The Newsletter of the Southeastern United
States Implementation Team for the Recovery of the Northern Right
Whale and the Northeast Implementation Team
Volume 9 Number 4 November 2002
Gear Modifications and
Area Management Strategies
Are Not Working, Scientists
Say
In contrast to the good news of recent right whale calving
rates in the Western North Atlantic (31 in 2001; 22 in 2002), this
year also appears to be the deadliest on record for entanglements,
according to Scott Kraus of the New England Aquarium. "In 2002 we
can expect to lose eleven right whales," Kraus notes. "Five are
already dead, one from a ship strike, one from injuries or disease
due to entanglement, and three from unknown causes. An additional
six right whales are entangled severely enough that they are
predicted to die without intervention. … These figures
include only the animals we know about. An additional unknown
number of animals are likely to die this year beyond the eleven
known ones."
The situation has prompted a number of prominent right whale
scientists to send a letter prepared by Kraus to Dr. William
Hogarth, Administrator of NOAA Fisheries. In part, the letter
reads:
"NOAA Fisheries is to be commended for their recent efforts to
reduce the deaths of right whales from entanglement in fishing
gear. The use of take reduction teams to develop solutions,
although a difficult process, has led to some progress on this
issue, and has kept fishermen involved. We also appreciate that
the agency recognizes the plan is evolving to accommodate new
information and technology as it becomes available. The year 2002
was the first year in which all the current thinking on managing
the problem was brought to bear, and measures included limited
breaking strength lines, weak links at both buoys on vertical
lines and on the gillnet head ropes, some neutral and/or sinking
ground lines, seasonal area management requirements (SAM's), and
dynamic area management (short-term closures or DAM's).
"As you know, the potential biological removal for right
whales is zero. A kill of these six animals represents a
biological catastrophe for this species, and puts both the fishing
industry and NOAA Fisheries at risk of another lawsuit. Since
these entanglements occurred during the year in which NOAA
Fisheries put its best efforts into managing the problem, it
appears that a revised and aggressive approach to the problem is
needed.
"Specifically, we would like to make the following
recommendations.
1. Fund more enforcement for these measures. Fishermen
want this, conservationists want it, and a level playing field
is needed to ensure industry wide participation in mitigating
measures.
2. Require all trap fisheries throughout the eastern
seaboard to use neutral or sinking ground lines between traps.
We recognize hard-bottom fishermen may have trouble with this
requirement, but right whales cannot afford the risk floating
lines present. If needed, further work could be done on
modifications to keep ground lines out of the water column
while keeping fishermen working on hard bottom.
3. Move quickly to get new and emerging fisheries (e.g.,
hagfish) under regulatory control re: whale modifications.
4. Develop and implement a research strategy to determine
what will make fishing gear "whale-safe," and develop a
research program to test new gear developments, including both
fishability and efficacy at reducing lethal whale
entanglements.
5. Develop a research program on vertical lines (buoy
lines) to determine whether line characteristics, including
breaking strengths, color, stiffness, composition, and
degradability, can be modified to make entanglements less
likely, or at the very least, turn entanglements of whales into
non-fatal events.
"A lot of money has been allocated by Congress to address the
conflict between the fishing industry and right whales. While some
good work has resulted, it is clear that the SAM and DAM strategy,
even when combined with existing gear modifications, has not been
successful. We strongly recommend a reallocation of funds to
address this issue &endash; and encourage NOAA Fisheries to pursue
an aggressive course of action leading to industry wide gear
modifications that will work for both whales and fishermen."
New Gear Regulations Go into Effect
in State Waters
From Rhode Island to
Maine
New regulations requiring modifications to lobster and gillnet
fishing gear in most New England state waters are set to take
effect January 1, 2003. The purpose of the new requirements is to
reduce the risk of right whale entanglement. Illustrative of the
changes are those required by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts
for lobster pots fished in the Cape Cod Bay critical habitat. From
January 1 through April 30, single lobster pots are banned, and
ground lines must be either sinking or neutrally buoyant. Buoy
lines must also be mostly sinking line and must include a weak
link. From May 1 through December 31, lobstermen must use at least
two of the following gear configurations: buoy lines 7/16-inch
diameter or less, a weak link at the buoy of 600 pounds breaking
strength, sinking buoy lines, and sinking or neutrally buoyant
ground lines.
NMFS Prohibits Nighttime Straight
Sets of Gillnets
During Calving Season in the
Southeast
The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) has issued a
final rule governing straight sets of gillnets off the southeast
coast during the right whale calving season. The rule prohibits
straight sets at night in a restricted area off the Georgia and
Florida coasts. The final rule was published in the Federal
Register (67:59471; September 23, 2002). Copies can be found
on the web site of the Atlantic Large Whale Take Reduction Team
(http://www.nero.nmfs.gov/whaletrp/),
along with the Environmental Assessment, Regulatory Impact Review
and Regulatory Flexibility Act Analysis. Information can also be
obtained from Katie Moore in the Southeast Regional Office of
NMFS: 727-570-5312, or Katie.Moore@noaa.gov
Ocean Conservancy Petitions NMFS to
Expand
Critical Habitats for Right
Whales
The Ocean Conservancy (formerly The Center for Marine
Conservation) has petitioned the National Marine Fisheries Service
to revise and expand the boundaries of designated critical
habitats for the North Atlantic right whale in both northeastern
and southeastern waters of the United States. The designation of
areas deemed critical for the survival and recovery of endangered
species is authorized by the Endangered Species Act.
In the northeast, the Ocean Conservancy's petition would
combine the Cape Cod Bay and Great South Channel critical habitats
into one. The portion in Cape Cod Bay would remain the same; the
portion near the Great South Channel would roughly double in size,
adding areas on all sides of the current critical habitat. The
expanded area would be bounded by the coordinates:
41û41.2'N/69û58.2'W; 41û00.0'N/69û05.0W; 41û00.0'N/68û13.0'W;
42û12.0'N/68û13.0'W; 42û12.0'N/70û30.0'W; 41û46.8'N/70û30.0'W; and
on the southwest corner by the shoreline of Cape Cod Bay.
In the southeast, the petition would add approximately 2,700
square nautical miles to the current critical habitat off the
Georgia and Florida coasts. The northern boundary would be moved
north to Blackbeard Island on the Georgia coast (31û 30'N). The
eastern boundary would be extended to 30 nautical miles offshore
between Blackbeard Island and Matanzas Inlet, Florida (29û 40'N).
Between Matanzas Inlet and Sebastian Inlet, Florida (28û 00'N),
the eastern boundary would be extended to10 nautical miles
offshore.
The Ocean Conservancy's petition initiates a 90-day review
period by NMFS, followed by an announcement in the Federal
Register. If the petition is found to have scientific merit, a
12-month period is then initiated, at the end of which the NMFS
must announce its intentions in the Federal Register.
The present critical habitats for right whales off the coasts
of Georgia, Florida and Massachusetts were first recommended by
the Recovery Team for the Northern Right Whale in May, 1990. They
were officially designated by NMFS in June 1994 (Federal
Register 59: 28793-28808).
Right Whale Calf Sighted in Eastern
North Pacific
For the first time in over a century, marine mammal scientists
have confirmed the sighting of a North Pacific right whale calf
(Eubalaena japonica) in the eastern North Pacific Ocean.
The calf and its mother were discovered August 24 by researchers
from the National Marine Fisheries Service in the southeastern
Bering Sea, southwest of Kodiak Island, Alaska, at 57û01.8 N,
164û25.4W. On occasion, right whale calves have been sighted in
the western North Pacific, but this is the first sighting in the
eastern North Pacific in modern times.
The eastern North Pacific population of right whales is the
world's rarest large whale population, and is perhaps the most
endangered as well. A reliable estimate of the eastern North
Pacific right whale population does not exist, and scientists have
spotted only a dozen or so individuals in recent years. "This is
cause for celebration," said Jim Balsiger, Regional Administrator
for NMFS in Alaska. "The North Pacific right whale population is
in danger of extinction. A mother and calf embody hope for the
whales."
NMFS researchers from the Southwest Fisheries Science Center
in La Jolla, California, and from the National Marine Mammal
Laboratory in Seattle, Washington, spotted the calf late on the
evening of August 24. They were on the NOAA Research Vessel
McArthur for a dedicated study of right whales in the
southeastern Bering Sea. "The weather was heavily overcast when we
first made the sighting," said Southwest Fisheries Science Center
scientist Lisa Ballance, the research cruise leader. "We
immediately launched a small boat with three scientists aboard to
get a closer look, and to take photographs and biopsy samples. The
rest of us worked from the flying bridge of the main ship,
recording video and still photographs. We tracked the pair for
over an hour before a rainsquall swept over us and shut us down."
"When the small boat was brought aboard, well after 10 p.m.,"
Balance continued, "we compared notes, and the conclusion was that
this was a female-calf pair. One animal was decidedly smaller than
the other, its blow was smaller in size and more frequent, it swam
in a position alongside the flank of the larger whale in a
drafting position typical of whale calves in general, and the
larger animal seemed intent on keeping itself between the small
boat and the calf. It was a very, very exciting conclusion."
On September 2, the R/V McArthur returned to Kodiak
Island, Alaska, and the field project came to an end. Since then,
a larger group of scientists has examined what was found. Although
the photos were taken in such low light levels that they did not
reveal much, the skin sample taken from the larger whale confirmed
that it was a female.
Scientists have identified six individual North Pacific right
whales &endash; all male &endash; through skin sampling since
1997. Nine skin samples, including one from the mother of the
calf, were taken this year. The 2002 samples are not yet
genotyped, but only one is from a female.
In July 1996, another NMFS research expedition came across
right whales in the same area. Pamela Goddard took photos that
proved there were at least four adults and possibly a calf, but
the photo evidence was not clear enough to confirm the calf
sighting. Goddard's report inspired a research effort that has led
scientists to use ships, aircraft and acoustic equipment to search
for right whales in this area ever since.
Most scientists now divide the North Pacific right whales into
two populations, the eastern and western. The eastern population
is more severely depleted than the western. Between 1900 and 1994
there were only 29 reliable sightings of right whales in the
eastern North Pacific. Since then scientific expeditions have
found a few whales &endash; between about four and 13 individuals
&endash; in the eastern North Pacific each year. A minimum of six
clearly-identified individual right whales and as many as seven
more individuals were seen from the R/V McArthur this
summer in the Bering Sea.
North Pacific right whales were hunted extensively by whalers
in the 1800s and early 1900s because they were easy to catch, they
floated after they were killed, and they were very rich in oil.
Right whales have received international protection since 1935.
However, illegal Soviet Union whaling between 1963 and 1967 killed
at least 523 North Pacific right whales and pushed the eastern
population of North Pacific right whales even closer to the brink
of extinction. There was one report of a right whale from the
western North Pacific population being caught in a Russian gillnet
in the 1980s. Since then, there have been no known human-caused
right whale deaths in the North Pacific.
Kudos
Captain Andrew Bielecki and the crew of the Stena
Timer were presented with a Certificate of Appreciation
from the National Marine Fisheries Service on October 8 for their
efforts and ship management practices during the 2001 northern
right whale calving season. Captain Bielecki and his crew were
recognized for taking "extraordinary measures" to avoid ship
strikes while transiting right whale critical habitat off Florida.
The certificate was presented by Captain Don Lewis of NMFS, who
said, "It recognizes the demonstrated commitment to the bridge
management and navigational practices of the captain and crew to
protect the right whale. A program for right whale protection
onboard ship usually incorporates three elements: awareness of
issues and concerns, intelligence and action. Captain Bielecki and
the crew of the Stena Timer have done a model job on all
three elements." The Stena Timer is under charter to Crowley Liner Services, headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida (www.crowley.com).
Diane Strickland of the Georgia Ports Authority was
awarded a Certificate of Appreciation for her "initiative and
creativity to educate the public and the shipping community about
the North Atlantic right whale." The certificate was presented at
the October 17 meeting of the Southeast U.S. Implementation Team
by Kathy Wang on behalf of Joseph E. Powers, Acting Southeast
Regional Administrator for NMFS. Ms. Strickland created the
Georgia Ports Authority's coloring book, The North Atlantic Right
Whale, which is available on the web at www.gaports.com.
She also created a crossword puzzle, a temporary tattoo and other
educational materials.
Barb Zoodsma of the Georgia Department of Natural
Resources also received a Certificate of Appreciation from NMFS
for her "outstanding dedication to North Atlantic right whale
conservation and [her] service on the Southeastern
Implementation Team for the recovery of the North Atlantic right
whale."
People on the
Move
Barb Zoodsma will be leaving her post at the Georgia
Department of Natural Resources in December to become Southeast
Regional Right Whale Coordinator for the National Marine Fisheries
Service. In her new role, she will continue to serve on the
Southeast U.S. Implementation Team as a representative of NMFS.
Barb will be based out of Fernandina Beach, Florida. Her
immediate supervisor will be Dr. Kathy Wang in the
Protected Resources Division of the Southeast Regional Office of
NMFS in St. Petersburg, Florida.
With Barb Zoodsma's new responsibilities, Jamison "Jamie"
Smith of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission
becomes the new chair of the Southeast U.S. Right Whale Recovery
Plan Implementation Team. The vice chair position is currently
vacant. By tradition, it will probably be filled by someone from
the Georgia Department of Natural Resources' Nongame-Endangered
Wildlife Program.
Joining the Southeast U.S. Right Whale Recovery Plan
Implementation Team are four new members: LCDR Mike Fendley
of the U.S. Navy's Submarine Group 10 (Kings Bay, GA),
Commander Daniel R. MacLeod of the U.S. Coast Guard
(Washington, DC), Daniel Small of the U.S. Army Corps of
Engineers (Atlanta, GA) and David Cupka of South Carolina
Wildlife and Marine Resources (Charleston, SC).
David Cottingham is the new Executive Director of the
Marine Mammal Commission. Formerly, he was with the NMFS Office of
Protected Resources in Silver Spring, MD. His predecessor,
Robert Mattlin, has resigned to go to New Zealand to help
start a marine mammal research institute there.
On October 29, the participants in the North Atlantic Right
Whale Consortium annual meeting elected Bill McLellan
(University of North Carolina at Wilmington), Jamie Smith
(Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission) and Doug
Nowacek (Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution) to the Consortium
board. Reelected to the board were Moe Brown (Center for
Coastal Studies and Canadian Whale Institute) and Laurie
Murison (Grand Manan Whale and Seabird Research Station).
Implementation Team
Members
There are three official teams actively working to bring the
North Atlantic right whale back from the brink of extinction: the
Canadian Right Whale Recovery Implementation Team, the Northeast
Implementation Team and the Southeast United States Right Whale
Recovery Plan Implementation Team. Names, affiliations and e-mail
addresses for the team members follow. Mailing addresses,
telephone and fax numbers are also provided for each team's
officers.
Canadian Right Whale Recovery
Implementation Team
Co-chair: Jerry Conway, Department of Fisheries and
Oceans, Marine Aquatic Species at Risk Office, P.O. Box 1035,
Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, Canada B2Y 4T3. Tel. 902-426-6947. Fax
902-426-2331. Conwayj@mar.dfo-mpo.gc.ca
Co-chair: Dr. Moira Brown, Canadian Whale Institute and
Center for Coastal Studies, P.O. Box 1036, Provincetown, MA
02657. Tel. 508-487-3622. Fax 508-487-4495. Mbrown@coastalstudies.org
Chair: Dr. Thomas French, Massachusetts Division Fish
and Wildlife, Non-Game and Endangered Species, Route 135,
Westborough, MA 01581. Tel. 508-792-7270, ext 63. FAX
508-792-7275. Tom.French@state.ma.us
Vice chair: Tom Fetherston, U.S. Navy, Naval Undersea
Warfare Center, 1176 Howell Street, Newport, RI 02841. Tel.
401-832-5857. FAX 401-832-4747. fetherstontn@npt.NUWC.Navy.mil
Secretary: Joseph Pelczarski, Massachusetts Coastal
Zone Management, 100 Cambridge Street, Boston, MA 02202. Tel.
617-626-1234. FAX 617-626-1240. Joe.Pelczarski@state.ma.us
Southeast United States Right Whale Recovery Plan
Implementation Team
Chair: Jamison Smith, Florida Fish and Wildlife
Conservation Commission, Florida Marine Research Institute,
Jacksonville Field Lab, 6134 Authority Ave., Jacksonville, FL
32221. Tel. 904-573-4910; Fax 904-573-4982. E-mail: Jamison.Smith@fwc.state.fl.us
Vice Chair: To be determined, Georgia Department of
Natural Resources, Nongame-Endangered Wildlife Program, One
Conservation Way, Suite 310, Brunswick, GA 31520-8687. Tel.
912-264-7218. Fax 912-262-3143.
Northeast Implementation Team Focuses on
Its Future
The primary topic of discussion at the October 31 meeting of
the Northeast Implementation Team was the future of the team
itself. After review of a number of written comments and a lively
discussion, the team clarified its role as an advisor to all
agencies, institutions and citizens (and not just as an advisor to
the Northeast Regional Office of NMFS). Its scope will remain
broad, although its primary focus will be on ship strikes of right
whales. As needed, the team will address other issues, including
(but not limited to) humpback whale recovery and proposals for
wind-generated energy farms, critical habitat expansion and
natural gas pipelines. The team will do more of its work in
committees and become more product oriented. An ad hoc
subcommittee was formed to develop new procedures for team set-up
(e.g., membership) and operations (e.g., priorities) with hopes
that its recommendations will be adopted by the team before its
next meeting on February 5.
Ship Strike Reduction Strategy: An
Update
The National Marine Fisheries Service has assembled an
in-house working group to address the "Russell report"
("Recommended Measures to Reduce Ship Strikes of North Atlantic
Right Whales," prepared by Bruce Russell and others) that was
forwarded to the agency by the Southeast U.S. Right Whale Recovery
Plan Implementation Team in September 2001, and by the Northeast
Implementation Team in January 2002.
The working group, led by Dr. Greg Silber, is preparing a
"Draft Strategic Plan to Address Ship Strikes of Right Whales."
The draft plan identifies ship strike reduction efforts already
underway (such as the Early Warning System of aerial surveys off
Georgia and Florida, and a similar system off Massachusetts) and
reviews options. The working group has added some options to those
in the Russell report and eliminated others.
Among the options being considered are boundaries (where and
when a measure will be in effect); species (so far, there's a
right whale focus); vessel size (at present, 65 feet and larger);
area restrictions; areas to be avoided; speed restrictions;
combinations of speed and routing; and education, outreach and
"omnibus actions" (such as dynamic management for unexpected
events).
The working group plans to complete a draft plan by the fall
of 2002 and submit it to the hierarchy in NMFS, NOAA and the U.S.
Department of Commerce for review and approval.
Implementation is expected to occur in at least three steps.
Short term options (such as surveys, educational outreach and
expanding the NAVTEX notifications to mariners) may take two
years. Mid-term options (such as rerouting ships and identifying
areas to avoid) will take further study and interagency
consultation. Major options (such as restricting ship speeds) may
involve legislation and approval by the International Maritime
Organization and could (optimistically) take four or five years.
All of these timetables can easily be complicated by a variety of
factors, including Biological Opinions on reasonable and prudent
alternatives, compliance with various laws (such as the Endangered
Species Act and the National Environmental Policy Act), and the
level of interagency cooperation.
Ship Strike Reduction Strategy: An
Update
The National Marine Fisheries Service has assembled an
in-house working group to address the "Russell report"
("Recommended Measures to Reduce Ship Strikes of North Atlantic
Right Whales," prepared by Bruce Russell and others) that was
forwarded to the agency by the Southeast U.S. Right Whale Recovery
Plan Implementation Team in September 2001, and by the Northeast
Implementation Team in January 2002.
The working group, led by Dr. Greg Silber, is preparing a
"Draft Strategic Plan to Address Ship Strikes of Right Whales."
The draft plan identifies ship strike reduction efforts already
underway (such as the Early Warning System of aerial surveys off
Georgia and Florida, and a similar system off Massachusetts) and
reviews options. The working group has added some options to those
in the Russell report and eliminated others.
Among the options being considered are boundaries (where and
when a measure will be in effect); species (so far, there's a
right whale focus); vessel size (at present, 65 feet and larger);
area restrictions; areas to be avoided; speed restrictions;
combinations of speed and routing; and education, outreach and
"omnibus actions" (such as dynamic management for unexpected
events).
The working group plans to complete a draft plan by the fall
of 2002 and submit it to the hierarchy in NMFS, NOAA and the U.S.
Department of Commerce for review and approval.
Implementation is expected to occur in at least three steps.
Short term options (such as surveys, educational outreach and
expanding the NAVTEX notifications to mariners) may take two
years. Mid-term options (such as rerouting ships and identifying
areas to avoid) will take further study and interagency
consultation. Major options (such as restricting ship speeds) may
involve legislation and approval by the International Maritime
Organization and could (optimistically) take four or five years.
All of these timetables can easily be complicated by a variety of
factors, including Biological Opinions on reasonable and prudent
alternatives, compliance with various laws (such as the Endangered
Species Act and the National Environmental Policy Act), and the
level of interagency cooperation.
National Whale Conservation
Fund
Requests Proposals from Atlantic
States
The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and NOAA Fisheries
have teamed together in a special partnership project in support
of Atlantic Coast States Cooperative Planning for Right Whale
Recovery. The partnership seeks to fund projects that have a
strong likelihood of reducing death and serious injury to right
whales through the development or implementation of recovery plan
tasks.
The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation is a not-for-profit
501(c)(3) organization established by Congress in 1984. The
foundation operates the National Whale Conservation Fund (NWCF),
which was also established by Congress to support research,
management, conservation and education/outreach activities related
to the conservation and recovery of whales. The foundation
operates the NWCF under the direction of the National Whale
Conservation Fund Advisory Council, a panel of conservation
leaders and representatives of cooperating entities.
The National Whale Conservation Fund seeks to foster the
conservation and recovery of whales by supporting innovative
research, management and education projects of high quality and
promise. NWCF actively seeks to form new partnerships with
corporations, organizations, and individuals to leverage NWCF's
resources sufficiently to meet its aggressive conservation
goals.
Any Atlantic coast state government agency is eligible for
funding. Applicants who propose to build on existing cooperative
efforts with NOAA Fisheries or to enter into additional
collaboration with other states and/or federal agencies are
encouraged. Matching funds are not required under this program.
Application forms and additional
information are available from Michelle Pico at 202-857-0166
or pico@nfwf.org
Proposals should reference a federal or state right whale
recovery plan that requires the proposal activity, or indicate
plans to establish such a plan for the state. Applicants should
demonstrate coordination and/or collaboration across state
boundaries, with federal agency counterparts, with industry, and
other interested parties where applicable.
Project funding priorities include:
* Ship strike mitigation to reduce right whale interactions
via technology or other acceptable means, including developing
better understanding of right whale behavior and responses to
approaching vessels and developing a merchant mariner training
curriculum;
* Enforcement as it applies to individual or cooperating
states;
* Gear investigation and testing to reduce entanglement;
* Disentanglement activities which will reduce mortality
and/or serious injury of entangled whales; and
* Education and outreach programs for fishermen, mariners,
recreational vessel operators (commercial and private), and the
general public to facilitate reduction of gear interactions.
While this grant program focuses on five areas of emphasis,
the overall goal of the program is to address right whale
mortality, with priority given to those projects that work with
industry toward real solutions.
Proposals must be received (by e-mail, fax, hand-delivery or
through the mail), no later than 5:00PM EST December 4. Letters
notifying all applicants of final funding decisions will be sent
by March 1, 2003.
Needed
Educational materials: What works? A committee of the
Southeast U.S. Right Whale Recovery Plan Implementation Team is
currently reviewing right whale educational materials &endash;
broadly defined &endash; with the intent of promoting the use of
materials that have proven to be highly effective in getting a
message across to specific audiences. If you know of such
material, please contact committee chair Don Lewis at Don.Lewis@noaa.gov
The Center for Coastal Studies is looking for a whale
rescue assistant to join their large whale rescue team. The
full-time position requires good physical health and knowledge of
small boat and engine operation. Not to mention guts! If you are
interested, contact Janet E. Young at 508-487-3622, ext. 110 or
jeyoung@coastalstudies.org
Will seed-mussel farming affect right whales near Peninsula
Valdez? Vicky Rowntree is seeking information on mussel
cultivation structures and their potential effects on the southern
right whale nursery ground at Peninsula Valdez, Argentina. If you
are familiar with such structures and have ideas of how they
should be designed so as to not endanger marine mammals, send your
suggestions to Vicky Rowntree, Department of Biology, University
of Utah, 257 South 1400 East, Salt Lake City, UT 84112.
Frank's Whales: A
Review
Frank's Whales, by Frank Gromling. 2002. Ocean
Publishing, Flagler Beach, FL. ISBN: 0-9717641-1-5. Price:
$14.95.
Often people ask, "What can I do to help?" and "Can I make a
difference?" In a refreshing narrative, Frank Gromling
convincingly answers these questions, using the volunteer right
whale sighting program that operates along Florida's north coast
as an example. In the process, he also educates people about the
plight of the North Atlantic right whale. He provides a good
summary of what is known about right whales without getting bogged
down in minutia.
So what can you do to help? Become involved in a volunteer
program, learn more about the plight of the North Atlantic right
whale &endash; and Nature's other creatures &endash; enjoy meeting
like-minded people and have fun. The book is a good read.
Encyclopedia of Marine
Mammals
Encyclopedia of Marine Mammals. Perrin, W.F., B.
Würsig and J. G. M. Thewissen, editors. 2002. Academic Press,
San Diego. ISBN: 0-12-551340-2.
Academic Press has recently released its Encyclopedia of
Marine Mammals, edited by Drs. William F. Perrin, Bernd
Würsig and J. G. M. Thewissen. This monumental volume
&endash; with more than 1414 pages &endash; includes a number of
entries relating to right whales. The primary right whale entry is
by Dr. Bob Kenney of the University of Rhode Island's Graduate
School of Oceanography. Dr. Kenney covers the topics of
systematics and nomenclature, description, distribution and
abundance, ecology, behavior, life history, fossil record and
interactions with humans for all three species of right whales.
The Encyclopedia also includes entries on baleen whales (by J. L.
Bannister), callosities (M. T. Weinrick), endangered species and
populations (J. E. Reynolds III, D. F. DeMaster and G. K. Silber),
entrapment and entanglement (J. Lein), filter feeding (D. A. Croll
and B. R. Tershy) and other topics related to right whales.
Consortium
Papers
A record 170 people attended the 2002 Annual North Atlantic
Right Whale Consortium meeting held October 29-30 at the New
Bedford Whaling Museum in New Bedford, Massachusetts.
The following presentations were made.
Biology
Lisa Conger - Catalog update and 2002 update
Heather Pettis - Visual health assessment of North Atlantic
right whales
Philip Hamilton - Some initial findings of associations
among North Atlantic right whales
Ted Durbin - North Atlantic right whales exposed to
paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP) toxins via a zooplankton
vector, Calanus finmarchius
Roz Rolland - Reproductive and stress hormones in right
whalesRoz Rolland (for Greg Doucette) - Evidence for the
occurrence of PSP toxins in
North Atlantic right whales (Eubalaena glacialis) and their
zooplankton prey in
the Bay of Fundy, Canada
Management
Jerry Conway - Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) Update
Rob Stephenson - Development of a new right whale research
program at DFO's
St. Andrews Biological Station
Tim Cole - Management implications of observed right whale
distribution off the
Northeastern U.S. during 1998-2002
Diane Borggaard - Atlantic Large Whale Take Reduction Plan
2002 regulations
Pat Gerrior - Vessel management measures for the protection of
northern right
whales off the U.S. east coast
Hauke Kite-Powell - Right whale population distribution and
ship-strike
management measures
Modeling
Hal Caswell - Demography, population dynamics, and population
viability of the
North Atlantic right whale
Richard Pace - Revised and new, not necessarily improved,
estimates of right
whale survival rates
Surveys
Jim Hain - Shore-based observations of right whales: Science
and stewardship
William McLellan - Results of two years of mid-Atlantic aerial
surveys for right
whales
Rick LeDuc - News from the western front: An update on
research on North
Pacific right whales
Fishing
John Higgins - Report on gear modification and ongoing
research
David Morin - Right whale entanglements of 2002
Scott Kraus - New data on fisheries conflicts
Technology
Bob Bowman - Tail harnesses: Their purpose and a brief
history
Michael Moore - Large whale disentanglement technology
workshop, December
14, 2001: A report and a video on tail harness trial on water
workshop
Wayne Perryman - Aerial photogrammetry of western North
Atlantic right whales
Bruce Mate - Tag development: A communal
scientific process that gets results
Lei Harris - Observations from an aerostat: A developing
capability
Bill McLellan - Infrared thermography
Genetics
Tim Frasier - Development and analysis of genetic profiles of
North Atlantic
right whales: Application to paternity analyses
Matt Hare - Estimates of historical demography from nuclear
DNA variation in
right whales
Carl Gaines - Evaluating relationships among right whales
using nuclear gene regions
Howard Rosenbaum - Were right whales from the eastern and
western North
Atlantic populations genetically distinct?
Habitat
Mark Baumgartner - Right whale habitat in the lower Bay of
Fundy and Roseway
Basin: Why might a right whale be in this particular place at
this particular time?
Cherie Keller - North Atlantic right whale distribution in
relation to sea surface
temperature in the Southeast U.S. calving grounds:
Implications for
management
Shipping
Amy Knowlton - Right whale sightings and survey efforts in the
mid-Atlantic
region: Migratory corridor, time frame, and proximity to port
entrances
Kelly Houle - An aerial survey perspective on shipping traffic
in the northeastern U.S.
Jessica Damon - An acoustically-mediated ship strike avoidance
model for the North Atlantic right whale, Eubalaena glacialis, in
the Gulf of Maine
Moe Brown - Progress on Canada's proposal to amend the Bay of
Fundy Traffic
Separation Scheme to reduce interactions between vessels and
right whales
Acoustics
Chris Clark - Right whales in Cape Cod Bay: Numbers and
distributions from listening, looking and knowing about
food
Douglas Gillespie - Automatic detection of right whale calls.
Is that really a
right whale I'm hearing?
Doug Nowacek - Playback experiments to study risk factors for
vessel collision in
right whales
Peter Tyack - Policy implications of alarm responses to
playbacks of alerting
signals
Susan Parks - Surface active groups: Group composition and
acoustic
characteristics
Abstracts are available for $5.00 each from the Consortium
secretary, Marilyn Marx. To order, contact her at mmarx@neaq.org
or 617-973-6584.
Scientific Literature and
Reports
Ambrose, H. 2002. Hope for a species: Florida's right whale
nursery. EcoFlorida Magazine, December 2002. Pp 31-34. Good
overview of right whale efforts in the southeast U.S.
Bisconti, M. 2002. An early Late Pliocene right whale (genus
Eubalaena) from Tuscany (Central Italy). Bollettino della Societa
Paleontologica Italiana 41(1):83-91. Reports on the oldest known
whale of the genus Eubalaena.
Boyce, M. 2002. Whaling models for cetacean conservation. In:
Ferguson, S. and M. Burgman, editors, Quantitative methods for
conservation biology. Second Edition. Springer-Verlag, NY.
Brigden, J. 2002. Southern right whales &endash; Eubalaena
australis (Desmoulins 1822) &endash; in Hervey Bay, Queensland.
Memoirs of the Queensland Museum 47(2):430.
Kenney, R.D. 2002. North Atlantic, North Pacific and Southern
right whales, Eubalaena glacialis, E. japonica and E. australis.
Pp 806-813 in Perrin et al., editors, Encyclopedia of Marine
Mammals. (See separate citation for details and page 12 for a
review.)
Lusseau, D., E. Slooten and L. Chadderton. 2001. Cetacean
sightings off the Fiordland coastline. New Zealand Journal of
Marine and Freshwater Research 35(4):657-658.
Moore, M. 2000. Report of a workshop on large whale medical
intervention &endash; Indications and technology development. A
report of a workshop held at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution,
February 7, 2000. Available on line at:
www.whoi.edu/science/B/people/mmoore
Moore, M., D. Reeb, C. Miller and D. Smith. 2001. Large whale
disentanglement technology workshop &endash; A report of a
workshop held at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, December
14, 2001. Available on line at:
www.whoi.edu/science/B/people/mmoore
Perrin, W.F., B. Würsig and J.G.M. Thewissen, editors.
2002. Encyclopedia of Marine Mammals. Academic Press, San Diego.
xxxviii, 1414 pages, plates, illustrations and maps. See page 12
for brief review.
Pfeiffer, C.J., editor. 2002. Molecular and cell biology of
marine mammals. Kreiger Publishing Company, Melbourne, FL. 464
pages.
Schaeff, C.M. 2002. Right whale, Eubalaena, molecular ecology.
Chapter 7 in Pfeiffer, C.J., editor. Molecular and Cell Biology of
Marine Mammals. Kreiger Publishing Company, Melbourne, FL. 464
pages.
Taylor, C.R. 2002. Dissemination of northern right whale
(Eubalaena glacialis) sighting information to the southeast U.S.
maritime community. Marine Technology Society Journal
36(2):58-60.
Verity, P.G. 2002. Status, trends and the future of the marine
pelagic ecosystem. Environmental Conservation 29(2):207-237.
Volkmer de Castilho, P. and P.C. Simoes-Lopes. 2001.
Zooarqueologia dos mamiferos aquaticos e semi-aquaticos da Ilha de
Santa Catarina, sul do Brasil. Revista Brasileira de Zoologia 18
(3): 719-727. In Portuguese. An analysis of the use of marine
mammals including the southern right whale by prehistoric
societies in southern Brazil.
Calendar of
Events
December 4: Proposals to the National Whale Conservation Fund
must be received by 5:00 PM Eastern Standard Time. (See article on
page 9.)
Late January, 2003 (date not set at press time): Next meeting
of the Canadian Right Whale Recovery Implementation Team. For
information, contact Jerry Conway at the Department of Fisheries
and Oceans, Marine Aquatic Species at Risk Office: 902-426-6947 or
Conwayj@mar.dfo-mpo.gc.ca
February 5, 2003: Next meeting of the Northeast Implementation
Team. Location to be determined. For further information, contact
Pat Gerrior at Pat.Gerrior@noaa.gov
May 8-9, 2003: Spring meeting of the Southeast U.S. Right
Whale Recovery Plan Implementation Team. Location to be
determined. For further information, contact team chair Jamison
Smith at 904-573-4910 or Jamison.Smith@fwc.state.fl.us
November 4-5, 2003: Annual North Atlantic Right Whale
Consortium meeting, New Bedford Whaling Museum, New Bedford,
Massachusetts. For further information, contact the Consortium
secretary, Marilyn Marx at mmarx@neaq.org or 617-973-6584.
December 14-19, 2003: 15th Biennial Conference on the Biology
of Marine Mammals, Greensboro, North Carolina. Sponsored by the
Society for Marine Mammalogy. For more information, visit the SMM
web site: http://pegasus.cc.ucf.edu/~smm
Right Whale
News
Right Whale News is the newsletter of the Southeastern U.S.
Right Whale Recovery Plan Implementation Team and the Northeast
Implementation Team. The editor is Hans Neuhauser. The editorial
board consists of Bill Brooks, Moe Brown, Phil Clapham, Jerry
Conway, Jim Hain, Scott Kraus, Mike Payne, Sigrid Sanders and
Jerry Wallmeyer.
The Gray's Reef National Marine Sanctuary, the Massachusetts
Environmental Trust, the Southeast Regional Office of NOAA
Fisheries, the Northeast Implementation Team and the Savannah
Presbytery's M.K. Pentecost Ecology Trust Fund
(www.savannahpresbytery.org) underwrite the costs of Right Whale
News. Thanks to their support, Right Whale News is published
quarterly and is distributed free of charge.
The current issue of Right Whale News is now available on line
at a web site maintained by the Georgia Environmental Policy
Institute: www.GEPInstitute.com An index of the first eight years
of Right Whale News (1994-2001) is available along with current
and back issues on the Internet, thanks to Alex Score and Marcy
Lee of the Gray's Reef National Marine Sanctuary. The web site
address is: http://www.graysreef.nos.noaa.gov/rightwhalenews.html
To subscribe to Right Whale News or to submit news, articles
or commentary for publication, contact the editor, Hans Neuhauser,
at the Georgia Environmental Policy Institute, 380 Meigs Street,
Athens, GA 30601, USA. Telephone 706-546-7507. Fax 706-613-7775.
E-mail: gepi@ix.netcom.com