any of these species should be listed as endangered or 

 threatened. In both instances, the Service asked for comments 

 and information on the status of these species. At the end of 

 1987, no further action had been taken by the Service. 



Also in 1986, the Commission provided funds to help convene 

 an international Workshop on the Biology and Conservation of 

 the Platanistoid Dolphins. The Workshop was held 26 October - 

 6 November 1986, in Wuhan, China. The final report of the 

 Workshop was completed early in 1987 and is being published, 

 along with contributed papers, by the Species Survival Commis- 

 sion of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature 

 and Natural Resources. 



One of the Workshop's recommendations was to initiate 

 research to obtain information on numbers, movement patterns, 

 reproductive biology, feeding habits, and social organization 

 of the baiji. In response to the recommendation, in 1987, 

 the Marine Mammal Commission contributed funds to send a U.S. 

 scientist to the People's Republic of China to assist in devel- 

 oping a long-range conservation plan for the baiji (see also 

 Chapter IX). In 1988, the contractor will report to the Com- 

 mission on plans to protect and conserve the baiji, including 

 any steps that possibly could be taken by the Commission or 

 other U.S. agencies to encourage or facilitate needed research 

 and management actions. 



On 12 January 1987, the Commission was asked by the 

 National Marine Fisheries Service to comment on a draft paper 

 summarizing national laws and international agreements affecting 

 river dolphins. By letter of 19 February, the Commission 

 provided comments. In the letter, the Commission recommended 

 that the paper be revised to expand the discussion of U.S. 

 laws, such as the Marine Mammal Protection Act and the En- 

 dangered Species Act, that apply to activities in foreign 

 countries. The Commission also suggested that it might be 

 useful and reasonable to pursue multilateral agreements with 

 the appropriate nations rather than attempting to use the 

 Marine Mammal Protection Act and the Endangered Species Act 

 as models to enact laws in the other countries. 



In November 1987, the Commission received a pre-publication 

 copy of the "Action Plan for the Conservation of Dolphins, 

 Porpoises and Whales, 1988-1992," prepared by the Cetacean 

 Specialist Group of the Species Survival Commission. The 

 Plan focuses on problems of stock assessment and conservation 

 of small cetaceans, especially the riverine and coastal species 

 and populations most vulnerable to habitat destruction and 

 degradation. The final draft Plan, including a list of 45 

 recommended actions and projects, will be presented to the 

 next General Assembly of the International Union for the 

 Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources in Costa Rica 



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