240 



Gray whales were nearly exterminated by unrestricted whaling during the last 

 half of the 19th century and the early 20th century. The 1946 International 

 Convention for the Regulation of Whaling granted the gray whale complete 

 protection from commercial whaling, although aborigines may take gray whales 

 for their own use. T'nder this protection, the California stock has increased to an 

 estimated 10 or 11 thousand animals. According to annual counts of the south- 

 w.ard migrating whales conducted each winter by the National Marine Fisheries 

 Service, this population has remained stable since 1967/1968. There are no 

 recent data on the Korean stock, and it may be extinct. 



During the past decade, whaling interests in both the United States and Mexico 

 have expressed the opinion that commercial harvesting of gray whales should be 

 permitted. At that time, there was very little knowledge of many important as- 

 pects of the biology of the gray whale. This dearth of biological data would have 

 handicapped any efforts .at rational regulation if the International Whaling 

 Commission should permit a resumption of commercial exploitation. Therefore, 

 the Bureau of Commercial Fisheries (now the National Marine Fisheries Serv- 

 ice) initiated a research program that include collecting small series of gray 

 whales under Special Scientific Permits. Tlie Scientific Committee of the 

 International Whaling Commission reviewed our work each year. At its June 

 1966 meeting, the Scientific Committee recommended "that the taking of gray 

 whales under special permit for scientific purposes be encouraged" (17th 

 Report of the Commission, page 79). Beginning in 1966, we increased the number 

 of gray whales taken annually under Special Scientific Permits. 



Number Taken 



Since 1959, biologists of the National Marine Fisheries Service have examined 

 316 gray whales taken under Special Scientific Permits. Two were taken in 

 1959 under a permit issued to Dr. Frank Nolan of Los Angeles. The remaining 

 314 were taken under permits issued to the Director of the Marine Mammal 

 Biological Laboratory (Table 1). 



TABLE l.-SPECIAL SCIENTIFIC PERMITS TO CAPTURE GRAY WHALES ISSUED TO BCF/NMFS MARINE MAMMAL 



BIOLOGICAL LABORATORY 



Number of 



whales Number of 

 Season Permit No. requested whales taken 



1961-62 1962-1 20 4 



1963-64 1964-1 20 20 



1965-66 1966-2 i 60 > 26 



1966-67 1967-1 i 100 1125 



1967-68.... 1968-1 100 66 



1968-69._ 1969-1 100 73 



Total 314 



1 Whales collected during the 1966-67 season were taken under both permit No. 1966-2 and 1967-1 



Data Collected 



All of the whales collected were examined by biologists of the Marine Mammal 

 Biological Laboratory. The following data and specimens were routinely 



1. Body measurements, 

 gathered : 



2. Ectoparasites (species, number, and pathological effects). 



3. Blubber thickness. 



4. Condition of mammary glands. 



5. Ovaries (weight; size of graafian follicles; size and number of corpora 

 albicantia). 



6. Uterus (histological condition). 



7. Fetus (sex and body measurements). 



8. Testes (w^eight and histological condition). 



9. Penis (length). 



10. Stomach contents (species and quantity). 



11. Endoparasites (species, number, and pathological effects). 



12. Vertebral epiphyses (degree of fusion to determine physical maturity). 



13. Earplug (for age determination). 



14. Baleen plates (for age determination). 



