Defenders of Wildlife Blog

Defenders' Sierra Weaver, courtesy WDCS

As an environmental lawyer in Washington, D.C., much of my work involves the often invisible world of policy, laws, and court decisions. Every now and again, however, I have the incredible privilege of getting out to see the wildlife I work to protect. This past weekend, I got to do just that on a whale watching trip in one of the most important whale habitats on the East Coast of the United States—the waters off of Cape Cod, Massachusetts.

There were several whales in the water that day, but the most striking by far were the humpback mother and calf swimming alongside our boat. Locals told us that the mom was known as Mural, and that this was her third calf they’d identified over the years (as well as the first calf they’d seen this season). Not only did their beauty take my breath away as they gently rolled and swam close to each other and to our boat, but I was struck by how critically important our work to protect them really is. Those very whales I was watching might not have been there if it hadn’t been for our successful efforts to slow down ships and remove dangerous fishing gear from the water. And for the highly endangered North Atlantic right whales we heard were in the area (but couldn’t see because of extra protections that keep them free from disturbance by the public), it was enough to know they were there.

Whale watchers sight a humpback calf, courtesy WDCS

My trip out to see the whales was part of the fifth-annual naturalist training sponsored by the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society, the Provincetown Center for Coastal Studies, and the Dolphin Fleet of Provincetown. And not only was I lucky enough to see humpback whales, fin whales, and white-sided dolphins swimming all around us, I also got to meet the wonderful folks in the whale watching community who are out educating the public about these animals every day. These folks who ride aboard the whale watch vessels and ensure that passengers know what they’re seeing are all incredibly well versed in the science and threats to the species, but this year the workshop organizers decided they would also benefit from the broader context of the policy work that ensures we all have amazing wildlife to enjoy.

That’s where I came in. And in exchange for talking about what I do from my desk in D.C.—how we use important laws like the Endangered Species Act and the Marine Mammal Protection Act to make sure that these magnificent and imperiled species get to keep swimming in the waters off of New England—I got to learn from the folks who know these whales by name and be inspired both by what they do and what they see on a daily basis. All in all, not a bad day on the job.

The calf surfaces for air, courtesy Caroline Good.

Learn more:

Read about the critically endangered right whale and what Defenders is doing to save the species from extinction.

See how Sierra is leading Defenders’ fight to prevent fishing gear from entangling threatened and endangered whales in waters off the East Coast. 

Two years later, the Gulf of Mexico is still reeling from BP's oil disaster.

“We’ve never seen anything like this before.” One hears this phrase far too often along the brilliant white beaches, dark bayous, and hidden back bays of the northern Gulf of Mexico. Despite falling off the precipice of media attention, people in the Gulf have not forgotten what happened here in spring of 2010. Even if they tried, nature would keep sending them—and the rest of us—constant reminders.

Two years ago today, BP’s Deepwater Horizon well exploded, unleashing more than 200 million gallons of toxic crude oil into the Gulf. Combined with nearly 2 million gallons of chemical dispersant and 500,000 more tons of gaseous hydrocarbons, a mind-bending volume of pollutants were ultimately dumped into Gulf waters. By far the largest spill in U.S. history, the cumulative size of the surface slick alone was large enough to cover the entire state of Oklahoma.

So, what do we now know about the spill’s environmental impacts? It’s still too early to understand most of the damages (some caused by Alaska’s Exxon Valdez oil spill took a decade or more to detect), but what we already know is unsettling enough. Let’s begin with seafood, a major industry and economic driver in the Gulf. In 2008, the seafood industry drove a robust $5.5 billion economic engine for the region. Yet despite reopening the once-closed fishing zones, and disclaimers after the spill that Gulf seafood is safe, a scientific study found that Food and Drug Administration guidelines allowed up to 10,000 times too much contamination, and did not properly identify the true risks of the Gulf’s contaminated seafood to children and pregnant women.

Oiled pelicans were the most striking, but certainly not the only, wildlife to be impacted by the disaster.

If that were not enough, Gulf fishermen report shrimp without eyes, fish covered in open sores, clawless crabs, and other mutated and underdeveloped catch. Crabbers are harvesting 75 percent fewer crabs than in years before the spill, and the crabs they do catch are often dead, discolored, and riddled with holes or missing sections of their shells. In some places, shrimp and oyster harvests remain low, exacerbating the economic deprivation caused by the spill to Gulf residents.

And yet the impacts of the spill go even deeper into the Gulf ecosystem. Hydrocarbons from the Deepwater Horizon spill were first trapped in the ocean food chain through some of its tiniest members: zooplankton. Contaminated zooplankton were actually chemically fingerprinted with certainty back to origins from the Deepwater Horizon blowout. And since zooplankton serve as food for baby fish and shrimp, they help move oil contamination and pollutants up the food chain.

Do we yet know the full scope of harm from this oil spill? Hardly. Links between dolphin deaths and the spill are still being investigated. Since early 2010, an unusually high number of marine mammals — 580, mostly dolphins — stranded and died off the coast of Louisiana to Florida. The total number of marine birds killed by the Deepwater Horizon spill is yet to be tallied. Is there hope for recovery in the Gulf of Mexico? Sure. Did we learn our lessons? Apparently not. Despite the intentions to do better in the future after this unprecedented spill, the Oil Spill Commission gave only a summary grade of “B” to the administration, a “C+” to the oil industry, and a paltry “D” to Congress. If the continuing harm from this tragedy doesn’t teach us that the risks of drilling are simply too high, will we ever learn?

 Learn more:

See how Defenders is working to protect wildlife and natural habitats from the dangers of offshore drilling.

Watch an interview with Chris following his first trip to the Gulf post-Deepwater Horizon oil disaster.

The spring issue of Defenders is here! Check out “Shoring up the Red Knot” to find out how conservationists are teaming to help this shorebird recover. While you’re here, get some good news on Florida panthers and Mexican wolves, and find out how Defenders is working to increase protection for right whales, which are too often harmed by commercial fishing gear.

Find more great wildlife stories and photos in the spring issue of Defenders Magazine.

Want to receive your own copy of Defenders Magazine, delivered right to your doorstep? Join Defenders today!

The Crystal River National Wildlife Refuge was established in 1983, and is the only refuge created for the purpose of protecting manatees.

BREAKING: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service today announced the establishment of a manatee refuge in the waters of Florida’s Kings Bay that will expand protections for manatees at Crystal River National Wildlife Refuge.

The new rules designate most of Kings Bay as a slow-speed area, limit high-speed activities in a popular summer water sports area, provide temporary no-entry areas and allow for expansion of “manatee sanctuary” areas where waterborne activities would be prohibited on especially cold days to shelter manatees. The regulations also ban chasing or pursuing manatees, disturbing or touching them while they are feeding or resting, and separating a mother and a calf.

Elizabeth Fleming, Florida representative for Defenders of Wildlife, said, “Crystal River National Wildlife Refuge is the most important wintering site for manatees in northwest Florida and one of the best places to see manatees in the entire state. By adopting these new rules, the Fish and Wildlife Service has taken a first step towards helping the refuge better serve its purpose—to safeguard this vulnerable marine mammal. However, without the removal of the dangerous high-speed water sports zone, manatees and people will continue to be at risk in Kings Bay.”

Manatee deaths reached a record high of 766 in 2010, followed by the death of over 450 animals in 2011. Nearly 400 of these died from exposure during an extended period of cold weather.

Due to its naturally occurring warm water springs, Kings Bay, Fla. has been increasingly popular among wintering manatees. But despite the existing network of sanctuaries and other protections in Kings Bay, it remains a very dangerous waterway as manatees are hit by fast-moving boats and harassed by tourists wanting to interact with them. Having flexibility for managers to increase the area and duration of warm-water sanctuary areas will help ensure that manatees in Kings Bay will survive cold winters.

YOU DID IT! Defenders supporters generated almost 54,000 comments in favor of stronger protections for manatees in Kings Bay. Thanks for all your help!

Isolated from other beluga populations, Cook Inlet beluga whales are particularly vulnerable to population loss.

January brought some disappointing news for Cook Inlet belugas when scientists from NOAA’s Alaska Fisheries Science Center announced the 2011 estimate for the endangered Cook Inlet beluga whale population. The estimate numbered only 284 animals, almost 20 percent lower than last year’s estimate of 340 whales. The number is the second-lowest since NOAA’s surveys began in 1993; the lowest was in 2005, when the estimate was 278 whales.

Cook Inlet belugas represent one of Alaska’s five beluga populations. Separated from the others by the Alaska Peninsula, the geographic barrier makes the Cook Inlet belugas genetically distinct from the state’s other beluga whales, and therefore particularly vulnerable to population loss. The whale was listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act in 2008,  and last April, the Obama administration designated critical habitat for the species. But despite these protections, the Cook Inlet population has failed to recover, and a 20 percent loss of the population could be a devastating blow.

The low numbers are alarming. And since these whales live in one of the most populated–and fastest growing–regions in Alaska, survival won’t get any easier.

Scientists aren’t convinced the low estimate is entirely accurate. The count is taken from a small airplane that flies above the inlet, with live sightings compared to video footage taken at the same time. Different sighting or survey conditions, weather, or changes in beluga behavior or distribution from year to year can affect the survey results.

Defenders' Karla Dutton serves on the Cook Inlet Beluga Whale Recovery Team

Still, the low numbers are alarming. And since these whales live in one of the most populated–and fastest growing–regions in Alaska, survival won’t get any easier. Defenders is committed to helping Cook Inlet beluga whales recover. We garnered record support for the whale’s endangered listing and critical habitat designation, and Alaska director Karla Dutton currently serves on the Cook Inlet Beluga Whale Recovery Team for the National Marine Fisheries Service, working on a recovery plan for this unique “canary of the sea.”

You can help Cook Inlet beluga whales too! Click here for more information on how to become a trained citizen scientist for the Anchorage Coastal Beluga Survey.

It’s been a chilly new year for Florida manatees, bad news for the temperature-sensitive marine mammals. Fortunately, Florida Power & Light officials came to the rescue during last week’s temperature lows, turning on the heater at the site of their former power plant in Riviera Beach, near the Palm Beach inlet.

Manatees are known to aggregate in warm-water outfalls at power plants on cold winter days, and those in the area didn’t waste any time in flocking to this site—check out some amazing footage below of the gathering. (Hint: watch until 0:47 to see some synchronized sea cow swimming!)

Loss of warm-water habitat now poses the greatest long-term threat to manatee survival. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) reported last week that a cold-related die-off of manatees in early 2011 contributed to the high numbers of deaths for the species for the year. Scientists predict cold weather will continue to be a problem for the manatee population over the next few decades when aging electric power plants will be shutting down. The FPL plant itself was demolished last year, but the power company is required to warm the water when it falls below 65 degrees until it completes construction of its new natural gas facility in 2014.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is working on an emergency rule to expand protected areas for Florida manatees, creating a refuge that includes all of Kings Bay in Crystal River. The rules will ensure the sea cows will have greater access to critical warm water areas during the winter months and address public concerns associated with local, wintertime manatee viewing activities. Learn more about the Kings Bay proposed rule.