authorized researchers, before the start of the spring bowhead 

 whale research season, to ensure that the various research 

 activities are properly coordinated. The Minerals Management 

 Service subsequently constituted a Quality Review Board as 

 recommended by the Commission. Likewise, the National Marine 

 Fisheries Service organized and held a program coordination 

 meeting before the beginning of the 1989 summer field season. 



In 1990, the Commission will consider and advise the 

 National Marine Fisheries Service as to further actions that 

 should be taken to improve the planning, coordination, and 

 conduct of bowhead whale research and monitoring programs. 



Bottlenose Dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) 



The bottlenose dolphin is the most common cetacean in the 

 coastal waters of the southeast United States. It is also the 

 cetacean species most frequently maintained in captivity for 

 public display and scientific research. Capture of bottlenose 

 dolphins for these purposes began early in the 1900s, and 

 considerable numbers of animals were taken prior to enactment of 

 the Marine Mammal Protection Act in 1972. Since that time, 573 

 bottlenose dolphins have been collected under permits issued by 

 the National Marine Fisheries Service. 



It is unlikely that live captures and removals have caused 

 significant declines in the affected populations. However, a 

 profoundly more disturbing threat emerged in mid-1987 when large 

 numbers of bottlenose dolphins began washing up on the beaches 

 from New Jersey to Florida. Over the next eleven months, more 

 than 740 animals were found dead along the Atlantic coast. This 

 unprecedented mortality may have had significant adverse impacts 

 on bottlenose dolphins in U.S. waters. A discussion of the 

 Commission's activities in 1989 regarding bottlenose dolphins 

 follows. 



Die-Off of Bottlenose Dolphins 



Prior to 1987, an average of about 12 dead bottlenose 

 dolphins a year washed up on beaches from New Jersey to Cape 

 Hatteras. In June 1987, large numbers of animals began to die 

 and wash up on New Jersey beaches. This unprecedented mortality 

 continued throughout 1987 and into 1988, and moved southward with 

 the seasonal migration of the species. 



As discussed in its past two Annual Reports, the Marine 

 Mammal Commission learned of the die-off in July 1987 when 

 unusually high numbers of bottlenose dolphins began to wash up on 

 beaches in Virginia. The Commission immediately consulted the 

 National Marine Fisheries Service and a number of persons expert 

 in bottlenose dolphin biology and disease. The Commission asked 



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