Defenders of Wildlife Blog

Originally published at TalkingFish.org

A pending decision on fishing for cod and other groundfish in New England has big implications for marine mammals including some of the most endangered animals in our waters, the North Atlantic right whale.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is weighing a proposal that would expand commercial fishing into some 5,000 sq. miles of protected waters inside what are known as “groundfish closed areas” along the New England coast. More than 100 scientists sent a letter warning NOAA that this is a bad move for fish. But that’s not all. Scientists and conservationists also raised red flags about the potential harm to right whales, humpback whales, and harbor porpoises if NOAA ends protection for the closed areas.

Right whale sightings are concentrated within many of the current closed areas. Opening them to commercial fishing could put whales at risk. (©TalkingFish.org)

Right whale sightings are concentrated within many of the current closed areas. Opening them to commercial fishing could put whales at risk. As this map shows, hundreds of right whale sightings have been documented in the closed areas.

“Opening these currently closed areas to fishing only increases the overall risk of entanglement for whales,” said Sierra Weaver, an attorney formerly with the conservation group Defenders of Wildlife.

Defenders joined the New England Aquarium, the Humane Society of the U.S. and other groups in a letter to NOAA. The letter explains that fishing vessels are already accidentally killing too many of the area’s two most endangered species of large whale, the right and humpback whales. And allowing commercial fishing in areas that have been safe harbor for these animals will only make matters worse.

“With only about 400 North Atlantic right whales left, every loss is a blow to this critically endangered population,” Weaver added.

The groundfish closed areas have been an important part of plans required by the federal arine Mammal Protection Act to minimize whale deaths due to fishing. The groups make clear in their letter that allowing commercial fishing in an area the size of Connecticut would change all the underlying assumptions in the plan regarding risk and rates of whale mortality. There is little indication that NOAA or the New England Fishery Management Council has sufficiently considered this.

A right whale calf swims under the chin of its mother. Researchers sighted the pair 13 miles off Amelia Island, FL on December 28, 2012.

Others wrote to remind officials about how important whales are to the coastal economy. Maine naturalist Zack Klyver said the company he works for, Bar Harbor Whale Watch Co., takes 50-60,000 passengers to see whales each year.

“These visitors have an exponential effect on the New England economy as they stay in our hotels, eat at our restaurants, and pay for gas,” Klyver wrote in his letter. Maine’s tourism industry generated nearly $10 billion last year—more than the state’s fisheries, forestry and agriculture combined, Klyver wrote. And he included this tidbit: the Maine office of Tourism found that “whales” is among the top words people use to search the office’s website.

Many of the letters and comments to NOAA noted how little thought seems to have been given to the broad ranging effects of the decision on the closed areas, and how rushed the decision process seemed. One letter cited the old adage “haste makes waste.” In this case, a hasty decision could end up wasting the lives of animals we cannot afford to lose.

Karla Dutton, Alaska Program Director

(c)Joan Cambray

I recently attended the 11th Alaska Marine Science Symposium (AMSS) in Anchorage. This year, the AMSS brought together almost 1,000 marine science researchers, educators, students and policy folks like me from Alaska, the Pacific Northwest and other Arctic regions to learn the latest in the fields of climate, oceanography, the benthos (collection of organisms living on or in the sea bottom), fish, seabirds, marine mammals and local and traditional knowledge. The week-long symposium presentations were grouped in three marine regions: the Gulf of Alaska, the Arctic and the Bering Sea.

We heard from several leading scientists and researchers about how small marine animals (lower on the food chain) are changing, and how that change is (and will likely continue to) impact marine mammals. Dr. Jeremy Mathis, who works for the Pacific Marine Environmental Lab and the Institute of Marine Science at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, provided the keynote address.  He told us that glacial melt (water from melting glaciers into coastal areas) is mixing with seawater, resulting in lower levels of oxygen and higher rates of carbon dioxide (CO2) in seawater, which makes it more acidic. As the planet warms in Arctic regions that contain glaciers, we can expect to see more glacial melt, lower oxygen and higher CO2 levels in the ocean, and that means increasing ocean acidification.

Sea butterfly (c)USGS

Because of Dr. Mathis’s work and others, we know that some marine organisms are sensitive to changes in acidity and lower pH can affect these organisms’ ability to survive, build shells and reproduce. The ones we need to be concerned about are called pteropods. These are small marine gastropod mollusks – sea snails that can swim, with winglike lobes on their feet giving them the nickname “sea butterflies.” These animals are also sensitive to ocean acidification — when the pH of the water is low enough, the acidic water dissolves their shells, slowly killing them. Why do we care? Because these tiny creatures are the building blocks of the food web in the region. All kinds of organisms eat them, from tiny krill to fish to whales. And other animals like seals (primary prey for polar bears) rely on the fish that eat the pteropods. These “sea butterflies” are also a major food source for North Pacific juvenile salmon, which we humans enjoy.  Pteropods may be tiny, but their importance can’t be overstated – many species rely on them in one way or another.

To help marine mammal species survive the impacts of climate change, we must understand their food chain better, and that means learning how organisms like pteropods live, and how changes in their marine environment are affecting these tiny but important marine animals.

Defenders’ Alaska office continues to ensure that climate change data collection, modeling and decision-making always take the impacts to wildlife into consideration. We have served on the USFWS Connecting the Landscapes effort to use climate change models to better predict what land areas will be important to wildlife and plants as they navigate changing habitats. We also participated in the Governor’s Sub-Cabinet for Climate Change natural systems working group, which focused on preparing guidelines for wildlife and fish that are being impacted by a changing climate. And moving forward, we’re working to protect necessary habitat for polar bears, walrus and other wildlife as climate change continues to affect the landscape.

Learn more about how climate change is affecting the Arctic food chain in this article from the latest issue of Defenders magazine: The Heat Is On

Beginning in 2013 the possession, sale and trade of shark fins in California will no longer be legal. It came down to the wire but California’s Governor Jerry Brown signed AB376 into law on October 7, 2011. This is a big win for sharks and a great victory for the many organizations who worked tirelessly on this legislation. We here at Defenders want to give a big ‘thank you’ to all the supporters who wrote to their congressional members and the governor lending their voices of support for passage of the bill.

Over 73 million sharks are killed each year by finning, a process that involves cutting off the shark’s fins, often while it is still alive, and throwing the shark back overboard where it can sink to the ocean floor and eventually die. Many shark populations have collapsed worldwide due to overfishing, with some populations declining as much as 90-99%. California now joins a growing worldwide movement to protect this rapidly dwindling species.

After signing the bill Governor Brown had the following to say: “The practice of cutting the fins off of living sharks and dumping them back in the ocean is not only cruel, but it harms the health of our oceans.  Researchers estimate that some shark populations have declined by more than 90 percent, portending grave threats to our environment and commercial fishing. In the interest of future generations, I have signed this bill.”

If you’d like to send a letter to California lawmakers and let them know you appreciate them protecting wildlife please head to Defenders’ Wildlife Action Center and send them your thanks!  

As part of my job at Defenders, I continue to learn about the myriad tools we all have to help make wildlife management work in good times, and during crises like oil spills. I made a commitment after the heart-breaking BP oil disaster in the Gulf of Mexico to be a better citizen by becoming a certified Wildlife Sea Otter Responder. Recently, on a clear, crisp, cold Saturday, about 40 of us gathered in a windowless training room to spend the day with trainers from International Wildlife Research (IWR), U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Alaska Sea Life Center and the Alyeska/SERVS to get a first-hand look at what it takes to be a certified responder.

Sea otters are unique among arctic marine mammals since they rely on the thickness and distinctive make-up of their fur, rather than blubber, to keep them warm or cool and dry. They live in sea-ice covered coastal areas and spend considerable time floating on their backs, often eating shellfish or nursing and caring for their pups that, unlike the young of other aquatic mammals like seals, cannot swim when first born.

Most of us hope we never get that call to respond, because doing so would mean heartbreak and tragedy for sea otters, other marine life and coastal communities.

Sea otters require very specific round-the-clock care when oiled. Their survival and return to the wild depend heavily on certified Wildlife Sea Otter Responders both knowing their jobs and doing them correctly – the first time and every time.

The IWR team that leads these trainings includes scientists, veterinarians and wildlife specialists with expertise and real world experience in the care and rehabilitation of oiled wildlife. In fact, many of them are actual veterans of the infamous Exxon Valdez Spill in Prince William Sound in 1989. IWR has provided expertise for preparing and executing oil spill response operations for sea otters and other marine and land mammals for over 15 years.

Karla Dutton and vet tech Willow are demonstrating the proper taping technique to put on XL-sized protective equipment.

As I embarked on the 9-hour training, I was struck by not only the complexity of the course, but also the very real and serious commitment I was making by being there. After much coffee, careful listening to lectures and participating in a number of team problem-solving sessions, we were deemed ready for any oil spill emergency that might come our way. As a result, I now have my certificate and am on the national register of first responders.

The course and the online training and exam are well worth your time if you feel motivated to be part of a group who could be called in to help wildlife in an oil spill someday. Most of us hope we never get that call to respond, because doing so would mean heartbreak and tragedy for sea otters, other marine life and coastal communities. But 40 more people are now prepared if the phone rings.

Learn more about sea otters and what Defenders is doing to protect all wildlife  from the threat of oil spills.

Defenders international conservation expert Alejandra Goyenechea heads to Jamaica for a week of meetings to help protect marine species in the Caribbean.

Sometimes being in the wildlife conservation biz ain’t so bad…like when you get to spend five days at a resort in Montego Bay, Jamaica!

But Defenders’ international conservation expert Alejandra Goyenechea isn’t heading there for sun and fun. She’s got serious business to attend to as she prepares for nonstop, all-day meetings on how to best protect endangered marine mammals and other species essential to the Caribbean ecosystems.

Today, Alejandra will be meeting with state officials and foreign diplomats to work on Specially Protected Areas and Wildlife (SPAW) in the wider Caribbean region. Among other things, the group will evaluate a plan to reintroduce endangered manatees in Guadeloupe—an archipelago southeast of Puerto Rico that is governed by France. Then from Oct. 6-9, Alejandra will participate in discussions about the United Nation’s action plan for protecting the Caribbean marine environment.

The small island nations of the Caribbean get little attention even though their waters contain some of the most important and abundant marine life. Dolphins, whales, sharks and tuna all make their home in the warm tropical waters of the Caribbean Sea, and nearly 10 percent of the world’s remaining coral reefs are found here. Yet these fragile habitats are in peril from rising sea temperatures due to global warming, putting the entire Caribbean ecosystem–and the livelihoods of those who depend on it–at great risk.

This week Caribbean nations will consider plans to reintroduce manatees to the islands of Guadeloupe to help restore the critically endangered species.

Protecting the Caribbean is critically important, and so is forging strong relationships with new international allies. When it comes to voting on major initiatives at future meetings of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), Caribbean nations have often been key conservation partners. We hope to continue working closely with these nations for the betterment of all threatened and endangered species in the Caribbean and around the world.

Alejandra will follow up next week to tell us what actions will be taken to protect marine life in the Caribbean in coming years and how these island nations can help support Defenders’ CITES objectives. Hopefully, she’ll have time to take a few pictures from the beach as well!