Post on 16-Jan-2016
transcript
Marine Protected Species: Serving warm, fuzzy, and cute since 1972
Dr. Jason TurnerDepartment of Marine Science, University of Hawai‘i at Hilo
Marine Protected Species: Serving warm, fuzzy, and cute since 1972
1. Who are protected
2. Pertinent Legislation
3. U.S. vs. International Protection
4. History of Protection
5. Case studies/Future implications
Who are Marine Protected Species?
Who are U.S. Marine Protected Species?
1. All Marine MammalsWhales, dolphins, porpoises, seals,
sea lions, walrus, manatees, sea otters, polar bears
2. Sea TurtlesGreen, Hawksbill, Leatherback,
Loggerhead, Kemp’s Ridley, Olive Ridley
Who are U.S. Marine Protected Species?
3. Fishes - SalmonCoho, Sockeye, Chum, Chinook, Atlantic
4. InvertebratesElkhorn & Staghorn Coral, White Abalone
Protected Species Legislation
1. Marine Mammal Protection Act - 1972
2. Endangered Species Act - 1973
3. CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) - 1975
Marine Mammal Protection Act
Prohibits, with certain exceptions, the take of marine mammals in U.S. waters and by U.S. citizens on the high seas the importation of marine mammals and marine mammal products into the U.S. - Since 1972
Definitions Take: to harass, hunt, capture, or kill, or attempt to harass, hunt, capture or kill any marine mammal. Harassment: any act of pursuit, torment, or annoyance
Marine Mammal Protection Act
All Marine Mammals within U.S. watersWhales, dolphins, porpoises, seals,
sea lions, walrus, manatees, sea otters, polar bears
What are U.S. waters?
Exclusive Economic ZoneLaw of the Sea treaty– established 200-mile-wide EEZs – granting coastal nations exclusive rights with respect to natural resources
Protected Species Legislation
1. Marine Mammal Protection Act - 1972
2. Endangered Species Act - 1973
3. CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) - 1975
Endangered Species Act
Purpose: Recovery of endangered and threatened species
USFWS (Fish & Wildlife) & NOAA (Fisheries)ID & Publish list of threatened or endangered
spp
Species given full legal protection = no “take”
Federal gov’t prohibited harming species or habitatRecovery plan
Includes “critical habitat”
Endangered is the classification provided to an animal or plant in danger of extinction within the foreseeable future throughout all or a significant portion of its range
Threatened is the classification provided to an animal or plant likely to become endangered within the foreseeable future throughout all or a significant portion of its range
Critical Habitat are "all areas essential to the conservation" of the target species; the original ESA of 1973 allowed the FWS and NOAA Fisheries to designate specific areas as protected "critical habitat" zones
What is Endangered?
Who is listed?
Who is listed?
How are they listed?A species can be listed in two ways:
1) FWS or NOAA Fisheries to take the initiative and directly list the species
2) Via individual or organizational petition which prompts FWS or NMFS to conduct a scientific review
Has the listing process changed?
Has the listing process changed?Listings by year (under different administrations)
Ford (47 listings, 15 per year)Carter (126 listings, 32 per year)Reagan (255 listings, 32 per year)George H. W. Bush (231 listings, 58 per year) Clinton (521 listings, 65 per year) George W. Bush (60 listings, 8 per year) as of 5/24/08)
Recent administration has proposed more listing power to Agencies, reduced roles of citizens and independent scientists
Is there International Protection?
Protected Species Legislation
1. Marine Mammal Protection Act - 1972
2. Endangered Species Act - 1973
3. CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) - 1975
CITES
CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) is an international agreement between Governments
Its aim is to ensure that international trade in specimens of wild animals and plants does not threaten their survival
CITESWorks by subjecting international trade in specimens of selected species to certain controls
All import, export, re-export and introduction from the sea of species covered by the Convention has to be authorized through a licensing system
IUCNInternational Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) - an international organization dedicated to natural resource conservation
IUCN brings together 83 states, 108 government agencies, 766 Non-governmental organizations and 81 international organizations and about 10,000 experts and scientists from countries around the world
IUCNMission is to influence, encourage and assist societies throughout the world to conserve the integrity and diversity of nature and to ensure that any use of natural resources is equitable and ecologically sustainable
Since 1963 has produced the IUCN Red List - world's most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of plant and animal species
IUCN
IWC
International Whaling Commission (IWC) - an international body set up (1946) to "provide for the proper conservation of whale stocks and thus make possible the orderly development of the whaling industry“
1970’s - dominated by governments opposed to commercial whaling
1986 – Moratorium in commercial whaling for its members
Whale Wars“The Society's fight to eradicate Japanese whaling on the high seas — where international laws are interpreted by different countries and organizations in different ways —”
Whale WarsSea Shephard says that Japan is “Violating an International Ban on Whaling” by conducting Scientific Whaling
Japanese Whalers say they are legally whaling
Who is Right?
Scientific WhalingMoratorium applies only to commercial whaling
Whaling under the scientific-research and aboriginal-subsistence provisions of the IWC is still allowed in Norway, Iceland, Japan
Scientific WhalingAre Norway, Iceland & Japan getting a fair shake?
Japan has issued scientific permits every year in recent years. In the current year, permits are for the JARPA II programme (850±10% Antarctic minke whales, 50 fin whales and 50 humpback whales) and the JARPN II programme (340 minke, 50 Bryde's, 100 sei and 10 sperm whales)
ARTICLE VIII, Para 2“Any whales taken under these special permits shall so far as practicable be processed and the proceeds shall be dealt with in accordance with directions issued by the Government by which the permit was granted”
Scientific Whaling
Which means…
Under the IWC permits Japan is allowed to take certain whales and based upon
Article VIII, Para 2 – are required to process whale that is taken with permit
http://www.iwcoffice.org/conservation/permits.htm
Scientific Whaling
Scientific Whaling
Scientific Whaling
Scientific Whaling
Aboriginal Subsistence WhalingBering-Chukchi-Beaufort Seas stock of bowhead whales (taken by native people of Alaska and Chukotka) - A total of up to 280 bowhead whales can be landed in the period 2008 - 2012, with no more than 67 whales struck in any year (and up to 15 unused strikes may be carried over each year).
Eastern North Pacific gray whales (taken by native people of Chukotka and Washington State ) - A total catch of 620 whales is allowed for the years 2008 - 2012 with a maximum of 140 in any one year.
IWCRegulations
Moratorium on Whaling (1986)
Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary (1994) – 11.8 million sq mile sanctuary
Scientific Whaling
No “teeth”
To Protect or not to ProtectCritical issues:
Who we protect?
How we protect?
Why we protect?
Seals and Sealing
Seals and SealingNative Americans & Native Canadians > 4,000 years
Northwest Europe & Baltic Sea > 10,000 years
Seals and SealingSeal coats prized for both their beauty & warmth
Seal oil used as lamp fuel, lubricating and cooking oil, processing leather and jute, & constituent of soap
Meat was an important source of protein, vitamin A and iron
Seals and Sealing
Seals basking on the ice in the spring sun were stalked in a sealskin covered kayak and killed with clubs
Techniques – Spring/Summer hunt
Walrus baculum
Seals and SealingTechniques – Winter hunt
Standing at a seal's breathing hole waiting for hours for a seal to come up for air
Seals and Sealing Modern Native technique – harpoon replaced with rifle; kayak with motorboat
Seal killing for commercial purposes - 1515
Became more prevalent in the late 1700s
Seals began to be exploited by whalers
Commercial Sealing
Modern Sealing
Harp seals in Canada are culled due to their hypothesized impact on cod stocks
250,000-350,000 harp seals are killed every year
Harp seals do eat Atlantic cod, although 40 years of studies indicate that Atlantic cod is a minor constituent of their diet
Why Modern Sealing?
Why Modern Sealing?
Did harp seals cause the collapse of cod stocks in the late 1980s, early 1990s?...No.
The scientific evidence indicates that stock collapse was caused by over-fishing
Then why continue – what are we (they) doing with 250,000-350,000 seals
Why Modern Sealing?Three-year harp seal quota - 975,000 animalsIn 2006: 325,000 harp seals
10,000 hooded seals 10,400 grey seals 10,000 seals for Aboriginal hunting
While many countries have banned the importation of seal products, the Canadian industry brought in about $16.5 million last year
What’s the Problem?
Steller Sea Lion Rookery1969 1987
How Safe is Your Dolphin?
Purse SeiningRate of incidentally caught dolphins in the
Pacific tuna purse seine fishery in the 60’s and 70’s sparked the tuna-dolphin debate and the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972
However, 6 million dolphins killed since 1959
Marine Mammal Protection Act& Magnuson-Stevens
Purse SeiningThree methods of purse seining for
tuna in the eastern tropical Pacific:On Log, On School, On Dolphin
Between the 1950’s and 1970’s, 100% of purse seiners in the Eastern Tropical Pacific utilized Dolphin sets
Since that time, effort placed upon moving the fishery towards Log and School sets
Marine Mammal Protection Act& Magnuson-Stevens
Purse Seining
# 16
Utilizes a Floating Aggregation Device
(FAD)Encircles All
Encircles School Encircles School & Pod
Who’s Seining WhoAlthough they are most detrimental to marine mammals, “Dolphin sets” overwhelmingly produces the least amount of bycatch and the greatest amount of large, adult tunas
Bycatch taxa Log sets School sets Dolphin sets
Dolphins 6 11 4,521
Turtles 232 100 64
Billfishes 4,121 1,708 894
Sharks and rays 105,632 30,258 7,760
Large pelagic fishes
2,611,312 202,159 2,608
Triggerfishes 1,735,960 11,714 1,474
Other fishes 2,651,856 169,842 73,414
1993-1996 total data N= 10,000 sets per type
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The Problem:- easy to conduct, produce high bycatch numbers (tens of
millions) and yield young (5-15 lb) tuna
- difficult to conduct; require spotting schools independent of dolphin pods. Utilize juvenile tuna (10-25 lb) not yet associated with dolphins
– focus upon adult (>70 lb) fish with little associated bycatch numbers
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: Possible paradigm shift from the conservation of a single species toward the protection of entire ecosystems/ trophic communities??? or
To Protect or not to ProtectWhy - Serving warm, cute, and fuzzy
Protected: Not Protected:
All marine mammals Any SharksAll sea turtles Any Billfishes
Relatively few: plants insects other inverts
To Protect or not to Protect
To Protect or not to ProtectHow – Species, Ecosystem, Trophic role
everything
Sea turtles – protected because numbers were reduced by man’s influence
When numbers rebound they would become de-listed
To Protect or not to ProtectWould de-listing of sea turtles ever happen?
To Protect or not to ProtectWould de-listing of sea turtles ever happen?
To Protect or not to ProtectHow: We list marine mammals because of their taxonomy, not their population status
To Protect or not to ProtectIf based upon population status, only a relative few marine mammals would be protected
Why we protect?
Why we protect?
Why we protect?
Why we protect?
Why we protect?
Polar Bear, Polar Bear, What Do You Hear?
Polar Bear, Polar Bear, What Do You Hear?
Global Warming Threats?
December 2006: USFWS proposes listing Polar Bears as “Threatened” due to melting pack ice
12 month study process
Critical habitat issues
Would not affect Native Alaskan subsistence hunting
What’s the Catch?
On May 14, 2008, the United States Department of the Interior listed the polar bear as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act
Did not designate critical habitat citing Alaskan Subsistence hunting, etc.
Also – listing is based upon climate change
What’s the Catch?
If we provide Critical Habitat to polar bears based upon climate change we are:
1) Formally acknowledging that we are a cause of global warming
2) Are responsible for reversing this trend (i.e. – changing emissions policy, etc)