Every year, the Marine Mammal Commission devotes special 

 attention to certain species or populations that are of par- 

 ticular concern. Among the thirteen species addressed in 

 Chapter II of this Report are the West Indian manatee, the 

 Hawaiian monk seal, the right whale, the humpback whale, the 

 North Pacific fur seal, and the California sea otter. All 

 have been the subject of particularly intensive work by the 

 Commission for a number of years. 



The West Indian manatee population in the southeastern 

 United States and the Hawaiian monk seal are found only within 

 United States waters. One can say, therefore, that their 

 survival is entirely in the hands of those in this country. 

 Both populations are in jeopardy because of human encroachment 

 into sensitive areas, habitat degradation and destruction, 

 and a variety of other threats. It is not alarmist to foresee 

 possible extinction. For these reasons, the Commission has 

 devoted and continues to devote substantial effort to protecting 

 and encouraging the recovery of these species. Efforts are 

 described in Chapter II. 



Like the manatee and monk seal, right and humpback whales 

 are also endangered, and activities of the Commission and 

 others to establish recovery teams, develop recovery plans, 

 and start work to implement recovery plans are discussed in 

 Chapter II. In many cases, action has come about because of 

 the Commission's persistence in forcing issues. In some cases, 

 like the North Pacific fur seal, species occur only partly or 

 seasonally in U.S. waters and continuing efforts to develop 

 and implement cooperative international conservation programs 

 are still needed. Other species, like the river dolphins, 

 Hector's dolphin, and the Gulf of California harbor porpoise, 

 are not found in U.S. waters, but are discussed here because 

 they have become the focus of much-needed international atten- 

 tion. As possible, the Commission is pleased to help support 

 measures for the protection of such species. 



The most perplexing problem encountered in 1987 was the 

 continuing die-off of bottlenose dolphins along the Atlantic 

 coast of the United States. By the end of the year, about 

 500 dead animals had been recovered and extensive examinations 

 had been made of specimen material at laboratories throughout 

 the United States and Canada. At year's end, there was no 

 satisfactory explanation for the deaths. A summary of 

 activities undertaken and underway at the end of 1987 is pro- 

 vided in Chapter III. 



Conservation of marine mammals in Alaska has been a bio- 

 logically and politically difficult matter for years. Many 

 problems may have arisen because of an unhealthy focus on 

 bureaucratic processes rather than on the welfare of the species 

 or populations in question. To help provide a commonly agreed 



