Proposed Research Needs 



With regards to potential problems or questions of concern 

 to the BLM, future bowhead whale research needs include 

 consideration of direct and indirect effects of oil pollution 

 and developmental activities with potential first-order effects, 

 such as: 1) Intestinal disturbances resulting from oil inges- 

 tion; 2) irritation and deterioration of skin and eye tissues; 3) 

 impairment of thermal regulation; 4) fouling of baleen 

 plates; 5) inhalation of oil and congestion of the lungs; 6) 

 noise interference with intraspecific communications; and 7) 

 threat to traditional migration routes, calving areas, and/or 

 feeding grounds. The most critical second order effects 

 would be destruction of food supplies through contamination 

 or alteration of the marine habitat, should it occur. 



The objectives of any research in and near OCS lease areas 

 should be to determine 1) the frequency of occurrence in and 

 adjacent to specific lease sites; 2) the magnitude of, or com- 

 ponent of, the population (including sex and/or age class 

 segregation) frequenting the lease areas; 3) the reasons why 

 whales occur in certain areas (e.g., apparent annual feeding 

 nearshore east of Point Barrow in September); and 4) the 

 studies (direct and indirect) that could best address potential 

 noise, oil, and traffic interference problems. Because destruc- 

 tion of preferred wildlife habitat is a common result of man's 

 activities, general studies of the marine environment as it 

 now exists in Alaska would be of primary importance. Pre- 

 sumably these kinds of studies will continue on a lease site 

 basis as lease sale scheduling proceeds from site to site. 



The following is a list of proposed research topics with 

 regard to bowheads and white whales. Results from these 

 studies should provide at least the minimum information 

 needed to make management decisions, especially where re- 

 lated to the requirements of the Endangered Species Act. 

 These studies admittedly relate primarily to occurrence and 

 direct effects because, we believe, these are the most obvious 

 studies for which answers might be readily obtained. Most 

 have been recommended previously in various meetings and 

 documents since June 1978. 



3) Study presence of white whales in Kotzebue Sound and 

 adjacent bays (e.g., Escholtz Bay) and the northwest coast to 

 relate habitat use and seasonal dependency. Population seg- 

 regation or stock identification might be studied using elec- 

 trophoretic analyses. Life history information is essential. 



4) Determine which areas of the northeast Chukchi Sea 

 that bowhead whales are most likely to feed in and migrate 

 through in the autumn. 



Beaufort Sea 



1) Determine the frequency distribution of whales from the 

 shore to the pack ice in the summer and autumn. It is essential 

 that we know what component of the migrating population 

 will be in or near the OCS area. For example, do all whales 

 move offshore (i.e., near the ice edge), or nearshore through 

 the lease area? A knowledge of the spatial distribution is neces- 

 sary to determine how many individuals in the population 

 might be vulnerable. Changes in ice conditions and relative 

 movement of whales to ice is an important corollary study. 



2) Conduct aircraft and/or vessel surveys in the western 

 Canadian Beaufort Sea during the summer, principally in 

 Amundsen Gulf, to further determine if the relative magni- 

 tude of the bowhead population here is similar to that esti- 

 mated at Point Barrow in the spring. Again, this is important 

 in order to assess what portion of the population might be 

 vulnerable. Related behavior and feeding studies are also 

 recommended. 



3) Define the importance of the U.S. Beaufort Sea for 

 bowhead feeding. Food habit studies and sample collecting 

 of zooplankton should be done over a wide area of the Beau- 

 fort Sea. General trophic interaction studies are important 

 too. This is important baseline information because we have 

 no idea how, or if, animals respond to changing resource 

 (prey density) patterns between the shore and pack ice, or 

 even east to west in the Beaufort Sea. General biological 

 oceanographic information is paramount to understand the 

 Beaufort Sea ecosystem; such information is presently lack- 

 ing. 



Bering Sea 



1) Study whale movements and habits of whales associated 

 with the movement of ice during breakup in spring and forma- 

 tion in autumn around St. Lawrence Island. 



2) Study calving and feeding near St. Lawrence Island in the 

 spring and feeding in the autumn, especially north of the island. 



3) Study habitat use patterns in the Navarin Basin during 

 late winter. 



Chukchi Sea 



1) Determine if bowhead and white whales migrate directly 

 into the western Chukchi Sea during the late spring or summer 

 from the NBS, and if they migrate from the Beaufort Sea into 

 the Chukchi Sea between June and September. This informa- 

 tion is necessary to determine if the entire population enters 

 the Beaufort Sea and, thus, might be vulnerable to oil develop- 

 ment related activities along the North Slope. 



2) Ascertain whether the Hope Basin area supports bow- 

 heads for feeding in late autumn. 



Non-site Specific Studies 



Noise effect studies should be conducted. Additional detailed 

 studies on behavior and response vocalizations might also help 

 determine the whales' sensitivity to man's activities. Further 

 analysis of historical Eskimo and Yankee shore-based whaling 

 records should be made to establish and to evaluate total mor- 

 tality. Since the euphasiids (e.g., Thysanoessa raschii) and cope- 

 pods (Calanus spp.) are the principal prey taken by bowheads, 

 a detailed study of the life cycle and quantitative occurrence of 

 these species should be made in the Arctic, especially in the 

 Beaufort Sea nearshore from Barter Island to Point Barrow, 

 Amundsen Gulf, and eastern Chukchi Sea. Naturally, the life 

 histories and quantitative determination of other prey species 

 and competing predators should be made as other important 

 bowhead food items are discovered. Concurrent biological 

 oceanographic studies should support the laboratory work. 

 Oil effects studies, after life cycle studies, should follow. 



The aforementioned proposed studies are only generally 

 discussed here. Specific studies should be thoroughly re- 



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