Chapter III — Species of Special Concern 



mid-1950s and the early 1960s banning the hunting of 

 humpback whales in certain areas. By 1966 all stocks 

 were fully protected. Humpback whales were listed 

 as endangered under the U.S. Endangered Species 

 Preservation Act in 1970, a designation carried 

 forward under the Endangered Species Act of 1973. 



Under this protection some stocks have shown 

 signs of recovery. However, recovery rates may be 

 slowed by human-related impacts associated with 

 noise disturbance, entanglement in fishing gear, 

 offshore oil and gas exploration and development, oil 

 spills, whale- watching activities, coastal development, 

 and depletion of prey. 



Humpback Whales in Alaska 



At least two stocks of humpback whales occur 

 seasonally in U.S. waters in the Pacific: the central 

 North Pacific stock, with winter calving areas near the 

 Hawaiian Islands and summer feeding grounds off 

 Alaska and Canada, and the eastern North Pacific 

 stock, with winter calving grounds off mainland 

 Mexico and Central America and summer feeding 

 grounds along the coasts of California, Oregon, and 

 Washington. Members of the western North Pacific 

 stock also may use feeding grounds off Alaska in 

 summer. The winter calving grounds for this stock 

 are around the Ryukyu, Bonin, and Mariana Islands in 

 the Philippine Sea off Southeast Asia. 



Glacier Bay National Park — During the 

 summer, a portion of the central North Pacific stock 

 of humpback whales feeds in the coastal waters of 

 southeastern Alaska, including Glacier Bay. The bay, 

 lying entirely within Glacier Bay National Park and 

 Preserve and administered by the National Park 

 Service, is a popular destination for cruise ships. 



Late in the 1970s the number of humpback whales 

 in Glacier Bay declined suddenly. It was thought that 

 noise and disturbance from boats may have caused 

 whales to avoid the bay. The Park Service reviewed 

 the problem and subsequently limited vessel entries 

 into the bay. 



In 1983 the National Marine Fisheries Service 

 provided the Park Service with a biological opinion 



pursuant to section 7 of the Endangered Species Act. 

 The opinion recommended that vessel traffic not be 

 allowed to increase unless the number of whales using 

 Glacier Bay remained at or above the 1982 level. The 

 opinion also provided recommendations regarding 

 research and monitoring programs. The Park Service 

 adopted these recommendations which have remained 

 in effect since 1985. In 1986 and 1987 the number of 

 whales using the bay exceeded the 1982 level. At the 

 urging of cruise ship companies, the National Park 

 Service increased the allowed number of cruise ship 

 entries for the 1987 and 1988 seasons to 107 per 

 season. Between 1988 and 1991 the number of 

 whales using the bay again declined. Reasons for the 

 decline were not clear. 



In 1991 the Park Service initiated steps to evaluate 

 alternatives for managing boat traffic in the bay. A 

 draft vessel management plan was prepared by the 

 Park Service and provided to the National Marine 

 Fisheries Service, which reviewed the document and 

 returned a biological opinion in February 1993. 



The National Marine Fisheries Service concluded 

 in its opinion that an increase in vessel entries is not 

 likely to jeopardize the continued existence of any 

 threatened or endangered species. The Service also 

 noted that previous declines in the number of whales 

 using the bay was a source of concern, and the 

 possibility that some whales may avoid the bay 

 because of vessels could not be ruled out. However, 

 establishing a relationship between the declines and 

 boat disturbance was not possible because the noise 

 levels produced by boats in the bay and the abundance 

 and distribution of whale prey and other variables had 

 not been monitored. The opinion recommended that 

 the Park Service (1) implement a research program to 

 obtain information on the movement, distribution, and 

 abundance of humpback whales in Glacier Bay and to 

 assess the effects of vessels on the distribution of 

 whales, and (2) continue monitoring programs to 

 document the number of humpback whales that feed 

 in the bay and their length of residence. 



In 1993, 1994, and 1995 the National Park Service 

 continued to limit cruise ship entries to 107 per year. 

 However, on 5 June 1995 the Park Service published 

 a proposed rule in the Federal Register to revise 

 the regulations, including vessel entry quotas, that 



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