MARINE MAMMAL COMMISSION — Annual Report for 1991 



rize activities designed to enhance the survival or 

 recovery of marine mammal populations. Also, under 

 the amendments, marine mammals that were pregnant 

 or nursing at the time of taking or less than eight 

 months old may now be imported for public display 

 if it is determined that such importation is necessary 

 for the protection or welfare of the animal. 



The amendments specify that public display permits 

 may be issued only to an applicant that offers an 

 acceptable education or conservation program, based 

 upon professionally recognized standards of the public 

 display community, and whose facility is open to the 

 general public on a regularly scheduled basis. For 

 scientific research permits, the amendment requires 

 the Service to determine that the proposed taking is 

 necessary to further a bona fide scientific research 

 need and does not unnecessarily duplicate other 

 research. Lethal research on marine mammals can be 

 authorized only if the applicant demonstrates that non- 

 lethal alternatives are not feasible. In the case of 

 lethal research involving depleted marine mammals, 

 a take also may be authorize only if the Service first 

 determines that the research will directly benefit the 

 affected species or stock or fulfills a critically impor- 

 tant research need. 



The amendments enable the National Marine 

 Fisheries Service and the Fish and Wildlife Service to 

 issue enhancement permits to authorize activities 

 designed to contribute significantly to increasing or 

 maintaining the distribution or size of a marine 

 mammal population. Any such permit must be 

 consistent with applicable conservation or recovery 

 plans. Captive maintenance of depleted marine 

 mammals under this authority is permitted only if the 

 Service: (1) finds that such maintenance is likely to 

 contribute to the survival or recovery of the species or 

 stock; (2) determines that the expected benefit to the 

 species or stock outweighs the likely benefit of 

 alternatives that do not involve the removal of animals 

 from the wild; and (3) requires that animals removed 

 from the wild and their progeny be returned to their 

 natural habitat as soon as feasible. 



As discussed above, the National Marine Fisheries 

 Service has undertaken a comprehensive review of its 

 permit program. One issue being examined in the 

 review is how to implement the 1988 amendments. 



For example, the Service is examining what consti- 

 tutes an acceptable education or conservation program 

 at a public display facility; how to determine if 

 proposed research is bona fide and non-duplicative; 

 and how to implement the new enhancement authority. 

 The Service expects to publish proposed rules to 

 implement these provisions early in 1992. The Fish 

 and Wildlife Service continues to implement the 1988 

 amendments regarding permits on dja. ad hoc basis and 

 intends to defer revision of its permit regulations until 

 it has reviewed the proposed regulations being drafted 

 by the National Marine Fisheries Service. 



Permits have yet to be issued under the new 

 enhancement permit authority enacted in 1988. 

 However, certain activities previously characterized as 

 research (e.g., the Hawaiian monk seal head start 

 program) may more appropriately be characterized as 

 enhancement activities in the future. As such, the 

 Commission expects that permits will soon be request- 

 ed and issued under this authority. 



Svpim-with-the-Dolphin Programs 



In 1985, the National Marine Fisheries Service 

 authorized a facility maintaining bottlenose dolphins 

 under a public display permit to conduct a program in 

 which members of the public are allowed to enter the 

 water and interact with the animals. Authorizations 

 for two additional facilities to conduct swim-with-the- 

 dolphin programs were issued in 1987 and another 

 was issued in 1988. Because of possible health and 

 safety risks to both dolphin and human participants, 

 the Commission and the National Marine Fisheries 

 Service have considered these swim-with-the-dolphin 

 programs to be experimental, and the programs have 

 been authorized by the Service on a provisional basis. 



On 25 August 1988, the Service inifiated a review 

 of swim-with-the-dolphin program operations and their 

 effects. On 30 September 1988, the Service advised 

 all public display permit holders that specific authori- 

 zation was needed to conduct swim-with-the-dolphin- 

 programs and that such authorizations would be issued 

 only until 31 December 1989, by which time the 

 Service expected to have completed its review. 



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