MADEIRA: THE ATLANTIC'S SECRET GARDEN
THE BABY ORCA WHO WON HEARTS THE WORLD OVER
WHALE& DOLPHIN Winter 2015 Issue 72
The magazine of WDC, Whale and Dolphin Conservation
WHALING IS SUSTAINABLE? WHALE MEAT IS SAFE TO CONSUME?
WHALES ARE KILLED HUMANELY?
WHALES EAT TOO MANY FISH?
USEFUL INFORMATION ON WHALES CAN ONLY BE OBTAINED BY KILLING THEM?
MYTH BUSTING: BLOWING THE
WHALING LIES OUT OF THE WATER
WHALE MEAT IS A POPULAR FOOD?
WHALING IS TRADITIONAL?
Winter 2015 WHALE&DOLPHIN 3
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Explore the clear waters of Madeira WDC EDITOR Julia Thoms NEWS EDITOR Danny Groves EDITORIAL BOARD Jess Féghali-Brown; Rob Lott PUBLISHED BY WDC Whale and Dolphin Conservation, Brookfield House, 38 St Paul Street, Chippenham, Wiltshire SN15 1LJ, United Kingdom Registered Charity No. 1014705 Registered Company No. 2737421 T +44 (0)1249 449500 (from outside UK) E info@whales.org WDC also has offices in Argentina, Australia, Germany and the USA PATRONS John Craven; Monty Halls; Miranda Krestovnikoff; Michaela Strachan PUBLISHING AND ADVERTISING Consultant editor Malcolm Tait malcolm@thinkpublishing.co.uk Managing editor Alec Mackenzie Sub-editor Andrew Littlefield Design Dominic Scott Advertising Alison Fraser Publisher John Innes Think Scotland, Suite 2.3, Red Tree Business Suites, 33 Dalmarnock Road, Glasgow G40 4LA Tel 0141 375 0504
Whale & Dolphin is published four times a year and distributed to WDC supporters, institutions, conservation bodies and others involved in whale and dolphin conservation. Whale & Dolphin has been printed and bound in the UK by Headley Brothers Ltd, on acidfree paper that is produced from sustainable forests. Royal Roto is certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), originates in the Netherlands and is produced by SAPPI Europe, which holds ISO 14001 certification and is a member of the European Eco-Management and Audit Scheme (EMAS). Contributions: WDC cannot guarantee the return of unsolicited articles, photographs etc. Reproduction of articles is not permitted without approval. Opinions expressed in Whale & Dolphin do not necessarily reflect those of WDC. Advertising policy: WDC reserves the right to refuse an advertisement without explanation. WDC does not necessarily endorse any of the products or services advertised. WDC is unable to recommend specific whale watching trips and cannot vouch for the quality of the trips advertised; go to whales.org/whalewatching for more information on choosing a trip. ISSN 1470-4595 Main image: WDC
Dear friends
I’ve spent more than two decades working to protect whales and dolphins, and one thing has struck me again and again – until we stop whaling and the use of whales and dolphins for ‘entertainment’, addressing all the other threats will remain challenging. While people still profit from the exploitation of whales and dolphins, it’s hard to convince decision makers that accidental threats, such as entanglement, should be tackled with as much urgency. With your support we address these challenges every day. WDC will never give up the fight to stop whaling, and in this issue we look at the complexity of ending the hunts in the Faroe Islands and bust some of the myths put out by whalers. We work on many different levels to end the captive display of whales and dolphins, as our support for orca conservation in Russia shows. At the same time, we are expanding our work to address the entanglement of dolphins and whales in fishing gear. Our North American executive director, Regina Asmutis-Silvia, explains how we plan to tackle this problem for some of the most endangered species in the world. WDC is working on the front line of the most crucial issues facing whales and dolphins, and we won’t stop until every whale and dolphin is safe and free.
Chris Butler-Stroud, WDC chief executive
IN THIS ISSUE 04 News
facebook.com/ whales.org Sign up to our newsletter at whales.org/ newsletter @WHALES_org
Updates from the world of whales and dolphins
12 Myth busting
Blowing the whaling propaganda out of the water
16 Gallery
How a baby orca, full of the joys of life, won the hearts of the world
18 Campaigns
Entanglement is the biggest killer of whales and dolphins. WDC is working hard to tackle this complex problem
22 Face to face
Orcas and belugas are still being captured in Russian waters, but Olga Filatova is trying to change that
24 Ask the experts Why are pilot whale hunts allowed to continue in the Faroe Islands?
26 Adoption updates
The latest news about your favourite dolphins, humpbacks and orcas
32 Site guide
Discover Madeira, the hidden jewel of the Atlantic ocean Winter 2015 WHALE&DOLPHIN 3
WE WON! USA
COURT SAYS ‘NO’ TO IMPORT OF BELUGAS After years of campaigning, a court in the US has ruled in our favour and closed the case on Georgia Aquarium’s request to import 18 belugas captured in Russia twist when SeaWorld announced that it would not now accept any of the belugas that they had planned to ‘borrow’ from Georgia Aquarium for breeding, should its appeal be successful. In its statement, SeaWorld explained that it had signed the Virgin Pledge to no longer take whales or dolphins captured from the wild and that it wanted to affirm this commitment. WDC was a major catalyst in bringing about the pledge and we are cautiously celebrating this as a small victory on the road to real change. Then, at the end of September, we won! In another court case, in which WDC acted as an official ‘intervenor’ providing written and oral evidence, Georgia Aquarium lost its legal battle and the case was closed.
THE AQUARIUM SUED THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT IN AN ATTEMPT TO GET THIS DECISION OVERTURNED AND WE FOUGHT TO MAKE SURE THAT DIDN’T HAPPEN 4 WHALE&DOLPHIN Winter 2015
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eorgia Aquarium failed in its legal battle to bring 18 wild caught beluga whales from Russia to the United States. The application for the importation permit was made back in 2012 and WDC provided evidence and expert testimony in this case, leading to the request being denied. The court found that Georgia Aquarium had failed to show that the import would not likely contribute to more removals of beluga whales from the wild, and would not adversely affect the remaining population that has yet to recover from heavy hunting. The aquarium sued the federal government in an attempt to get this decision overturned and, with your support, we fought to make sure that didn’t happen. In the summer of 2015 events took an unexpected
MORE TO DO! Of course, it isn’t over. These whales still languish in tanks in Russia, and others are still being taken from the wild – but we will keep fighting on their behalf. We are campaigning to have this population of belugas officially recognised as depleted, which will permanently protect them from ever being imported into the US again. We are also working to stop the captures and create a sanctuary for ex-captive belugas – a vast sea pen where individuals can be rehabilitated for release, or retired to live their lives in a more natural environment.
BREACHING NEWS
USA
INTERNATIONAL
A legal battle over the use of powerful sonar and explosives in naval exercises has ended with the US Navy agreeing to limit their future use in any training to avoid potential harm to whales, dolphins and other marine mammals off Hawaii and California. Whales and dolphins use sound to communicate, navigate and find food. Loud noise from explosives and high-frequency sonar can cause them to strand on coastlines, and even kill them. The decision comes after the US Fisheries Service was legally challenged by environmental groups in 2013 for allowing this kind of military activity. Under the agreement, the US Navy will limit the use of explosives and sonar in certain sensitive areas. It can no longer use sonar between Santa Catalina and San Nicolas islands – a
A new report published by the Royal Society has suggested that historical whaling data supplied by Japan may have been inaccurate, with the size and number of sperm whales hunted during the 1960s under-reported. During the 1990s, it was revealed that the former Soviet Union had falsified its whaling data over the previous 30 years. Ignoring regulations set by the International Whaling Commission (IWC), the Soviets regularly killed sperm whales who were below the minimum length, and misreported female whales as larger males in order to make their number tally with the amount of oil being produced from the hunts. Only after the Soviet Union collapsed did the truth come out, revealing that around 180,000 whales had been illegally killed. Scientists have now taken a look at figures submitted by Japanese whalers who were operating in the same areas as the Soviets and discovered that there are further discrepancies between the numbers of whales that the two countries slaughtered.
SHUT TERS TOCK
US NAVY FORCED TO STOP USING HARMFUL SONAR
key habitat for beaked whales. Sonar also is not allowed in blue whale feeding areas near San Diego. The US Navy has estimated it could inadvertently kill 155 whales and dolphins off Hawaii and Southern California, mostly from explosives, and that it could cause more than 11,000 serious injuries off the east coast and 2,000 off Hawaii and Southern California.
JAPANESE HUNT FIGURES NOT CREDIBLE
WDC
SHUTTERSTOCK
ONLY AFTER THE SOVIET UNION COLLAPSED DID THE TRUTH COME OUT, REVEALING THAT AROUND 180,000 WHALES HAD BEEN ILLEGALLY KILLED
UK
WDC DOLPHIN CENTRE SHORTLISTED FOR MORE TOURISM AWARDS It has recently been awarded a certificate of excellence by worldwide travel review site TripAdvisor, and has been given a fourstar rating by the Scottish Tourist Board. Also on offer are interactive exhibitions, a café, shop and themed events that all highlight the work that WDC undertakes to help save these amazing creatures from the many threats that they face. Follow the WDC Whale and Dolphin Centre on Twitter @Dolphinsighting
ANDREW SUTTON ECO2/NICE IMAGES
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DC’s Scottish Dolphin Centre has been shortlisted for Best Visitor Attraction in the Highlands and Islands Tourism Awards 2015. The centre, which has been open since 2004, is visited by more than 90,000 people each year. Sitting in a wildlife reserve on the coastline where the sea meets the River Spey, the centre is one of the best places to go dolphin watching in the UK.
Winter 2015 WHALE&DOLPHIN 5
FAROE ISLANDS
OVER 250 WHALES DIE IN A SINGLE DAY
It may be hard to believe but this year, in just one day, more than 250 pilot whales were slaughtered in the Faroe Islands, a territory of Denmark. One hunt (or grind) took place in the cove of Bøur, where 111 pilot whales were slaughtered, and another just a few hours later in Tórshavn, where 142 pilot whales were killed. The total killed in this year’s hunts in the Faroes is already up to 490 pilot whales, and two bottlenose whales. Every year in the Faroes hundreds of pilot whales and other species – including bottlenose dolphins, Atlantic whitesided dolphins and northern bottlenose whales – are hunted for their meat. The techniques used are intensely stressful and cruel, and well over 3,000 pilot whales have been killed since the beginning of 2010.
WHAT WDC IS DOING
There are no quick or simple solutions to stopping these hunts. We campaign to chip away at all the links in the supply-anddemand chain that support this cruel practice. WDC has been active in confronting the hunts in Japan on a number of levels, from raising awareness of the hunts, engaging with US and Japanese authorities, to supporting educational initiatives, and taking part in peaceful protests.
USA
HARRY STYLES SAYS ‘DON’T VISIT SEAWORLD’
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op sensation Harry Styles has shown his support against whale and dolphin captivity by asking fans attending a concert in San Diego not to visit SeaWorld. Before making the comment Harry asked the cheering audience if they liked dolphins. Also in the crowd was Game of Thrones star Maisie Williams, who later urged her followers on Instagram to watch Blackfish, the award-winning documentary about the orca, Tilikum, held in captivity at SeaWorld. SeaWorld responded by inviting Harry to go to look round its facilities, but in the meantime it seems as if many of the singer’s legions of fans will be avoiding the establishment altogether.
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Follow the debate on Twitter #captivitykills SHUT TERS TOCK
SEAWORLD RESPONDED BY INVITING HARRY TO GO TO LOOK ROUND ITS FACILITIES
BREACHING NEWS
UK
WELCOME INDIGO WDC/CHARLIE PHILLIPS
In the last issue we ran a competition to find a name for our adoptable dolphin, Rainbow’s baby son. A big thank you to everyone who suggested names for him – we had a fantastic response and some great ideas. We have decided to call Rainbow’s son Indigo as it’s one of the colours of a rainbow and we think the name really suits him. Thank you to Robyn MacDonald, Frances Hoad and Andrea McOmish who suggested this name.
UP
You can keep up to date with Rainbow and her family through Charlie Phillip’s blog adoptadolphin.com/blog
DOWN
POLAND
POLAND’S ENVIRONMENT MINISTER SAYS ‘NO’ TO CAPTIVE DOLPHINS Maciej Grabowski, Poland’s environment minister, has been raising concerns about keeping dolphins in captivity, while pouring cold water on possible plans to build a dolphinarium in the Polish town of Mszczonów. In a recent blog, Grabowski stated that there was no agreement to open a commercial dolphinarium in the country.
Two major German cruise lines are to stop sending their ships to the Faroe Islands in protest over the bloody whale and dolphin hunts that take place there. Hapag-Lloyd and AIDA cruise lines will now look for alternative destinations, a move that represents a massive blow to the islands, which depend on tourism revenue.
He went on to say that although the idea to build a captive facility has aroused interest, the best place to see dolphins is in the wild – their natural habitat. Grabowski added that he could not agree with keeping dolphins in captive facilities because they live much shorter lives than they would in the wild.
Alaskan Iñupiat hunters made an unexpected discovery after killing the first bowhead whale of their hunt season. The whale was found to have parts of an old explosive harpoon embedded in the tail area. It highlights the welfare problems that surround both commercial and aboriginal whale hunting. There is no humane way to kill a whale at sea.
JAPAN
VANESSA MIGNON
JAPAN RESUMES MINKE WHALE HUNTS FOR ‘RESEARCH’ Japan has started hunting whales off the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido for what it calls research purposes. Up to 51 minke whales could be killed during the hunts, which the Japanese Fisheries Agency said would supposedly help with research into whale ecology. Japanese ‘research hunts’ such as this one have drawn stiff criticism from the international community. In March 2014, the International Court of Justice in the Hague ordered Japan to stop another of its so-called research whaling programmes in the Antarctic, ruling that it contravened the 1986 ban on commercial whale hunting. During the court hearings, representatives from the Australian government pointed out that Japan has never explained why it needs to kill thousands of whales in the name of research. Scientific experts at the trial told the court that the only thing the Japanese ‘research’ has offered following the killing of more than 7,000 whales is that ‘Antarctic minke whales eat a whole lot of krill’! This, they explained, is ‘something we can learn in biology class at school’. The court ruling led Japan to suspend whaling in the Southern Ocean, but it has said it will resume hunting there later this year.
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BREACHING NEWS
MIDDLE EAST
HAMAS REPORT CAPTURE OF DOLPHIN 'SPY'
ICELAND
ICELANDIC MINISTER QUESTIONS WHALE HUNTS A leading member of the Icelandic government has questioned the extent of the country’s whale hunting in a surprising interview with a local news service. In the first acknowledgement of its kind from an Icelandic government official for many years, Gunnar Bragi Sveinsson, Iceland's foreign minister, has indicated that Iceland should consider reducing its
whaling operations in light of international pressure and criticism. Iceland ignores the international ban on commercial whaling and sets its own quotas (i.e. the number of whales it will kill). This season Iceland killed 184 whales, the largest number since the ban on commercial whaling came into effect in 1986.
GREMM
THESE ‘MILITARY DOLPHINS’ ARE CONFINED IN CAPTIVITY, WHICH CAN CAUSE THEM EXTREME MENTAL AND PHYSICAL STRESS
WDC
Palestinian organisation Hamas claims to have captured an Israeli-trained dolphin ‘spy’ off the coast of the Gaza Strip. Hamas commandos apparently came across the dolphin while on patrol and believed the creature was carrying out a secret mission on behalf of the Israeli intelligence agency, Mossad. The Israel Defence Forces, along with other countries, have used dolphins for military purposes in the past, mainly since the Cold War. Their extraordinary underwater capabilities and use of echolocation have been utilised by US forces to detect mines and even enemy divers. Sadly, these ‘military dolphins’ are confined in captivity, which can cause them extreme mental and physical stress. In captivity this suffering leads to aggression, lower life expectancy and higher infant death rates than in the wild. Recently, Ukraine’s military leaders requested that Russia return 'its' dolphins, who fell into Russian hands when Crimea was annexed back in March.
CANADA
RESCUED ORCA REUNITES WITH FAMILY POD
A young orca, rescued after it was stranded in a cove off an island in British Columbia in July 2013, has been spotted back with his family pod by researchers from Canada's Department of Fisheries and Oceans. The orca, named Sam, could be heard calling for his mother when initially found but, after spending weeks keeping an eye on him, the team stepped in to corral him back into the ocean when concerns grew that he was not eating properly. After two years, during which time he was sighted with other whales, researchers were thrilled when Sam was seen happily reunited with the rest of his pod. 8 WHALE&DOLPHIN Winter 2015
SHUTTE RSTOCK
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UK
BELUGA WHALE APPEARS OFF NORTHERN IRELAND
A beluga has been spotted off the coast of Northern Ireland for what is believed to be the first time ever
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elugas are normally found in cold, Arctic waters and it is unclear what brought this individual so far south. They rarely visit UK waters, with only 17 recorded sightings, mostly off northern Scotland. This sighting, by photographer Gordon Watson, took place near Dunseverick on the County Antrim coast.
A blue whale has also been captured on film around 400km off the coast of Cornwall on 24 August, for what is thought to be the first time ever in English waters. The huge whale was spotted on the northern margin of the Bay of Biscay by Professor Russell Wynn, a marine scientist and part of a research team aboard the UK vessel RRS James Cook.
HONG KONG
ILLEGAL SALE OF WHALE MEAT IN HONG KONG A food store chain in Hong Kong has been criticised for illegally selling tins of whale meat curry. The cans, which reportedly contain meat from the critically endangered fin whale, were discovered on the shelves of the 759 grocery shop in Tuen Mun district. Fin whales are classified as endangered under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), an international treaty drawn up in 1973 to protect wildlife against over exploitation. As well as breaking CITES regulations, the sale of whale meat (and products) is also banned in Hong Kong. It carries a maximum
penalty of HK$5 million (£420,000), and a two-year prison sentence. A spokeswoman for 759 said it had imported the whale meat by mistake and had handed 233 remaining tins (seven had been sold) over to the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department in Hong Kong. The department said it was now investigating the matter. Hong Kong’s Centre for Food Safety is also looking into allegations that the meat may be contaminated. WDC has previously exposed the sale of whale meat in various locations, including at an international food exhibition in Germany. Winter 2015 WHALE&DOLPHIN 9
BREACHING NEWS
ICELAND
TOURISTS SHOCKED BY SHIP DRAGGING DEAD WHALES INTERNATIONAL
WDC HELPS DEVELOP VIRTUAL DOLPHIN APP EON Reality Inc, the world leader in virtual reality-based education and edutainment apps, has teamed up with WDC in a partnership aimed at increasing awareness of the threats facing whales and dolphins. WDC is helping EON develop a virtual reality app for mobile devices, designed to provide a more engaging and interactive way to learn about whales and dolphins, wherever in the world you may be. Users will be able to view and interact with these beautiful creatures and see what their daily lives are like. ‘Historically, the main way the public could experience dolphins and whales up close was through aquariums and water parks,’ said Anna Lejerskar, director of EON Reality’s Learn for Life Program. ‘Unfortunately, the captive mammals pay a very high price by being confined in order to give the public that experience. Thanks to augmented reality and virtual reality, anyone can see whales and dolphins in their natural environments (the wild), and is able to understand that they have the right to exist as nature intends, not as humans decide.’ We hope thousands of people download the app when it becomes available in a few months, and that it encourages them to support WDC and not to visit facilities holding whales and dolphins in captivity.
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More than 100 whales (including endangered fin whales) have been killed in the 2015 Icelandic whaling season. It is estimated that as many as a quarter of all tourists to Iceland go whale watching. In 2014, more than 118,000 people took a whale watch tour out of Reykjavík, generating more than 940 million króna (₤4.5 million) in ticket sales alone.
YOU CAN'T HAVE DEAD WHALES BEING THE ONLY THING SEEN BY PEOPLE WHO SPEND MONEY ON WHALE WATCHING
TIMOTHY BAKER
USERS WILL BE ABLE TO VIEW AND INTERACT WITH THESE BEAUTIFUL CREATURES AND SEE WHAT THEIR DAILY LIVES ARE LIKE
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raphic new photos have emerged showing how whaling is threatening whale watching. The images of an Icelandic whaling vessel dragging dead endangered fin whales to shore for processing were taken by Timothy Baker, a US whale watching tourist. Hoping to see protected fin whales in their natural environment, Baker and others in his party were instead confronted by the grim spectacle of the Hvalur 8, owned by Icelandic multimillionaire whaling kingpin Kristján Loftsson, towing dead whales back to shore. ‘Watching the whaling vessel heading into port dragging the dead whales was the definition of a crossroads for Iceland,’ said Baker, disturbed by the incident. ‘You can't have dead whales being the only thing seen by people who spend money on whale watching.’
ALL WRAPPED UP WE’VE GOT SOME GREAT CHRISTMAS GIFT IDEAS FOR YOU! Collins Wild Guide Whales & Dolphins £2.99 A super pocket-sized guide
Marble dolphins from £7.40
‘Stop Polluting’ t-shirt £8.50
These dolphin figures are fair trade
This t-shirt bears the vital message ‘Stop polluting their seas’
Dolphin necklace £23.50
This sterling silver dolphin pendant comes in a presentation box
Mother Love print £14
A beautiful A5 print complete with mount
Gift Vouchers from £5
Use at our online shop or the WDC Scottish Dolphin Centre
See more gifts online at whales.org/shop
16 WHALE&DOLPHIN Winter 2015
GALLERY
Orca album
See more of Clint’s work at facebook.com/ clintriversshowtime photography or orcawizard.com
BORN TO BE FREE
These images of a very special baby orca have entranced the world
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Harris, executive director of the Pacific his baby orca breaching Whale Watch Association, thinks this could has become a small symbol be what’s behind her apparent joy. In an of hope for the Southern interview for Global News, he Resident orcas. said: ‘Maybe the other members Photographer Clint of her family realise how precious Rivers caught her exuberance on she is, and how close she came camera and the world fell in love to never making it into this with six-month-old J50. world. Perhaps with all this love ‘It’s like she just figured out surrounding her, this baby orca is how this breaching thing works just bursting with happiness.’ and couldn’t stop,’ says Clint. CLINT The Southern Resident orcas ‘She was still breaching well into ‘SHOWTIME’ live along the south-west coast of the evening.’ RIVERS Canada and the north-west coast If you look closely, you’ll Eagle Wing Whale of the US. They are recognised see that the little orca has Watching Tours as endangered by US law after rake marks on her body – the population was decimated researchers speculate that her by captures for marine parks in birth may have been difficult and the 1960s and 70s. Every new baby in this it’s likely she was pulled from her mother, population is cause for cautious celebration. Slick, by her older sister, Alki. Michael
CLINT RIVERS
PERHAPS WITH ALL THIS LOVE SURROUNDING HER, THIS BABY ORCA IS JUST BURSTING WITH HAPPINESS Winter 2015 WHALE&DOLPHIN 17
CAMPAIGNS
THE HIDDEN PERIL but she was badly injured and was found dead orn in the warm waters of the West less than one month later. Indies during the winter of 2004, Spinnaker is survived by her mother Palette, Spinnaker, a humpback whale, her grandmother Compass, six siblings and spent the first year of her life by another 800+ humpback whales in the Gulf of her mother’s side. Having survived Maine. More than half of these whales have the 2,400km swim to her summer feeding been entangled in fishing gear at least once, grounds in the Gulf of Maine, she quickly and 12% of them, like Spinnaker, have been learned how and where to find food and entangled more than once. Some doubled her size while nursing on survive, others don’t. Spinnaker 150-225 litres of milk each day. i lived in the urban waters off the Spinnaker was on her own and coast of New England, home to thriving. Not only was she enjoying WDC’s North American office, her meals of 680kg of small an area where the threat of schooling fish each day, but she entanglement is a daily part of life. was playing her part in helping the Entanglement in fishing gear is environment. She drove nutrients the largest threat faced by whales from the bottom towards the surface, REGINA and dolphins. It is called ‘bycatch’ supplying nourishment to the tiny ASMUTIS-SILVIA phytoplankton in the shallows is executive director because it is unintentional, in that neither the fishers nor the marine which supply most of the world’s of WDC North mammals are purposefully oxygen. All was well until she America interacting. Hundreds of thousands became entangled in fishing gear of whales and dolphins get trapped in 2006 at just two years of age. in fishing gear every year. Some escape and Thankfully, US rescue crews freed her and bear scars as evidence, a small percentage she resumed her life as a young humpback are saved by disentanglement teams, while whale. For the next eight years, Spinnaker an unknown number drown, starve to death grew in size and maturity. As an adult female or die from infection as the ropes or lines saw humpback, she was pursued by throngs of into their flesh. young males in her West Indies winter home. Eighty-two per cent of all North Atlantic In 2014, Spinnaker became entangled once right whales and more than half of all Gulf of more in fishing gear off the coast of Maine, Maine humpback whales have been entangled when she was 10 years old. Again, she was rescued. But tragedy struck in May 2015. Rescue at least once in their lives. Research suggests that at least 25 Gulf of Maine humpbacks die teams received a call to say that Spinnaker was every year from entanglement. seriously entangled. They removed the gear 18 WHALE&DOLPHIN Winter 2015
ALLIED WHALE/COLLEGE OF THE ATLANTIC
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Regina Asmutis-Silvia tackles the complex and tangled issue of bycatch in American waters
Above: Sadly, Spinnaker got tangled in fishing gear a number of times in her short life Top left: Spinnaker in happier times Winter 2015 WHALE&DOLPHIN 19
Increased gear strength also increases the risk of injury or death
Bycatch is a well-known threat but there are many unknowns that make it difficult to tackle. To start with there are two categories of fishing: tended or untended gear. Tended gear is ‘manned’ (attached to a vessel) and dragged through the water to catch fish. Trawlers and dredgers target midwater or bottom fish such as herring, flounder or cod, or shellfish such as clams or scallops. If a dolphin enters the mouth of a trawl net to take advantage of the dense concentrations of fish, he or she may become trapped in the narrow end. If the dolphin cannot escape, he or she will drown. Even hook and line fisheries pose a risk as hooks can become embedded in the flesh of a passing whale or dolphin, leaving the nearly invisible trailing line as an entanglement threat.
What is the biggest danger?
Fixed gear or drift nets pose the most significant threat to whales and dolphins. This gear is set and left, to be retrieved hours, days or weeks later. The most common types are creel pots, fishing for lobsters or crabs, and static gillnets, which are fishing for a variety of market fish. Drift nets are similar to gillnets but are not anchored in place. These walls of netting can be up to 50km in length and drift through the water, capturing whatever is in their path. While it seems that whales and dolphins are most frequently getting caught in active fishing gear, there is also evidence that everything from ghost gear (lost gear) to anchor lines also pose an unknown level of risk. 20 WHALE&DOLPHIN Winter 2015
Why does it happen?
The simplest answer is shared habitat. Whales, dolphins, fish and humans seek areas to find food and while the target prey may not be the same, the areas they inhabit often are. Very few cases of entanglement have been witnessed to show us why whales or dolphins cannot always avoid the gear. In some cases they may not be aware of it, yet in many cases they do seem to avoid it successfully. In cases where they don’t, the whale or dolphin doesn’t necessarily pull away from the gear, but instead they seem to roll into it, further exacerbating the entanglement. Another problem is behaviour – of both whales and dolphins, and humans. In some cases, fishers target areas where whales and dolphins are known to feed in the hope of increasing their catch, such as in Pacific tuna fisheries. In other instances, whales or dolphins may be so focused on feeding or socialising that they are unaware of the line or net in their path. The fact that the strength of fishing line has increased over the past 50 years hasn’t helped. For thousands of years, up until the 1950s, fishing lines were largely made from manila rope. This natural fibre rope was made from plants and has a relatively low breaking strength and shorter life span than the plasticbased ropes used today. Beginning in the 1950s, polypropylene manufacturing revolutionised a generation. Used in products from plastic toys to carpets and fishing line, this resin was cheap to produce and stronger than natural fibres. In the 1990s, the next generation of plastic ropes
FLORIDA FISH AND WILDLIFE CONSERVATION COMMISSION
NMFS BEAUFORT LAB
CAMPAIGNS
A young North Atlantic right whale entangled off the Florida coast
was introduced. Polysteel lines are light, strong and durable, all appealing qualities for fishing, but the increased strength and lifespan of the ropes also increases the risk of injury or death to the whales who become entangled in it.
What is the solution?
Some may consider an end to fishing the simplest solution, but one only needs to look more deeply to see that it’s not that simple. Most people choose to eat fish and, according to a 2014 United Nations report, fishing plays a significant role in the global economy, with more than 700 million people deriving their
A sperm whale swimming with gear attached
ALBERTO ROMEO
MISSING GEAR
Entangled whales often swim away with gear attached to them, so why wouldn’t a fisher notice their gear is missing? In fact they probably do know that their gear is missing, but not why. Gear can be moved kilometres, and sometimes washes ashore, during a major storm. Passing tugs and barges frequently catch lines and move gear with them, while other vessels that pass over gear may inadvertently cut a line with their propeller, leaving the net with no surface marker to relocate it.
What is WDC doing?
livelihood from the industry. In the United States, saltwater fishing supported nearly two million jobs and generated more than $199 billion in 2011. Managers must assess economic risks alongside risks to whales, dolphins and other marine species. Just as a single car accident on a deserted road is unlikely to warrant the installation of traffic lights, managers are unlikely to modify fisheries in cases where there is little information. Collection of data on the levels of fishing activities and on-board bycatch monitoring are essential steps. Where information is available, appropriate modifications to fishing can be proposed.
In the United States, WDC is appointed to several federal taskforces charged with proposing risk-reduction measures to the US government. We have been instrumental in the implementation of numerous US regulatory measures to reduce the risk of bycatch to whales, dolphins and porpoises along the US east coast. We have helped to establish a rule requiring the use of sinking groundline, reducing the amount of line floating in the water; a vertical line reduction rule to reduce the number of buoy lines used in specific fisheries; a seasonal fisheries closure to protect critically endangered North Atlantic right whale calves during the birthing season; and a requirement for marking to provide data on the origin of gear found on entangled whales. Through our Whale SENSE programme, WDC has increased awareness and reporting of entangled whales by responsible whale watch operators. Since the programme began, at least 17 whale entanglements have been reported by Whale SENSE boats. In situations where Whale SENSE participants were standing by, rescuers were able to find and help distressed whales quickly, including Spinnaker, whose
The rate of gear loss for most fisheries is low, but so is the chance of recovering lost gear. We do not know how much ‘ghost gear’ is floating around out there. Even in cases where lines and nets are removed from a whale, it is rare for the gear to be traced back to the fishery, never mind the area in which it was set. By the time a whale has been found entangled, he or she may have swum tens or hundreds of kilometres with only the entangling rope left on his or her body. entanglement was documented and reported by Whale SENSE member Bar Harbor Whale Watch. As part of the Atlantic Large Whale Disentanglement Network, WDC collects and shares data on entangled and injured whales, facilitating the rescue and monitoring efforts of the disentanglement teams.
How can you help?
Your choices can make a lasting difference for whales and dolphins. If you are buying fish, check seafoodwatch.org/resources. If you are whale watching, where possible choose a company that reports and stands by entangled whales. If you find debris on your beach or roadside, pick it up before it finds its way to the ocean and poses a risk to whales and dolphins. Just four months after the loss of Spinnaker, the Center for Coastal Studies disentanglement team rescued her niece or nephew from a lifethreatening entanglement. But we remain hopeful, as Spinnaker’s mum has returned with a new calf this year. Our work to ensure that this newest addition to Spinnaker’s family is safe is only possible because of you. Your choice to support WDC enables us to work to ease this global threat and we are deeply appreciative. n Winter 2015 WHALE&DOLPHIN 21
CAPTURED SOULS Astonishingly, in the waters of far eastern Russia, orcas are still being captured for the entertainment industry. Meet Dr Olga Filatova, who is using the results of her studies of orca behaviour to fight back
I
t’s amazing how often timing plays an important role in life. As the 20th century drew to a close, Olga Filatova, armed with a degree in biology from Moscow State University, was undertaking fieldwork in the Commander Islands off Kamchatka in far east Russia, where she was studying the sounds of Arctic foxes. ‘Up until that point, I had never thought about working with whales or dolphins in the wild, because I was completely sure that it was impossible,’ she recalls. ‘It was a difficult time in Russia, and the economy was pretty bad, so I didn’t think there would be any opportunities.’ As it happened, there was one that was coming together right on her doorstep. In 1999, WDC had initiated the Far East Russian Orca Project (FEROP), and by the time Olga had completed her season of fox studies the
22 WHALE&DOLPHIN Winter 2015
first FEROP expedition was being organised, and volunteers were being sought. ‘I went along out of curiosity, and I was completely captivated by the orcas,’ she says. This was in 2000, and Olga has been working with FEROP ever since. Having gained her PhD, she’s now a research associate at the Department of Vertebrate Zoology at Moscow State University, focusing on orca sound recording and analysis. Her time with FEROP over the last 15 years has had a significant impact on the life of these far eastern orcas. ‘Through our work we have turned the completely unstudied orcas off eastern Kamchatka into a well-studied population, which makes a big difference when it comes to protecting them,’ she explains. ‘Before we started this work, nothing was known about orcas in this area. Now we know their social structure, feeding habits, group dialects and
more, and we follow their life histories from year to year.’
Inhumane orca captures
Why, then, is this important? Well, Russia is the only country in the world that still captures orcas (and belugas) from the wild, and the greater the understanding we have of these particular populations, the better placed we are to be able to protect them. ‘Orca captures, mainly for the Japanese aquarium industry, were what FEROP struggled with from the very beginning,’ says Olga. ‘These captures are not just inhumane, they are also absolutely unjustified scientifically. When we began, we discovered that there were not as many orcas – about 300 ‘locals’ in our main study area and around 700 along the entire eastern Kamchatka coast – as had previously been thought.’ ‘At FEROP, we were the first to protest against the captures,’ Olga continues. ‘When the first orca was taken, a lot of people said: ‘Just one? It isn’t a big deal!’ Yet our research clearly showed that the Russian orca populations all have their
FACE TO FACE
What is so special about Russian orca society? ‘Well, there is not just one society’, explains Olga Filatova. ‘Fish-eating (resident) orcas in our main study area off south-eastern Kamchatka are very similar to their cousins across the ocean, in British Columbia and Alaska. They live in large stable families and stay alongside their mums for their entire lives. Every family has its own vocal dialect. Unlike the well-known Canadian Northern Residents, however, their dialects do not always correspond to the social structure. Some families with
very similar dialects almost never travel together. ‘Fish-eating orcas from the Commander Islands are less regular and predictable, even though they are from the same
‘resident’ ecotype. There are no ‘local’ groups, they all come and go, and rarely stay in the area for long. ‘There are also mammaleating (transient) or so-called Bigg’s orcas in the Russian Pacific, although we encounter them very rarely – usually once or twice every summer. They are much fewer in numbers than fish-eaters, and they travel large distances: we have one documented resighting between the western Okhotsk Sea and the Northern Kuril Islands, which is about 1,300 km away.’
THE MAIN PROBLEM IS THAT OUR ‘SCIENTIFIC’ FISHERIES HAVE THEIR OWN VESTED INTEREST IN ORCA CAPTURES. FOR EXAMPLE, THIS YEAR, THE PACIFIC FISHERIES RESEARCH INSTITUTE (TINRO) HAS CAPTURED TWO ORCAS ALL IMAGES: RUSSIANORCA.ORG
own behaviours, cultures and prey choices which can be deeply affected by the loss of every single individual. We kept talking to people and raising awareness, and today we have many supporters among scientists, journalists and the general public.’ FEROP’s work was initially very successful, bringing to a close orca capture in eastern Kamchatka, and for some time there were no captures at all. In 2010, however, the whole process began again, this time further out into the Okhotsk Sea. Part of Olga’s role is to attend meetings with Russia’s Fisheries Institutes, impressing upon the authorities the effects that each and every barbaric capture has on populations. It’s a demanding role. ‘The Fisheries Institutes take a rough estimate of all the orcas in the Okhotsk Sea – they put the total at around 3,500, although this is a very questionable figure – and then calculate what’s known as the potential biological removal (PBR) from it. The captures themselves take place in one small region of the sea, from one small mammal-eating population of orcas.’
This latter point leaves Olga incredulous. ‘It’s very hard to believe,’ she says, ‘but our officials do not even admit the existence of separate fish-eating populations, which are the resident ones, and the transient mammaleating populations! We have provided proof, through genetic analysis and other studies published in scientific journals, yet still they deny that there are these significant variations in feeding behaviour. ‘The main problem is that our ‘scientific’ fisheries have their own vested interest in orca captures. For example, this year, the Pacific Fisheries Research Institute (TINRO) has captured two orcas, meaning that they not only find ways to ‘justify’ the quotas, but they use them themselves too. No wonder they want to turn a deaf ear to our arguments.’
Russia’s challenging geography
It’s not just the institutions that try to resist FEROP: the geography of that far-flung part of Russia presents a challenge too. ‘Transport in the Russian far east is awful,’ says Olga, ‘and if you don’t have enough money to hire your own boat, every step is hard work. You can spend, quite literally, weeks just trying to get to the field camp. Flights are rare, expensive and weather dependent, and you have to buy tickets two months in advance. When you’re travelling overland, most villages don’t have petrol stations, so you have to bring your own barrels of the stuff.’ What about all the equipment, including for measuring and
recording sonar, that the team needs to bring with them? ‘There are no regular cargo ships, so we have to contact several companies to find out when the next ship is likely to set sail. The typical response is: ‘We don’t know. Call us back in a week.’’ In short, every time Olga and her colleagues want to reach a new destination it is a challenge in its own right. But none of this deters her in her determination to protect the orcas of the far eastern Russian waters. ‘Ever since I first came across the orcas in 2000, my interest and imagination have been captured by their beauty, intelligence and complexity,’ she says. In fact, they dominate her life. ‘I don’t really have any ‘normal’ hobbies, because most of what I do is more or less connected with my work,’ she smiles. ‘I like to travel, but I almost never do it for vacations – it is either for fieldwork, or conferences and other meetings. I suppose I could say that my main interest is in finding out how the world works, and when I do manage to grab any free time it’s to investigate the world’s various aspects in different ways, from reading popular science books to following Coursera (which offers free online courses from the world’s best universities) lectures.’ In addition to her work with FEROP, Dr Olga Filatova is chair of the orca working group of the Russian Marine Mammal Council. In 2013, she received a Marie Curie fellowship from the University of St Andrews in the UK to study the evolution of orca sounds. n Winter 2015 WHALE&DOLPHIN 23
ASK THE EXPERTS
WHY ARE PILOT WHALE HUNTS ALLOWED TO CONTINUE IN THE FAROE ISLANDS? Courtney S Vail explains the legal complexities that lie behind the cruel practice of Faroese drive hunts
24 WHALE&DOLPHIN Winter 2015
ANDREW SUTTON ECO 2 / NICE IMAGES
A
from a subsistence existence as any other nswering this question requires a modern European country. look at the political and cultural aspects of this so-called tradition. WDC has been campaigning to Devil in the detail end the hunt ever since we The legalities are complex. The Faroe Islands were founded nearly 30 years ago. Other are a territory of Denmark with a home rule animal welfare and conservation groups government. As new laws governing the grind are equally perplexed that such a cruel have been put into place, the Royal Danish practice persists in this modern age. Navy has been enlisted to intervene in the hunts The brutality of the grindadrap to stop protestors disrupting them. i or ‘grind’ cannot be overstated. Technically it’s not a violation of Family groups are rounded up at Danish or EU policy for Denmark sea by boats and driven to the shore. to assist in military or policing Once they beach, metal hooks are matters in the Faroes. Indeed, much inserted into their blowholes and of Denmark’s role in the Faroes has used to drag the whales up the been as a protectorate of this semibeach or into the shallows, where autonomous nation, lending they are killed with a knife cut COURTNEY S VAIL assistance in security matters. (spinal lance) to their major blood In addition, the hunts are not leads WDC’s work vessels behind the blowhole. The to end dolphin hunts subject to international control driving, dragging and killing, all of because they target small species which takes place within view of of whales and dolphins that do not their pod members, is intensely stressful and come under the remit of the International cruel. Long-finned pilot whales and other Whaling Commission (IWC, the body that species – including bottlenose dolphins, regulates whaling). Furthermore, because the Atlantic white-sided dolphins, white-beaked Faroe Islands are not a member of the dolphins and northern bottlenose whales – European Union, they are not subject to are hunted for their meat. European legislation that forbids whale and This island nation was once entirely dolphin hunting. As a result, there are no clear reliant upon the sea for survival, but legal mechanisms to prevent the hunt. modernity within the Faroes means Although the Faroe Islands comply with the communities are not remotely reliant upon moratorium on commercial whaling, they whale meat as a food source and are as far have stated that they would like to return to
ASK THE EXPERTS
commercial whaling if the ban is lifted, and they regularly import minke whale meat from Norway. WDC believes that Denmark, as a member of the EU and the IWC, has consistently sidestepped its responsibilities to protect whales and dolphins, especially in its territories. WDC is part of a coalition of groups calling on Denmark to take action against commercial whaling in its overseas territories of the Faroe Islands and Greenland. While legislation has been implemented recently to introduce new more humane killing methods and training intended to reduce killing times, the chaotic and uncontrolled nature of the hunts mean such measures do nothing to reduce and eliminate the suffering. In fact, the new killing knife that has been developed by the Faroese has been adapted and is being used in the dolphin drive hunts in Taiji, Japan. A veterinary analysis of this knife and method discredits claims that these methods are improved or humane.
WDC’s role
In recent years our campaigning against the hunt has taken a lower profile as we believe that overt and vociferous public pressure has only encouraged the hunts to continue and increase. Our engagement with communities and authorities in the Faroe Islands has shown some promising ways forward and we continue to seek solutions through better understanding and engagement with grassroots organisations there. No level of hunting is acceptable to WDC, and we are committed to finding new ways to stop the grinds. We are focused on changing hearts and minds within the Faroe Islands. Our campaigns, although not always visible to the public, involve the nurturing of relationships and development of like-minded coalitions that can work within the Faroes themselves to challenge claims that the hunts are a necessary tradition. The individuals we work with educate and share their love and appreciation for the whales and dolphins who live in the waters around their home. On the political front, we are working within the IWC to hold Denmark accountable for the whaling activities conducted by its territories. We believe that to change unsustainable or cruel practices requires a variety of approaches, but we do not align ourselves with violent or confrontational tactics. Challenging entrenched cultural attitudes and beliefs often involves conflict. Resistance to outside criticism is natural. Societies and their customs do adapt and change, and we will not stop our efforts until we end these cruel hunts for good. n Winter 2015 WHALE&DOLPHIN 25
ADOPTION UPDATES Here’s all the latest news about the bottlenose dolphins, humpback whales and orcas you so generously adopt – presented by the people who know them so well
ALL IMAGES: WDC/CHARLIE PHILLIPS
DOLPHIN DIARIES Brought to you by Charlie Phillips
writing about Normally, at this time of year, I would be sightings of that rt the season ‘winding down’ and repo This year, day. the by er scarc ming dolphins are beco al season for typic a been ’t hasn It true. y partl only however, that is t) sightings of dolphins me at all, with very fragmented (but grea . The dolphins have area ical raph geog r wide spread over a much l. I have yet to do a usua tended to go out on the open sea more than over the season, phed ogra phot have I s proper count of the individual . I am rises surp ant but I think that I might be in for a few pleas present stars tion adop WDC the of all certainly very happy at having viour from beha l socia erful wond some seen have and healthy, and some of them throughout this year. come across so often In addition, quite a few dolphins that I don’t their photos taken. get to ra have been lining up in front of my came in season that bit dolph s make s idual indiv Such unexpected variety in two days are no job, to my more exciting. Certainly, when it comes an end, the to s come run on salm ever the same. As the migratory year we this but dle, dwin to s start Point onry activity around Chan herring and erel mack ge avera seem to be blessed with bigger than Point. onry Chan of sight n withi Firth Inner groups moving into the hing’ by hunting these Groups of dolphins are already ‘prey switc h are diving whic ets, gann shoaling fish along with the esting inter very a be could It ins. dolph in beside the d. winter… very interesting indee
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Kesslet Kesslet has been all over the place recently. As well as being the typical ‘urban dolphin’, with daily visits right inside Inverness Harbour and Marina to search for fish, she has been delighting visitors and staff at our Dolphin and Seal Centre at North Kessock. She sometimes has Scoopy and her son Charlie for company and is always brilliant to watch as she hunts for salmon in the Kessock Channel. Later in the season, Kesslet started to appear every other day around Chanonry Point and out into Rosemarkie Bay, attacking the shoals of tasty mackerel that are replacing the salmon now they’ve finished their annual migration. She is looking in superb condition, but has picked up a few superficial scratches around her body, likely from rough-and-tumble play with Charlie. These marks will fade over the winter.
Rainbow I have been seeing a good bit of Rainbow and her young son Indigo over the last few months. They have not only joined the other ‘regular’ dolphins who come to forage around Chanonry Point, but they have also popped up beside me numerous times while I have been out at sea. At one point I even thought they were following me around! Rainbow is looking in great condition, appears happy and healthy, and seems to be a bit more socially active, joining a group that includes other mum-and-youngster pairs. These young dolphins certainly know how to have fun! Indigo is often in the thick of the action – leaping and breaching and playing games, sometimes with the boat I am on. It is wonderful to watch and great to see Rainbow looking so good and Indigo being so happy.
Follow Charlie’s blog at whales.org/adoptadolphinblog
Chris Butler-Stroud, WDCS chief executive
26 WHALE&DOLPHIN Winter 2015
On Twitter @adoptadolphin
Sundance I’m seeing Sundance here, there and everywhere at the moment. Chanonry Point is quietening down a bit, but he still looks around for salmon every other day or so, before heading away with a mixed group into the wide blue yonder. He has been keeping Spirit and Rainbow company up near Cromarty. In fact I have a nice little video clip where he surfaces to breathe (bit.ly/1L0d291), and then Rainbow and her son Indigo come up right in front of him. Sundance gave me a fright on a different trip by heading right for the side of the boat where I was sitting and only diving under in the last split second, scraping the bottom of the boat with his dorsal fin – what an encounter! Like his big buddy Mischief, Sundance is piling on the pounds for the oncoming winter by getting as much herring and mackerel as he can, keeping that insulating ‘jacket’ of his as thick as possible.
Spirit I have seen quite a lot of Spirit and her 2014 baby, who we have just found out is a girl! They are often in the same social group as Rainbow and her son Indigo. It’s funny how these groups of dolphins mix together and then go their separate ways, often with new members. A month or two ago, Moonlight and Spirit were together all the time, but in the ‘fission-fusion’
society that these dolphins live in, friendships are many and complicated, and groups are always on the move. Spirit is one of the most social dolphins in this area. She’s always a joy to watch – a beautiful dolphin and a very attentive mum who is looking in great form, as is her lovely wee girl. I’m hoping to see them every so often over the coming winter months.
Moonlight Moonlight and her youngster have been a bit elusive just recently. After being around Chanonry Point a fair bit earlier in the season, they are now only seen out beyond Cromarty and have likely moved, with some other dolphins, further along the coast to take advantage of the mackerel and herring shoals that come and go at this time of year. I have seen much more of
Moonlight’s lovely son, Lunar, in the last month or two, as he has turned up with a group of sub-adults charging around near Chanonry. On a recent photo ID trip with The University of Aberdeen he nearly got in the boat beside me, chasing fish and playing with his pals! Hopefully his mum and wee brother or sister will start appearing again before winter sets in.
Mischief
MOONLIGHT HAS MOVED ALONG THE COAST TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE FISH SHOALS
Mischief is packing on the calories in the run-up to the winter period by gorging himself silly on the oily fish that are in the area. He has been around Chanonry Point quite a lot recently but often just cruises through with a bunch of pals, sometimes including Sundance, then heads away into the distance. I have been fortunate in the last few months to have spent a lot of time out on the water and this big lad has been around on nearly every trip. On one encounter he came rocketing up to the back of the Ecoventures boat then swept past us at tremendous speed, ploughing right into a shoal of mackerel and scattering fish everywhere. An awesome sight to see, and it still amazes me just how fast big male dolphins like Mischief can be when in a straight-line sprint. Winter 2015 WHALE&DOLPHIN 27
ADOPTION UPDATES
HUMPBACK HEADLINES Brought to you by Regina Asmutis-Silvia
time. Winter in New England seems like a quiet research The whale watch season has ended, the is interns have all gone home, and everyone e whale watch activ an such after But . snow the for preparing rican office is as busy season this summer, the WDC North Ame ing up on data and catch t spen are ths mon r as ever. The colde es and preparing whal k pbac sightings, identifying unknown hum ths away! mon t shor few a only is h whic for the next season, summer, we the from As we look at data sheets and pictures -working hard al, omen phen eight the are constantly reminded of I enjoy year Each . 2015 in us d joine who ns research inter sightings of the hearing the interns get excited at their first humpbacks. tion adop the ding inclu es, well-known whal personalities the know As the season continues they get to favourite whale. a finds n inter each and s, of all of the new calve my life for of part These humpbacks have been such a large have on they ct impa the rving so long that I take joy in obse ts. tionis erva cons e whal of n ratio the next gene out for them. They This season our interns had their work cut of them, but 275 ifying ident es, whal 330 observed more than also a busy was It ify. ident we still have more than 55 whales to to keep pairs -calf -and mum 70 than nursery year, with more away shy t didn’ track of. This dedicated group of volunteers keep to ssly tirele ed from the challenge. They work k them up with the whales, and we cannot than work. enough for all their time, passion and hard
Reflection While Reflection is usually one of the first whales we see each season, this year it was her 2014 calf who showed up first. Our first sighting of Reflection was at the end of June and she was seen repeatedly throughout July and August. Reflection is a kick feeder, a technique that seems
to be unique to the Gulf of Maine population of humpback whales. When they feed on sand lance, some of the whales will kick the water surface once or twice to disturb the fish, and then encircle them with bubbles before gulping down a mouthful. Reflection has added
Salt
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WDC/DA NICA WARNS
Salt was a regular visitor to the Gulf of Maine throughout July and into August, giving many of our interns a look at (probably) the most famous whale on earth! She is certainly one of the most photographed, and this year’s interns added nearly 200 images of her to our database. The interns were not only treated to sightings of Salt, but they were able to meet many of her family, including her son Brine, her daughter Thalassa, her calf Sanchal and several of her grandcalves. Salt is not a kick feeder, preferring instead to corral her fish using only bubbles. In contrast, her grandchildren seem to have perfected the more ‘modern’ technique of kick feeding. Salt often prefers the company of other females when she is pregnant and we did see her several times with Freckles. But we also saw her hanging out with Putter, an adult male, so we will have to wait until next spring to see if she was just being social, or if through her behaviour she was giving us a clue about her pregnancy!
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Chris Butler-Stroud, WDCS chief executive
28 WHALE&DOLPHIN Winter 2015
On Twitter @WHALES_org
Midnight Midnight has a reputation for being a bit shy and elusive, so we were thrilled that three of our interns were able to see her in July this year, although only one lucky intern was able to watch her surface feed. Midnight is not a kick feeder, instead
them out to Canadian waters, where they seem to prefer to spend their summers when they are on their own. Perhaps, as we continue to get through our data from this year, we will find that we did see some of her children after all.
but they also met her new grand-calf, as Habenero, Pepper’s daughter, returned with a baby of her own. One of the most amazing behaviours any of our interns might be privileged to see is what we call ‘close approach’ behaviour, where a whale intentionally
swims over to check out the boat. It’s not something that is witnessed often, and many of our interns never get to see it, so the lucky few that were out on 7 August had a treat when Pepper’s new calf swam right over and took a look at them.
her own spin on this technique by lifting her head out of the water before she kicks. Because we had an amazing season with bait near the surface, nearly every intern who saw Reflection was able to watch her kick feed. We think the interns definitely lucked out!
WDC/HEATHER LETZKUS
WDC/JEREMY BELKNAP
corralling her fish using only bubbles. She also seems to like dining alone, so we were surprised to see her hanging out with Coral, Erosion and Aswan this season. We didn’t spot any of her former calves, but we suspect she may take
Pepper We weren’t sure if any of our interns were going to see Pepper as she didn’t make an appearance until mid-July, but it was definitely worth the wait when she returned with a new calf! And not only did our interns see Pepper and her new little one,
Winter 2015 WHALE&DOLPHIN 29
WDC/JEREMY BELKNAP
PEPPER MADE AN APPEARANCE IN MID-JULY WITH A NEW CALF
ADOPTION UPDATES
ORCA ODYSSEYS and video, we In 2000, when we began streaming live audio The video cy. infan its in was net inter called it OrcaLive. The at first, but this ows wind l smal very in ed view were es imag When one viewer remarked: didn’t discourage an enthusiastic audience. knew we were on to we ’, days my of oasis ‘This tiny window is the t that lasted rimen expe something profound. The project was an while live audio d ende on porti video y six years, after which the costl . nued streaming conti Explore, which hosts live Three years ago we were invited to join dream was always to Our . wide world ats habit rent webcams in diffe with Explore that dream ering partn bring back video streaming and after Charles Weingarten by up set was tive initia has become reality. This d OrcaLab many visite lie from the Annenberg Foundation. When Char our Cracroft to him took we re, Explo years ago, before he started front of a video monitor, in fixed trans sat he e wher n, statio Point video ent kelp forest, so full of watching the underwater scene in the adjac ming five live cameras on strea now are We a. dram life, light, colour and nding audience. expa and new explore.org and starting to engage a than useful in more d prove have ras came This summer, the new are in and they when doing helping us figure out what the orcas are see previously to us led enab have ras came around their ‘core’ area. The ge themselves arran ps us grou out-of-sight movements, as when the vario time their isely prec to able are we and , at the entrance of Blackney Pass clues. We stic acou relying just on visits to the rubbing beaches instead of les, expel bubb er rwat unde t grea now watch enthralled as the orcas blow pebbles the ss then skim acro air from their lungs, sink to the bottom and . float to just rub so smoothly, sometimes even pausing midvisits from This has been a marvellous summer, with this, the all es Besid lies. fami ent Resid many Northern ht. delig a daily presence of humpbacks is
ORCA ORIGINALS
You can buy your very own cuddly version of your adopted orca. Each orca toy is handmade to order and features the distinctive markings and dorsal fin of your chosen whale. Visit orca-originals.co.uk to find out more. Make sure you quote WDC when you place the order and Julie at Orca Originals will donate half of the profit to us to help us continue our work to protect orcas.
This is Corky. Tragically she has spent 45 years in a tank, making her the longest surviving orca in captivity
To receive your monthly email orca update send your supporter number to info@whales.org 30 WHALE&DOLPHIN Winter 2015
ALL ORCA ODYSSEYS IMAGES JARED TOWERS
Brought to you by Helena Symonds & Paul Spong
Fife Summer has rolled on and Fife’s group has held centre stage for a good deal of the daily activity. On 22 August, we received a concerned email from a colleague who had been conducting a follow-up to last year’s drone project. He and his fellow researchers aboard the Skana had noticed a large, fresh and painfullooking wound on Fern. Fern is Midsummer’s oldest, born in 2009, and Fife’s great-niece or nephew. The wound looked almost identical to the one Fife suffered years ago when, as a young whale, he got too close to a boat and came into contact with a moving propeller.
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Like Fife, Fern’s wound showed the propeller marks across the dorsal, saddle patch and right flank. Fife’s wounds healed well and can hardly be seen now and we suspect, if Fern is healthy, these wounds will also heal over time. But ouch! The concern of course is that the whales are getting too close to boats while perhaps trying to snag a fish off a line or thrill-seeking. Fife certainly did the latter when he was about Fern’s age. He would put his head under a moving prop seemingly to enjoy the swirling, churned-up water. We are quite sure that Fife is older and wiser now, and that Fern will also come to understand the dangers associated with boats.
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Holly Until recently we were worried that we would not have anything to pass along about Holly and her family. They first came on 1 August and stayed very briefly. They rushed to the east unseen, and the next day happy whale watchers in the lower Johnstone Strait excitedly reported seeing them. We were hopeful we too would see them soon because, as a rule, what goes east eventually returns to the west. And so it was on 3 August. But because Holly and her family hugged the shore under the shadow of the tall mountains of Vancouver Island it was difficult for observers to track their movements, let alone identify them properly. To make the situation even more difficult the other members of their pod, Ripple’s family, were nearby and moving west as well. By the time the groups passed the next observers, Holly’s group could not be found, content to hand over the high profile they enjoyed last year to Ripple’s group who have been around all summer since their arrival on 22 July. But even though the Ripple group was often in Johnstone Strait, they seldom ventured on wider tours of the area. That is until 15 August, when Ripple and the A30s brought Holly back to the Strait. They passed close to the Lab in a lovely mixed group. They took one incredibly long dive and resurfaced past the Lab. As we watched their blows and fins in the bright sunlight we all had a strong sense of their togetherness. They have maintained a fairly continuous presence into September and have enjoyed the company of Bend and Simoom’s families.
AS WE WATCHED THEIR BLOWS AND FINS IN THE BRIGHT SUNLIGHT WE ALL HAD A STRONG SENSE OF THEIR TOGETHERNESS Bend There are always some surprises. Bend’s family are so good at what they do, going to find arriving families, escorting them into the area and accompanying them back out when they are ready to leave. Being ‘hosts’ makes for a busy season. It also means that Bend’s group never goes far on its own for long periods – that is, until recently. Returning from a trip, we asked what had happened to Bend’s family in our absence. We were told they were probably still in the ‘east’. This means they went past and out of range of our hydrophone network and into the lower reaches of Johnstone Strait. But days passed with no word, even from the whale watchers who are stationed closer at hand. Then, on 2 September, Bend’s
family were spotted far to the south in Bute Inlet. Extraordinary. Not only do Bend’s family hardly ever frequent lower Johnstone Strait but going into Bute Inlet meant they went out of the strait entirely, past many different inland islands and passageways and into a long, deep inlet not really known as part of their range. What were they up to? They spent two days there at least and then started on the long trek back by rounding Quadra Island, passing Campbell River and journeying through Discovery Passage (famous for its narrows and fast currents) and on up to Chatham Point and the more familiar waters of Johnstone Strait. Another full night of travel brought them back to Robson Bight. Bend and her little one continue to look well.
Simoom Simoom first arrived on 18 July and stayed until 3 August. She took her family away to the north and returned much later in August for a few more turns around the area. She looks fine. It is hard to believe that her oldest son, Echo, will soon be 26 years old. This means he has become a mature adult male. The A1 pod, of which Simoom’s family is part, has a prominent social role while the northern resident families are in this area. Just about every day during the season at least one of the pod’s three family groups is present. Since Plumper died last August, Kaikash, the sole remaining member of the A36 family, has ‘folded’ into Simoom’s A34 family group and has been travelling with them. Bend’s family, the A30s, form the third A1 matriline. Before Plumper’s death, the three matrilines of the A1
pod often travelled independently, although the association between Simoom’s and Kaikash’s families has always seemed somewhat closer than with Bend’s group. All three families have shared the role of ‘host’ group in the past. This has meant that they usher visiting groups in and out. However, they have done so in slightly different ways. Although not always the rule, Bend’s group gives the impression they are quite content to bring groups in and then leave the ‘party’ to carry on without them while they go off to connect with other arriving groups. On the other hand, when Simoom’s family is present too, they will stay and tour with the other groups. Sometimes when Simoom and company arrive they will exchange ‘host’ places with Bend’s family, who then depart. It is an interesting interplay and gives one small glimpse into the complexities of this fascinating orca community. Winter 2015 WHALE&DOLPHIN 31
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THE ATLANTIC’S SECRET GARDEN Madeira is not a particularly well-known whale and dolphin-watching destination but, as Jess Feghali-Brown discovered, it’s a treat for all the family
M
adeira is a place I suspect most people have heard of but fewer could pinpoint on a map. I’ll be honest and say that when we first began to think about it as a destination for a family holiday a few years ago, I had its location out by some 600 miles. Knowing it to be Portuguese, and having visited the Azores (also Portuguese) a number of years previously, I assumed that the two were fairly close together. In fact, the best I can say is that I got the right ocean – the Azores lie out in the Atlantic, almost directly west of Lisbon. Madeira, although also in the Atlantic, is found much further south off the north-west coast of Africa, a couple of hundred miles north of the Canaries. Not exactly close then. However, its position discovered, and more research done to confirm its holiday credentials and suitability for young 32 WHALE&DOLPHIN Winter 2015
children, our family of four headed for Funchal, Madeira’s capital, in summer 2015. Our first discovery was that a windy destination in combination with a runway built on the side of a mountain makes for an interesting landing. Our second was that the views of the ocean are some of the most stunning I have ever seen, from anywhere in the world. Madeira owes these incredible views to the fact that the island is actually the surfacing top of an enormous underwater volcano, rising 3.7 miles (6km) from the ocean floor. Just about everything is built on a slope, and that means from almost anywhere on the island you can see the water from on high,
often giving 180 ° views of the vast Atlantic.
Protected waters
In 1986, Madeira declared the waters surrounding the island a marine mammal sanctuary. Within these waters lives a wide array of marine mammals including one of the world’s most endangered, the Mediterranean monk seal, and many varieties of whale and dolphin. In the region of 25 species have been recorded and yet, compared to destinations such as the Azores, Madeira’s whale and dolphin watching opportunities remain relatively unknown among tourists. Its subtropical climate and calm seas mean that those opportunities are more or
SITE GUIDE
Swimming with dolphins A number of operators in Madeira offer swim-with opportunities in addition to boat-based watching. WDC has concerns about this activity and would recommend that you don’t get in the water with whales and dolphins. For more info go to whales.org/swimming-with-dolphins
MATT BROWN
OUR GIRLS WERE READY FOR THEIR FIRST BOAT-BASED WHALE-WATCHING TRIP, AND IT WAS WITH A SUBSTANTIAL AMOUNT OF EXCITEMENT THAT WE MADE OUR PLANS
MATT BROWN
MATT BROWN
less available year round – apart from from catamarans and sailing boats, in the odd winter storm – and there’s to ribs. i a great chance of getting out on the On the personal recommendation water and spotting something. of a couple of WDC colleagues, we Indeed, you don’t even need to be on headed slightly further west to the the water; during our very first town of Calheta and set out with a afternoon we caught sight of a pod of company called Lobosonda on a breaching dolphins from our restored traditional fishing craft. apartment, albeit some distance Lobosonda uses watchers on land JESS FEGHALIaway, but it proved they were there. BROWN was WDC’s who communicate with the boat At five and seven years old, our education co-ordinator captain to help guide him carefully girls were ready for their first boatand editor of our junior towards any whales and dolphins. based whale-watching trip, and it magazine SPLASH! They also have a marine biologist on was with a substantial amount of board for each trip. There is, of This summer she excitement that we made our plans. course, no guarantee of what you moved on after There aren’t vast numbers of 18 years with us to may or may not see when watching operators to choose from in Madeira, pursue her passion for creatures in their natural and most work out of Funchal, but education. We wish environment but, with a high there is a good offering of trips of biodiversity of marine species in its her the very best varying length on vessels ranging waters, Madeira offers a very good
chance of seeing something special. Lobosonda’s 2014 records bear this out, with figures of over 90% success for whale and dolphin sightings. The island’s geography plays a large part in determining the species that might be spotted. Just a few nautical miles off the coast the ocean reaches depths of thousands of metres. This feature attracts species usually found offshore in the open ocean, such as common and striped dolphins, plus deep divers like sperm whales. Time of year also makes a difference, with species such as Atlantic spotted dolphins visiting in the spring and summer, and Bryde’s whales regularly seen from April onwards. Madeira also has year-round sightings of shortfinned pilot whales and bottlenose dolphins.
Spotting the dolphins
I was keeping my fingers crossed as we motored out gently from the harbour in the knowledge Winter 2015 WHALE&DOLPHIN 33
SITE GUIDE
MADEIRA’S WHALE AND DOLPHIN WATCHING OPPORTUNITIES REMAIN RELATIVELY UNKNOWN AMONG TOURISTS
MATT BROWN
that if we didn’t see a whale or dolphin we would have two extremely disappointed daughters (not to mention mum and dad). Happily, as if primed to start the trip on a high, within a few minutes a couple of flying fish launched themselves out of the water very close to our boat. With their long, wing-like pectoral fins enabling them to glide gracefully over the ocean like birds, they absolutely fascinated the girls. The main attraction wasn’t long in arriving either – a shout of ‘dolphins’ went out and we could hear and feel the excitement building up among the boat’s passengers. As a large pod of Atlantic spotted dolphins headed towards us and our eldest daughter, Francesca, caught sight of her first dorsal fin, I can only describe her excitement by saying that I wish we’d had a camera focused on her face at that moment – she had the biggest, most joyful smile ever seen and was shouting ‘I’ve seen one!’ in total delight. When I spoke to her later she told me that ‘the dolphins looked very beautiful and happy in the sea. I wish I could jump like them’. There must have been 50 to 80 spotted dolphins with us that day and we were treated to a display of bowriding, spyhopping, breaching and even mating behaviour. A mother and calf pair graced us with their presence too, swimming in synchronisation alongside the
boat; the youngster distinctive for not having yet developed his or her spots. The dolphins stayed with us for about an hour. We didn’t spot any whales, but before heading back to the harbour we were lucky enough to encounter a couple of loggerhead turtles, silently floating on top of the water. Our captain cut the engine as we edged closer and they drifted past our vessel before diving into the ocean depths. These incredible creatures migrate many thousands of miles during their lifetime and would have been born on the
Whale
eastern coast of America or in the Cape Verde islands before eventually finding their way to Madeira’s waters for lucky people like us to see. With the magic of the ocean all around, it must be remembered that Madeira’s interior doesn’t disappoint either. It’s nicknamed the Atlantic’s floating garden and rightly so. Its slopes are covered in trees and vegetation, there are many beautiful walks to take, formal gardens to explore and tea houses to visit. All this plus the splendour of the Atlantic visible from almost anywhere on land. n
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JOIN THE WDC SANTAS!
6 DECEMBER 2015, VICTORIA PARK IN LONDON
Join us and hundreds of other Santas among the bright Christmas lights of London. Santa Run is a lot of fun and can be entered with little training, so take the family or a group of friends or colleagues. You can choose a 5k or a 10k-course – and you get your very own Santa suit!
Sign up at whales.org/santa