MARINE MAMMAL COMMISSION - Annual Report for 1995 



(2) are subject to an Alaska Native subsistence take 

 and also have a low level of mortality and serious 

 injury incidental to commercial fishing; and (3) are 

 identified in the draft report as having a total estimat- 

 ed human-related mortality that may not be sustainable 

 over the long term. Some beluga whale stocks were 

 to be so addressed. 



Final stock assessments for Alaska marine mammal 

 populations under the jurisdiction of the National 

 Marine Fisheries Service were distributed in Septem- 

 ber 1995. With respect to beluga whale populations, 

 the Service increased its estimate for the Beaufort Sea 

 population size to 38,194 animals with a potential 

 biological removal level of 764 whales. Annual 

 subsistence take was estimated at 160 whales. The 

 estimate for the Bristol Bay stock size and the poten- 

 tial biological removal level were reduced to 1,526 

 animals and 31 whales per year, respectively. Inci- 

 dental take in commercial fisheries was estimated at 

 0.3 animal per year with an annual subsistence take of 

 22 whales. The estimated population size for the 

 eastern Chukchi Sea stock was increased to 3,710 

 whales with a potential biological removal level of 74 

 whales. The annual subsistence take from this stock 

 averages about 65 whales. 



For the remaining two beluga whale stocks — the 

 Norton Sound and Cook Inlet stocks — the Service 

 concluded that it was not possible to provide a mini- 

 mum population level or a potential biological remov- 

 al level. Accordingly, the final stock assessments for 

 these stocks noted that estimates of potential biological 

 removal and status under the Marine Mammal Protec- 

 tion Act have not been determined because they are 

 (1) not listed under the Endangered Species Act or the 

 Marine Mammal Protection Act, (2) subject to Alaska 

 Native subsistence harvests, and (3) fisheries-related 

 mortality and serious injury incidental to commercial 

 fisheries is absent or a relatively minor contribution to 

 total human-related mortality and injury. The final 

 assessments noted that sustainable harvest levels and 

 status determinations for these stocks will be deter- 

 mined from the analysis of information gathered 

 through the co-management process and will reflect 

 the degree of uncertainty associated with the informa- 

 tion obtained. 



Polar Bear 

 (Ursus maritimus) 



Polar bears occur in most ice-covered areas of the 

 Arctic and adjacent coastal lands. Their distribution, 

 although not continuous, overlaps the national bound- 

 aries of the United States, Canada, Greenland, Nor- 

 way and Russia. The worldwide population of polar 

 bears is estimated at 21,000 to 28,000 animals divided 

 among six relatively discrete populations. Parts of 

 two of these populations occur in Alaska: the western 

 Alaska (Chukchi/Bering Seas) population shared with 

 Russia and the northern Alaska (Beaufort Sea) popula- 

 tion shared with Canada. The total number of polar 

 bears off Alaska is estimated at 3,000 to 5,000 

 animals and appears to be stable. 



Historically polar bears were taken primarily by 

 Natives for subsistence purposes and for the sale of 

 hides. Beginning late in the 1940s a sport hunt devel- 

 oped which involved trophy hunters using professional 

 guides to hunt animals with the use of aircraft. As a 

 result, hunting pressure on the Alaska polar bear 

 populations increased substantially. Recognizing this, 

 the State of Alaska adopted regulations in 1961 to 

 restrict the sport hunting season and require hunters to 

 present all polar bear skins for tagging and examina- 

 tion. At the same time, preference was provided to 

 subsistence hunters and a prohibition was adopted on 

 shooting cubs and females with cubs. Between 1961 

 and 1972 in Alaska an average of 260 polar bears was 

 taken annually, 75 percent of which were males. In 

 1972 the State of Alaska banned hunting with the use 

 of aircraft. 



Also in 1972, enactment of the Marine Mammal 

 Protection Act established a moratorium on the take of 

 polar bears and other marine mammals and transferred 

 management responsibility from the states to the 

 Federal Government. Under the Act, Alaska Natives 

 are allowed to take polar bears and other marine 

 mammals for subsistence purposes and for purposes of 

 creating and selling traditional handicrafts and cloth- 

 ing. The Act does not restrict the number of animals 

 that can be taken or prohibit the take of cubs or 

 females with cubs by Alaska Natives, provided the 

 take is not wasteful and the population is not listed as 

 depleted. 



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