Endangered Whales of BC

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Preservation Through Education THE NORTHWEST WILDLIFE PRESERVATION SOCIETY

— BAIRD’S BEAKED WHALE — [HABITAT] Baird’s beaked whales generally prefer temperate, cold oceans of a depth of at least 3,300 ft, though may occur along narrow continental shelves near shore.

They are often discovered within steep underwater geological structures such as submarine canyons and seamounts.

[RANGE] They are quite widely distributed, ranging throughout the northern Pacific Ocean and among adjacent seas such as Bering Sea, Sea of Japan, and occasionally in the Gulf of California. The whales have been observed to migrate seasonally depending on the temperature of surface waters. From June to August, they can be found in Californian and Japanese waters, whereas in September they are most commonly found in British Columbia. Likely due to the distribution of squid, between April and October, the whales migrate to the eastern North Pacific in the near shore waters of the Bering Sea. As water temperatures decrease they will move further off shore, however little is known about their wintering grounds.

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[DIET] Baird’s beaked whales generally feed on squid, octopus, sardines, ratfish, rockfish, mackerel, mollusks, lobster, and crab. Occasionally they will eat starfish and sea cucumbers, diving up to 10.000 feet for up to an hour to find favoured prey. They use echolocation to navigate in pitch-black depths and locate their prey.

[ADAPTATIONS] To reduce drag when swimming, the whales have slight depressions called ‘flipper pockets’ in the wall of their body in which they can put their flippers in. To further decrease drag, their bodies are very slender and have a small dorsal fin at the rear side of their bodies. An interesting adaptation is their under-developed teeth, which indicates that they likely feed by suction rather than tearing their prey.

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WHAT ARE THE THREATS

of food for the whales, augmenting their risk of starvation. The main cause to their population depletion has been their disturbance to The international Whaling anthropogenic noise pollution from Commission has not set catching oil and shipping vessels and limits regarding Baird’s beaked whales, and unfortunately this has chemical pollution. The whales use echolocation to hunt, communicate, been taken advantage of by the and navigate the ocean, the Japanese whaling Industry which harvests around 70 whales annually increased noise levels may confuse for meat. Overfishing of squid and the whales causing separation from octopi has decreased the abundance their pod, also contributing to beaching and ship collision incidents. Regarding chemical pollution, tissue samples revealed mercury levels averaging 1.64 part per million, which exceeds the acceptable level of 0.4 parts per

Works Cited

http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/static/education/wns/bairds_beaked_whale.pdf http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/species/mammals/ cetaceans/beakedwhale_bairds.htm http://www.cms.int/reports/small_cetaceans/data/b_bairdii/b_bairdii.htm http://www.aquariumofpacific.org/onlinelearningcenter/species/bairds_beaked_whale http://1000yamagata.blog.so-net.ne.jp/archive/c2300784284-1 Northwest Wildlife Preservation Society

720-1190 Melville Street Vancouver BC, V6E 3W1 t 604.568.4907 f 604-568-6152 w www.northwestwildlife.com

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— BLUE WHALE — [HABITAT] Blue whales prefers the deep ocean water over coastal waters and can be most often found in cold to temperate temperatures. They can be seen off the coast of British Columbia in spring and fall.

[DIET] As a baleen whale, blue whales mostly eat krill. This whale has a ribbed throat that expands when taking in water in order increase the holding capacity of their mouth and throat. When straining out the krill by pushing water through their baleen, the whale then scoops the food off their baleen plates with their tongue.

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[RANGE] Blue whales are distributed globally and can be found in all oceans. They tend to frequent temperate-warm waters during breeding season.

[ADAPTATIONS] The blue whale is the largest extant animal in the world.

Blue whales, like other whales and marine mammals, have blubber to keep them warm but still remain incredibly streamline. They have the ability to eat as much food as possible when they come across the resources or not eat for an extended period of time.

They can also communicate across great distances with their call reach 188 decibels.

720-1190 Melville Street Vancouver BC, V6E 3W1 t 604.568.4907 f 604-568-6152 w www.northwestwildlife.com

WHAT ARE THE THREATS Whaling greatly decreased the number of whales, including the blue whale. Ship strike and entanglement in fishing gear is still a major issue today. Blue whales have had protection under the Species at Risk Act (SARA ) since 2005 and are listed as endangered by the

Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC). Whales were hunted commercially for their oil, approximately 9500 blue whales were killed by whalers in the northern pacific. The effects of whaling can be seen with blue whale populations, the estimated population off the coast of BC is critically low at 250 individuals.

Works Cited http://wwf.panda.org/what_we_do/endangered_species/cetaceans/about/blue_whale/ http://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/species-especes/species-especes/blueWhale_Atl-rorqualbleu-eng.htm#description

Northwest Wildlife Preservation Society

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— FIN WHALE — [HABITAT] In Canada, there are populations of fin whale in the north Atlantic and north Pacific. In British Columbia, fin whales can be seen in summer and winter, most frequently in offshore waters, Hecate Strait and Queen Charlotte Sound.

[DIET] Fin whales feed primarily on small invertebrates, schooling fish and squids. In the north Pacific, their diet consisted of 70% euphasiids (krill) and 25% copepods. Fin whales can take in up to 70 tons of food-rich water into their extended throat and use their baleen to sieve out food as they expel saltwater.

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[RANGE] Fin whales can be found all over the world, but are most abundant in temperate to polar latitudes.

Typically, they make seasonal migrations from low-latitude winter areas to higher-latitude feeding grounds in the summer.

[ADAPTATIONS] The fin whales right lower lip is white colored and their left lower lip is dark colored - this head coloration is a diagnostic feature that can be used to differentiate fin whales from other species of large whales such as the blue and sei whale. This color pattern may also aid in the capture of prey.

Fin whales are also very long, slender and streamlined allowing them to be one of the fastest of all large whales.

They are the second largest animal in the world (after the blue whale) and can weigh up to 250,000 lbs!

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WHAT ARE THE THREATS

fin whale is ship strikes. Between 1999 and 2004, at least 6 were hit and killed in the Canadian Pacific. In fact, fin whales are the most The fin whale is designated as commonly struck whales by ships threatened by the Committee on the in the world. However, other threats Status of Endangered Wildlife in such as high noise levels from Canada (COSEWIC) and is protected shipping, entanglement in fishing under the Species at Risk Act lines, high levels of pollution and (SARA). Fin whale populations off other activities that degrade their the coast of British Columbia were feeding areas also pose threats to the threatened by whaling until the species.

1970’s. Today, the major threat to the

Works Cited http://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/species-especes/species-especes/finwhale-pacific-rorqual-commun-pacifique-eng.htm http://wildwhales.org/blue-fin-andsei-whale/ http://marinebio.org/species.asp?id=40 http://sotinpc.files.wordpress.com/2013/06/fin_whale.png http://www.gentlegiants.is/files/Fin%20whale_1748369330.jpg http://ak6.picdn.net/shutterstock/videos/4083064/preview/stock-footage-underwater-submarine-light-lights-water-ocean-fluid-blue-carribean-azureloop-loop-ready.jpg Northwest Wildlife Preservation Society

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—NORTH PACIFIC RIGHT WHALE— [HABITAT] As considered the rarest whale, little is known about the habitat of the Pacific right whale. They were found in bays and coastlines, however they were observed to prefer open sea. It is hypothesized that their breeding grounds exist off-shore, in temperate to sub-polar waters, however in 2002 a female with a calf was observed in the Bering Sea; the first sighting of a calf in the past century.

[DIET] North Pacific right whales feed mostly on copepods (tiny plankton) and krill. These whales are skimmers and feed with their mouth wide open to filter their food. They intake large amounts of sea water and then using their tongue they expel water from their mouths, leaving the zooplankton behind. Though they spend most of their time skimming at the surface they have been known to dive to the ocean floor.

[RANGE] Generally in the summer, they range from the Sea of Okhotsk (eastern Russia), the southeastern Bering Sea, the Aleutian Islands, and the northern Gulf of Alaska for feeding. During winter they frequent the Sea of Japan, Taiwan Strait, and near Baja California, in warmer waters, for calving. During the mid-1900’s the whales were commonly seen in BC, however until recently, there had not been a sighting for 62 years (Haida Gwaii).

Most distribution information is derived from historical logbooks; little is known regarding current distribution due to such diminished population numbers.

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[ADAPTATIONS] A very useful adaptation is their baleen plates which have exceptionally fine fringes to capture their prey. Although directly their purpose is unknown, callosities on the whale’s body, where whale lice live on, are very useful when identifying certain whales. In order to reduce drag the whale has no dorsal fin, but has very wide flippers to swim at slow speeds. A helpful feature is their twin blowhole, which helps them reach their oxygen requirements during a lengthy migration.

720-1190 Melville Street Vancouver BC, V6E 3W1 t 604.568.4907 f 604-568-6152 w www.northwestwildlife.com

WHAT ARE THE THREATS During abundance in the early 20th century, the slow whales were targeted for meat, oil, corset stays, umbrella ribs, and buggy whips, which depleted their population severely. Only in 2006 the National Fisheries service was forced by the Center for Biological Diversity to designate the Bering Sea and Gulf of

Alaska as critical habitats for the North Pacific right whales. Other threats are entanglement with fishing nets, collisions with vessels, and oceanic pollutants. Noise pollution possess another significant threat due to the confusion of frequencies regarding communication between whales; sonar and explosive testing and underwater audio deterrents by fishers.

Works Cited

http://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/species-especes/species-especes/rightwhale-NP-baleinenoirePN-eng.htm http://www.iucnredlist.org/details/41711/0 http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/species/mammals/North_Pacific_right_whale/ http://us.whales.org/species-guide/north-pacific-right-whale http://cetus.ucsd.edu/voicesinthesea_org/images/species/speciesImg/baleenWhales/nPacRight.png Northwest Wildlife Preservation Society

720-1190 Melville Street Vancouver BC, V6E 3W1 t 604.568.4907 f 604-568-6152 w www.northwestwildlife.com

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— SEI WHALE — [HABITAT] Sei whales prefer subtropical to subpolar waters, away from icy waters, particularly in the open, off-shore (pelagic) Pacific Ocean.

They are also found by the continental shelf edge in the northwest Atlantic and are best spotted in the summer.

[RANGE] Sei whales have a cosmopolitan distribution centered on the mid-latitudes; they feed in lower altitude, cooler waters in the summer and migrate to higher altitude subtropical waters during the winter. They are found in the Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific oceans, frequently in the Gulf of Maine, and on George’s bank and Stellwagen bank. A major reason for the conservation of sei whales is due to the lack of current knowledge regarding their migratory patterns and wintering grounds. There have been occasions where large populations of sei whales have grouped in a specific location, and rarely return to that same location.

This unpredictable species can be mapped adjacent to the coast of British Columbia.

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[DIET] Sei whales feed by skimming and swallowing large congregations of surface plankton such as copepods and euphausiids (krill-like creatures). Instead of teeth, they close their mouths to force the water out and use their baleen plates to act as filters to trap their prey, which can also include squid and small fish.

[ADAPTATIONS] Although they generally weigh about 20 tons, the sei whale has a streamlined body that is 14-20 m long which allows them to swim up to 50 km/hour, as one of the fastest cetaceans. The whales are characteristic for their sleek dorsal fin which contributes to the animal’s speed. The whale is a dark-blue or grey, occasionally with white speckles, which aids their hiding from prey and from predators, through camouflage with the water.

Adapted for feeding, the whale contains 300 baleen plates and 32-60 ventral throat grooves.

720-1190 Melville Street Vancouver BC, V6E 3W1 t 604.568.4907 f 604-568-6152 w www.northwestwildlife.com

WHAT ARE THE THREATS A history of human stresses on the sei whales’ populations have directly initiated their depletion as in the late 1960’s through whaling; about 4,000 whales were taken off of BC’s coastline during the peak of this commercial industry. Today, the human stresses continue to augment. As part of Japan’s “scientific whaling program” 50 sei whales are annually killed in the north Pacific. BC oil pipeline expansion risks significant destruction of the migratory path of sei whales, in the event of an oil spill. Thousands of whales are found

annually entangled in fishing gear, collided with tankers, or unsure of their migratory path due to warming waters caused by global climate change.

The sei Whale has been classified as endangered by the Species at Risk Act in 2005, the populations of the third largest of the baleen whales has depleted to an estimate of less than 250 whales in BC waters.

Having existed as the most abundant of the baleen whales up until the late 1960’s, it arrives at a shock that the species have made no recent appearances in BC waters, as recorded by the Committee on the Status of Endangered wildlife in Canada.

Works Cited

http://awsassets.wwf.ca/downloads/ford_1.pdfhttp://www.mintpressnews.com/oil-pipeline-expansion-presents-a-whale-of-aproblem/193410/ http://pncima.org/media/documents/atlas/pncima_atlas_map-20_blue--sei-and-fin-whale-important-areas.pdf http://publications.gc.ca/collections/collection_2013/ec/CW69-14-2-32-2013-eng.pdf http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/species/mammals/cetaceans/seiwhale.htm http://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/Library/327240.pdf http://new-brunswick.net/new-brunswick/whales/sei.html Northwest Wildlife Preservation Society

720-1190 Melville Street Vancouver BC, V6E 3W1 t 604.568.4907 f 604-568-6152 w www.northwestwildlife.com

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— KEEP OUR OCEANS CLEAN — There are some frightening facts about the state of our oceans. Plastic has been making its way into the ocean for the past century and the worst part is, once it is in the water it is much more difficult to clean up. Try doing your part by keeping plastic off the beach and reducing your overall use of one time use plastics.

Many sea creatures, including cetaceans suffer immensely from ingesting these small pieces of plastic and also getting entangled in fishing line . The over all pollution has had very detrimental effects on whale populations worldwide.

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Northwest Wildlife Preservation Society

720-1190 Melville Street Vancouver BC, V6E 3W1 t 604.568.4907 f 604-568-6152 w www.northwestwildlife.com

— WHAT IS NORTHWEST WILDLIFE PRESERVATION SOC IET Y? —

Northwest Wildlife Preservation Society is a Vancouver non-profit organization that believes in preservation through education. We offer enhanced learning programs and we attend events throughout the community with our educational and interactive biofacts.

We offer three main types of programs to schools across the Lower Mainland and also Vancouver Island.

1. Wildlife In Schools 2. Nature Walks and Workshops 3. Youth Estuary Stewardship

These 5 selected whale species are Please contact Darren with further only a small representation of the inquiries or to book a program: cetaceans found in the pacific ocean edcomm@northwestwildlife.com off of the north west coast.

Written by: Anitra Paris (3-4, 11– 12), Fennie van der Graaf (2-3,7-10) and Sophie Church (5-6) Northwest Wildlife Preservation Society

720-1190 Melville Street Vancouver BC, V6E 3W1 t 604.568.4907 f 604-568-6152 w www.northwestwildlife.com

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