Training Session in the Care and Maintenance of Captive Marine 



Mammals 



(Joseph R. Geraci, D.V.M. , Ph.D., University of Guelph, Guelph, 



Ontario) 



The Animal Welfare Act requires periodic inspection of 

 facilities holding marine mammals for research or public display. 

 To advise Animal Plant and Health Inspection Service inspectors 

 on critical aspects of marine mammal biology, husbandry 

 practices, food and water quality standards, and other standards 

 established under the Animal Welfare Act, the Commission convened 

 a faculty of distinguished scientists to conduct a short course 

 on captive marine mammal husbandry. The contractor, an authority 

 on marine mammal biology and pathology, was sponsored by the 

 Commission to teach in the program. 



Evaluation of Airships for Marine Mammal Studies 

 (James H.W. Hain, Ph.D., Associated Scientists at Woods Hole, 

 Woods Hole, Massachusetts) 



Field observations of marine mammals, particularly 

 cetaceans, are hampered by the fact that these species spend much 

 of their life underwater and by adverse weather conditions. 

 Although recent advances in remote sensing technology are 

 providing new ways of obtaining information on the behavior and 

 movements of marine mammals at sea, direct observation remains 

 the primary means of scientific investigation. Available 

 information suggests that airships may have advantages over 

 fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters for certain kinds of data 

 collection. In 1989, the Commission contracted for a pilot 

 investigation of existing and next-generation airships and how 

 these may be used in marine mammal research. Preliminary results 

 indicate that airships have the capability to work slowly through 

 an area and to remain on site within an area for prolonged 

 periods. They are reasonably economical and maneuverable. They 

 may be configured to carry various instrumentation and sensors, 

 and provide quite stable photographic platforms. The contractor 

 will continue to evaluate the utility of airships for cetacean 

 research and report his findings in 1990. 



Food Chains in Relation to Biomass Yields, Ecosystem Models, and 

 Management Strategies in Large Marine Ecosystems 



(American Association for the Advancement of Science, Washington, 

 D.C. ) 



The primary objective of the Marine Mammal Protection Act is 

 to maintain the health and stability of the marine ecosystem, 

 and, whenever consistent with this primary objective, to obtain 

 optimum sustainable marine mammal populations, keeping in mind 

 the carrying capacity of the habitat in the ecosystems of which 



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