MARINE MAMMAL COMMISSION — Annual Report for 1991 



On 18 May 1990, the National Marine Fisheries 

 Service acknowledged receipt of the Commission's 

 comments and noted that a revised draft recovery 

 plan, incorporating reviewers' comments, had been 

 distributed to the Recovery Team in preparation for its 

 23-24 May 1990 meeting in Seattle, Washington. 

 Following the meeting, an implementation schedule 

 with cost estimates and task priorities was completed 

 and circulated for public and agency review. By early 

 1991, it was not clear what was being done to com- 

 plete, adopt, and begin implementing the recovery 

 plan and the Commission asked to be advised of the 

 status of the recovery plan and implementation sched- 

 ule. The Service replied on 25 April 1991, noting 

 that the Recovery Team had reviewed all the com- 

 ments submitted on the draft plan, incorporated those 

 comments as appropriate, and submitted a recom- 

 mended final plan that was awaiting clearance by the 

 directors of the Service's regional offices. 



On 16 September 1991, the Commission sent the 

 Service the final report of the contract study on the 

 conservation and protection of humpback whales in 

 Hawaii (see Appendix B, Townsend 1991). The 

 purpose of the study was to help develop specific 

 recommendations for protecting humpback whales in 

 Hawaiian waters. The study report, which examined 

 conservation issues and management actions related to 

 a number of activities including whale watching, 

 water sports, scientific research, and military activi- 

 ties, illustrated the importance of addressing recovery 

 actions on a regional basis. Therefore, in its letter 

 sending the report to the Service, the Commission 

 recommended that, when the humpback whale recov- 

 ery plan is completed, the Service immediately take 

 steps to develop area-specific implementation plans to 

 address implementation needs peculiar to each region- 

 al population. 



The final recovery plan was approved and adopted 

 by the National Marine Fisheries Service on 14 

 November 1991; it is to be distributed to agencies and 

 interested organizations in 1992. The Marine Mam- 

 mal Commission will review the final plan to deter- 

 mine what further steps should be taken to develop 

 cooperative regional implementation programs. 



Humpback Whales in Alaska 



During summer, part of the central North Pacific 

 stock of humpback whales feeds in the coastal waters 

 of southeastern Alaska, including Glacier Bay. The 

 bay lies entirely within the Glacier Bay National Park 

 and Preserve, an area administered by the National 

 Park Service. In 1978 and 1979, the occurrence of 

 humpback whales in Glacier Bay declined significantly 

 from previous years, and it was believed that in- 

 creased tour boat and other vessel traffic may have 

 caused or contributed to their reduced numbers. 



As described in previous Annual Reports, the 

 Commission, in cooperation with the National Park 

 Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service, 

 convened a meeting of scientists in October 1979 to 

 review available data related to whale use of the bay, 

 identify possible causes of the regional shift in whale 

 distribution, and identify research needed to better 

 assess and determine possible causes. In addition, the 

 National Park Service undertook consultations with 

 the National Marine Fisheries Service pursuant to 

 section 7 of the Endangered Species Act to identify 

 measures necessary to protect humpback whales and 

 their habitat in Glacier Bay. 



As a result of the meeting and consultations, the 

 National Park Service initiated a multi-year research 

 program in 1980 to assess factors affecting humpback 

 whale distribution in Glacier Bay and adjacent waters. 

 It also promulgated temporary regulations to reduce 

 the number of large commercial tour ships and 

 smaller recreational vessels that could enter the bay. 

 The regulations established entry limits at levels 

 permitted in 1976, which was the last year before 

 humpback whale use of the bay declined significantly. 

 These regulations were modified and reissued aimually 

 until 1985, when the National Park Service adopted 

 permanent regulations. The permanent regulations 

 established a permit system for vessel entries, prohib- 

 ited fishing for certain humpback whale prey species 

 in the bay, and provided for the designation of "whale 

 waters" where special vessel operating procedures 

 apply to minimize possible disturbance of whales. 



56 



