years. The order moves this timetable up. The results of NOAA's review will be completed by Dec. 17, 2004, in compliance with the court's order.

NOAA Fisheries and the Marine Mammal Commission are co-sponsoring a conference in April, Cetacean Systematics: Approaches in Genetics, Morphology and Behavior (cmbc.ucsd.edu/about/cetaceanconf.cfm), partially funded by their Northwest Fisheries Science Center. Scientists will discuss the state of NOAA's knowledge about cetacean taxonomy and how to improve their understanding of it. As part of the week-long conference, one session will focus on killer whale taxonomy.

They plan to reconvene the killer whale experts for advice in light of the court's order, and the latest research. They will provide an opportunity for the public to submit information to assist in the updated status review. Check the Web at www.nwr.noaa.gov/mmammals/whales/cpu.htm for news about that process.

Meanwhile they have designated the Southern Residents as depleted under the Marine Mammal Protection Act, and have been working with many of Puget Sound area researchers to develop a conservation plan for them.     NOAA Fisheries via Orca Sighting Network

 Summary of the Preliminary Report on the investigation of harbor porpoise stranded in Washington around May 2003 coinciding with mid-range sonar exercises by the USS Shoup. ...   During the period of May 2, 2003, to June 2, 2003, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NOAA Fisheries) Northwest Marine Mammal Stranding Network received reports of 14 stranded harbor porpoise in Washington, an abnormally high number when compared to the average stranding rate of 6 per year recorded over the past decade. The reports coincided with the use of mid-range sonar by the naval vessel USS SHOUP transiting Haro Strait on 5 May 2003, and observations by researchers and the public who reported altered behavior of marine mammals in the area. Eleven of the 14 porpoise were collected for examination.

NOAA Fisheries assembled a multi disciplinary team of biologists, veterinarians, veterinary pathologists, research scientists and a neuroanatomist who conducted extensive classical forensic necropsy examinations from 22 July through 24 July, followed by laboratory diagnostic and histological analyses and complemented by high resolution computerized tomography scans. Samples were taken for a variety of analyses, including disease screening, parasitology, chemical contaminant and lipid analyses, aging studies, prey identification and domoic acid analysis.

The Preliminary Report presents a summary of past porpoise stranding reports, information on the discovery and collection of porpoise during the May-to-June timeframe, gross and microscopic findings from the necropsy examinations, analysis of the high resolution image data, and discussion on the possible causes of mortality.

More than 70 percent of the specimens were in moderate to advanced states of decomposition, which made interpretation of the cause of death difficult. The cause of death was determined for 5 of the 11 porpoises examined by the multi disciplinary team. Of these five animals, two were found to have suffered blunt force trauma, while illness was implicated in the remaining three cases. No cause of death could be determined for the remaining six animals. The examinations did not reveal definitive signs of acoustic trauma in any of the porpoises examined. The possibility of acoustic trauma as a contributory factor in the mortality of any of the porpoises examined could not be ruled out. The multi-disciplinary team noted that lesions consistent with acoustic trauma can be difficult to interpret or obscured, especially in animals in advanced post-mortem decomposition.     NOAA

For more info visit www.nwr.noaa.gov/mmammals/cetaceans/necropsypage.htm

 Experimental Sonar Sparks Debate ...   Researchers are testing an experimental sonar system during the Pacific Gray Whale southern migration, designed to detect any whales within a one-mile radius using high-frequency sound waves that are believed to work above their normal hearing range.

Researchers at Scientific Solutions Inc., the New Hampshire firm that developed the system, say the sonar appears to work, detecting marine mammals more reliably than other methods without causing the whales to break away from their migratory path or otherwise show signs of injury.

Still, some environmentalists worry that the sonar's impact on whales isn't fully understood ... that despite the findings of an environmental assessment that enabled the testing to proceed, the sonar could distress the whales, drive them from their habitat or separate migrating calves from their mothers.

"There's no way to know what the long-term effects on the whales will be," said Robin Mankey of San Francisco-based Sea Sanctuary, one of five environmental groups whose request for an injunction was denied by a federal judge. "There's no way to know if they're washing up dead on the beach or sinking in the ocean."

Supporters say a reliable high-frequency sonar could help protect whales from a variety of ocean hazards: long-range military sonar; collisions with cruise, cargo and naval ships; underwater demolition of old oil rigs; Navy battle simulations involving live explosives; and seismic mapping by oil and gas companies.

"Nobody wants to go out and kill whales," said Bob Gisiner, who manages the marine mammal program of the Defense Department's Office of Naval Research, which has funded most of the $2 million project. "I don't understand how any group that's interested in the conservation of marine mammals would not be interested in seeing this sonar developed."

The Navy has been criticized in recent years for its low- and mid-frequency sonars, which can travel long distances to detect enemy submarines. These sonars have been blamed for injuring or killing whales, whose hearing can be severely damaged by the sound.

The Navy's role has fed a bigger fear for environmentalists ... that if it proves successful, the sonar will make it easier for the military, at any given moment, to declare an area of the deep sea to be relatively free of protected species, and thus open to more destructive activities.

"This sonar will be used as an excuse to engage in activities harmful to whales," said Lanny Sinkin, an attorney for the environmental groups. "It helps them escape responsibility for disrupting the normal activities of whales, by saying they're not injuring or killing them."

The sonar's backers claim they share the same goal of protecting difficult-to-spot whales and other marine mammals that could be unintentionally injured or killed by human activities.

The sonar's backers say its advantages are obvious ... spotting whales when they surface to breathe only works in daylight when visibility is clear. Another method is known as passive sonar, which can hear underwater sounds without emitting sound waves. But that only works when whales are vocalizing, and can't accurately determine their location, only their presence relatively nearby.

"We need to do a better job of safely detecting and tracking marine mammals to better protect them from man's seafaring activities," said Peter Stein, Scientific Solutions' president.

The transducer sends out high-frequency soundings known as ``pings'' into the water every several seconds. The sound waves hit objects in their path and then bounce back to the transducer, which transmits the data to computers that calculate the objects' size and location.

The tests were delayed for a year after a lawsuit prompted an environmental assessment, which found that the research would not significantly impact marine life. A five-year permit from the National Marine Fisheries Service was upheld in January, allowing the tests to proceed.

Tests are being conducted over 20 days in the middle of the gray whales' migratory path from Alaska to Mexico. The migration draws boatloads of tourists eager to see the whales, which were nearly hunted to extinction until they were protected by the International Whaling Commission in 1947. Their numbers have since rebounded, but some environmental groups believe the whales are still threatened.

Scientific Solutions only turns on the sonar four hours a day in the blind experiment, and the teams of observers aren't told when it's on. The sonar's data is then compared with the observations. Their protocol is to stop the sonar if marine mammals come within 100 meters or if abnormal behavior is observed.

Stein said he's convinced that "the balance of good in this case far outweighs the possibility of harm."     Associated Press

 Australia - Mining Banned in Endangered Whale Nursery...   Every year (from May to October) endangered southern right whales make their way up from the Antarctic to the Great Australian Bight to calve. Even though hunting is now banned in Australian waters, a number of threats still face them in the Bight, including commercial and recreational fishing and petroleum exploration. In the mid 1990s, a marine park was put in place over the Great Australian Bight in order to protect these endangered whales and other marine life.

Following years of campaigning by conservation groups, the South Australian Government has finally banned mining in their half of the Park (the other half beyond 3 nautical miles from shore is the responsibility of the Australian Government).

These groups are now calling on the Australian federal government to follow suit and ban mining in their component of the Park - with oil and gas already advancing on this important marine area.

Twenty seven whale and dolphin species (half the total species found in Australian waters) are found in the Great Australian Bight. Most notably, endangered southern right whales migrates from their summer feeding grounds in the Antarctic to the warmer waters of the Bight for six months over winter to have their young and start the next generation - an activity critical to the survival of the species.

The deeper waters of the Great Australian Bight are seen as one of the important potential 'frontier' areas for new petroleum discoveries. A significant area of the Bight has petroleum acreage over it, including parts of the Commonwealth waters of the Park. There is great concern about this because petroleum operations can pose considerable risks to marine life - particularly whales.

The oil and gas industry uses noise to map the seafloor and determine the likelihood of oil and gas below its surface. These intense underwater walls of noise are referred to as seismic exploration.

Internationally, science is showing that loud underwater noise may keep whales away from important areas vital to their survival (such as feeding and breeding grounds), may cause major damage to their ears, may disrupt their vital communication with other whales, may separate them from their mates and family, may stop them from finding their way or escaping predators, may stress and confuse them therefore increasing their vulnerability to other threats, and may scare prey away.

If oil or gas is found, decades of constant noise follows, caused by drilling operations and support vessels. With petroleum production, the possibility of oil spills and chemical pollution also increases significantly - the waters of the Bight are rough and isolated. Studies from major oil spills overseas, including the Exxon Valdez spill, are now showing that the toxic effects of oil can persist for many decades. And the toxic chemicals used to disperse oil spills can be worse than the oil itself.

Prevention is the only option, particularly in or near areas critical to the survival of endangered whales.

The Great Australian Bight Marine Park (GABMP) is Australia's third largest Marine Park - after the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park and Macquarie Island Marine Park. It is 1100km west of Adelaide and 1247 square kilometres in area which incorporates a 196.3km2 Whale Sanctuary at the Head of the Bight.

The Park is known as a 'multiple use park' - which means it has various zones of management where varying amounts of use by industry continue to be allowed. The Park is categorized as IUCN (World Conservation Union) category VI - the weakest level of protection on a scale from I to VI. None of these zones provide for strict protection - although the Whale Sanctuary at the Head of the Bight comes close in restricting both commercial fishing and mining (but not recreational line fishing).

As well as the southern right whale, a number of other cetaceans depend on the waters within the GABMP, including the Minke whale, Sei whale, Bryde's whale, Fin whale, Arnoux's beaked whale, Pygmy right whale, Pygmy killer whale, Short-finned pilot whale, Long-finned pilot whale, Dwarf sperm whale, Humpback whale, Blainville's beaked whale, Grey's beaked whale, Orca, Sperm whale, False killer whale, Common dolphin, Risso's dolphin, Dusky dolphin, Southern right whale dolphin, Spotted dolphin, Long-snouted spinner dolphin, Rough- toothed dolphin and the Bottlenose dolphin.

Southern rights (Eubalaena australis) were hunted near to extinction in the 18th and 19th centuries - decimating an original population thought to be up to 100 000 strong in the southern hemisphere. They were one of the first whale species to be hunted globally - with a sobering 45,000 killed in the first 40 years of hunting (1805-44). Hunting was banned from 1937, but they were subject to illegal take by the USSR up until 1980. There are now thought to be only 3 500 left globally, with only 700 or so now coming to the southern Australian coastline and about 350 of those to the Head of the Bight.

Southern rights live a long time, take many years to mature and have babies only every three years - so they are particularly vulnerable to extinction. It will take a long time for their numbers to recover to a point where their species is secure again. In the meantime, it is vital to in keep threats at bay, and precautionary about allowing new activities to occur in the areas that are critical to their survival, which might be pose a threat to the whales in the future.     WDCS

 United Kingdom Dolphin Deaths ...   Since the beginning of January, nine dead dolphins have been found in Devon, and 30 dead dolphins and porpoises have been washed up in Cornwall, off the south coast of the United Kingdom. Skin missing from their fins and other parts of their bodies indicates they have been caught in trawlers' nets. Figures for 2002-2003 show 250 cetaceans were found dead on Cornwall's beaches while 80 were found on Devon's shores.

Conservationists say that audible "pingers" and escape hatches in nets, introduced to reduce the number of cetacean deaths off the UK coastline, are not working.

Marine expert Nick Tregenza said: "If the dolphins found good feeding here last year, you might get even more animals this year. "And if it turns out that the dolphins and the fishermen are targeting the same shoals of fish we are in for a heavy mortality again."

Torbay Liberal Democrat MP Adrian Sanders said: "I think we have to have a moratorium on pair trawling. It is having the effect of destroying the numbers of dolphins and porpoises and small whales and we have to stop it as soon as possible."    BBC News Online

 Dolphin Census in India...   India hopes to conduct the first ever dolphin census in the estuarine biosphere of Sunderbans in February to ascertain the exact number of these whales inhabiting the waters that surround the famous land abode of the Royal Bengal Tigers.

Employing the 'eco-depth sounder' and sighting methods, two species -- the gangetic dolphin and its cousin the Irrawady dolphin -- considered indicators of ecological sustainability, would be counted by wildlife experts, Sunderban Biosphere Reserve Director Atanu Raha said in Sajnekhali, Sundarbans.

"While the dwindling number of the gangetic dolphin has been a cause of concern for conservationists of late, the headcount of the Irrawady dolphins, generally traced in Myanmar, would also be done here for the first time," he said.

To begin the pilot project in February, the West Bengal Forest department has sought the help of two scientists from the forest department of Orissa, which conducts its own dolphin census in the Bhitarkanika sanctuary as well as Satpada area of Chilka lake.

Raha said expertise would also be sought from the Bangladesh government, which conducts a similar census operation in association with the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society and IUCN in its part of Sunderbans.     India Express Bureau