MARINE MAMMAL COMMISSION — Annual Report for 1991 



The draft plan, completed in December 1991, 

 included a thorough review of the biology and conser- 

 vation issues concerning walruses. It also identified 

 specific tasks for monitoring the status and trends of 

 the Pacific walrus population, defining the optimum 

 sustainable population level, protecting and monitoring 

 essential habitats, monitoring Native subsistence 

 harvests to ensure that they are consistent with the 

 provisions of the Marine Mammal Protection Act, and 

 coordinating Federal, State, Native, industry, and 

 international efforts to conserve the Pacific walrus 

 population. 



Based on its review of the draft plan, the Commis- 

 sion and its Committee of Scientific Advisors conclud- 

 ed that it provided a well-reasoned set of research and 

 management actions and would provide a sound basis 

 for charting and coordinating cooperative research and 

 management efforts. The Commission therefore 

 transmitted the plan to the Service on 23 December 

 1991. In doing so, the Commission recommended 

 that: (1) the draft plan be circulated for review and 

 comment by the Service's Walrus Management Plan 

 Advisory Team; (2) the Service prepare a final draft 

 conservation plan using the comments of the advisory 

 team and the transmitted draft plan; and (3) the final 

 draft plan be circulated to the Commission and others 

 for agency and public review prior to adoption. 



While noting that work to complete the walrus 

 plan should proceed as quickly as possible, the 

 Commission also noted that other important research 

 and management tasks should be pursued without 

 delay. To help ensure progress in these areas, the 

 Commission offered recommendations on matters that 

 it believed required immediate attention. 



In view of the importance of discerning current 

 population trends and the inability of the 1990 joint 

 walrus survey to provide information useful in this 

 U.S.-U.S.S.R. regard, the Commission recommended 

 that the Service immediately begin planning for 

 another census to be conducted by 1993 if at all 

 possible. It recommended convening a small group of 

 experts to describe alternative census approaches, and 

 arranging for consultations with Soviet counterparts to 

 discuss and agree on plans for a new joint census. 



With respect to Native subsistence harvests, the 

 Commission recommended that the Service immedi- 

 ately reinstitute the harvest monitoring system sus- 

 pended in 1990. It also recommended that harvest 

 and biological sampling needs be reviewed to deter- 

 mine how that monitoring system should be altered in 

 the future. The Commission urged that, in coopera- 

 tion with the Eskimo Walrus Commission and Native 

 hunters, the Service carry out a study to identify and, 

 as possible, suggest ways to minimize the number of 

 walruses that are shot and either sink or escape 

 without being retrieved. 



To address possible interactions between walruses 

 and commercial fishing in Bristol Bay, the Commis- 

 sion recommended in its 23 December letter that the 

 Service consult with agencies and groups, including 

 the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, the Nation- 

 al Marine Fisheries Service, the North Pacific Fishery 

 Management Council, and the Eskimo Walrus Com- 

 mission, to ensure that fishery closures in Federal 

 waters around Round Island, the Twins Islands, and 

 Cape Peirce are continued after 1991. In addition, it 

 recommended that steps be taken to ensure, insofar as 

 possible, that comparable measures are considered and 

 adopted expeditiously for State waters and that the 

 need for protecting other Bristol Bay walrus haulouts 

 also be considered. 



To provide for optimal coordination with Soviet 

 scientists and managers, the Commission recommend- 

 ed that, in developing the walrus conservation plan, 

 the Service and other involved parties assess the scope 

 and effectiveness of existing mechanisms for coordi- 

 nating joint activities concerning walruses. In doing 

 so, it suggested the Service consider whether and how 

 a bilateral agreement with the Soviet Union might 

 further facilitate work on priority research and man- 

 agement tasks identified in the walrus plan. 



At the end of 1991, the Commission looked 

 forward to the Service's reply to its letter and to 

 continuing to help with the development and imple- 

 mentation of an effective walrus conservation plan. 



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