Whale researcher's report indicates resident population being targetted

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FROM WASHINGTON CITIZEN'S COASTAL ALLIANCE

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-ODI vessels on patrol today: no activity reported.

-Land protest today at 12:30pm. Meet in Sekiu!

 

The following article calls into question Makah Tribal Chairman Bender

Johnson's claim that the Makah intend to target " a big one " this spring.

Indeed, the evidence suggests that from this point on, the tail end of the

migration includes only gray whale MOTHERS WITH CALVES.

*****

 

 

 

MAKAH WHALE HUNT:

ARE THEY KILLING WHALES FROM A LOCAL SUB-POPULATION?

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By Dr. Jim Darling

 

The primary biological issue surrounding the Makah whale hunt is whether the

20-30 whales allocated to be killed or injured over a five year period are

to be taken from the smaller summer resident population(s) of 35-200 whales,

or randomly from the eastern Pacific heard of 25,000 animal as was

presumably intended by the International Whaling Commission (IWC) and

described to the public.

 

Since the 1970's I have studied the population of 35-50 gray whales that

reside along the south central west coast of Vancouver Island each summer.

These whales leave the northern migration from Mexico to the Arctic seas in

spring, stay in the region for 8-9 months feeding, then join the winter

migration southward. This population consists of both sexes, and both adult

and very young animals. Many of the same individuals return each summer;

that is, this area is a home summer range to a specific group of whales.

Some adults have returned each year for at least 25 years.

 

The Vancouver Island situation appears typical of summer resident gray

whales found from Northern California through S.E. Alaska. We also do not

know whether these whales travel and mix randomly throughout the entire

region, or if there is a series of sub-populations that tend to home in on

specific sections of coast. This is the reason for the wide population

estimate: there may be as many as 200 or as few as 35 whales that range

through the hunt zone between migrations.

 

The U.S. Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) prepared prior to the U.S.

government advocacy of Makah whaling to the IWC did not address these summer

resident populations. Much later, the U.S. government acknowledged the

existence of these resident whales. It was only then the U.S. government and

Makah Whaling Council responded by stating that they would only hunt

migrants, thereby solving the problem.

 

However, to date the scheduled hunts have not coincided with the migrations.

Although numerous scientific studies clearly show that the southern winter

migration passes the Vancouver Island-Washington coast after early December

(with the peak around Christmas or New Years), the U.S. government opened

the hunt on October 1st last year. Any whales taken before December would

very likely have been summer residents.

 

The spring, northward migration come in two waves. By far the majority of

whales pass from late February to the end of April with the peak from

mid-March to mid-April. A SECOND SMALLER WAVE PASSES THROUGH MAY AND EARLY

JUNE AND CONSISTS ALMOST ENTIRELY OF COWS WITH NEWBORN CALVES. (Emphasis

ours) Summer resident whales are present in the region by early April. Yet

the whale was killed in mid-May.

 

If migrants are to be targeted, the timing for the hunt is obvious: mid-

December to mid-January: late-February to end of April. Equally obvious is

the fact that to date the hunt has not occurred anywhere near peak migration

times. It's a little like declaring you want to catch someone in the morning

rush hour but not trying until 11 AM.

 

In sum, the odds are very high that any whales hunted between May and

December will be summer resident-whales that behave differently than the

rest of the herd, and reside along our coast. Hunting the residents will not

threaten the entire gray whale herd, but it may well threaten the resident

population.

 

Next season will determine the credibility of the hunt managers. The issue

should be re-opened at the International Whaling Commission with full

information available to all delegates. Clearly, killing or injuring

( " landed or struck " ) 20-33 whales out of a population less than 200 is

different than taking them out of a herd of more than 25,000.

 

It is indeed unfortunate that Canada is not a member of the IWC-and refuses

to join even after repeated requests from that organization to do so. The

population at risk straddles the U.S./Canada border. It is, among other

things, the " resource " for a significant whale watching industry, bringing

millions upon millions of dollars into small B.C. communities. The IWC is

the forum in which Canadian interests can be represented.

 

Jim Darling Ph. D. is with the West Coast Whale Research Foundation.

 

Dr. Darling is a marine mammal biologist specializing in the behavior and

ecology of whales. Although his research has taken him worldwide, he makes

Tofino British Columbia His home. He has authored numerous scientific

publications, popular articles and books, and produced documentary films.

His articles have appeared in journals and publications ranging from the

Canadian Journal of Zoology and Marine Mammal Science to National

Geographic. Dr. Darling was the originator and associate producer for Island

of Whales, a one-hour television documentary which won Canada's prestigious

Gemini Award for best television documentary of 1991.

 

Some of Dr. Darlings recent work with humpback whales can be seen in the

July 1999 edition of National Geographic Magazine.

*****

 

 

As always, for the definitive web-site on the Makah hunt, visit

http://www.stopwhalekill.org

 

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