Last Monday, Feb. 27, the Navy announced that it was beginning
an environmental review that will lead up to a new federal permit
involving Navy testing and training efforts in the Northwest,
including the use of sonar at pierside in Puget Sound. See
Kitsap Sun, Feb. 27.
Two days later, workers and passengers on the Clinton-Mukilteo
ferry heard sonar pings apparently vibrating through the hull loud
enough to be heard above the water. Scott Veirs was the first to
report this issue in his blog
Orcasphere that same day.
Jason Wood, a bioacoustician and research associate at The Whale
Museum in Friday Harbor, made some phone calls and issued this
report:
“The crew in the engine room, the captain, and passengers could
hear the sonar, at times so loudly that the ferry agent on land
could hear the sonar coming up through the ferry while it was at
the dock…. The operations center called the Everett Naval base, but
got no answers. They also called the Coast Guard. No (Navy) or
Coast Guard vessels were reported seen during the sonar incident,
other than a naval vessel at the dock in the Everett Navy
yard.”
I phoned Sheila Murray, spokeswoman for Navy Region Northwest,
who confirmed that the sonar was coming from the USS Shoup, docked
at Naval Station Everett. She issued this statement:
“In response to your query, the Navy was conducting pierside
testing of mid-frequency active sonar at Naval Station Everett
yesterday. This is routine testing that is a longstanding and
ongoing requirement, and is an essential process in preparing a
Navy ship to get underway.
“Pierside testing is not continuous, but consists of very brief
transmissions of acoustic energy interspersed with longer silent
periods.”
The Shoup gained a notorious reputation among some killer whale
researchers in 2003, when the intense sound of sonar pings was
reported to have caused J pod to flee in a confused pattern. See
Water Ways, Feb. 11, for links to videos of that incident.
Sheila also confirmed that this is the kind of “pierside
testing” contemplated for the new permit being sought from the
National Marine Fisheries Service, a permit that will allow
incidental harassment of marine mammals under the Marine Mammal
Protection Act. Such activities will be analyzed in an upcoming
environmental impact statement, as I described last week. Continue reading →
As you probably know if you follow this blog, a team of
researchers attached a satellite tag to one of the Southern
Resident killer whales a few days ago
(Water Ways, Feb. 22). But the transmission stopped sometime
after Thursday morning, following three days of transmissions used
to track J pod in the Strait of Juan de Fuca and Pacific Ocean.
Bell M. Shimada, the
research ship now in search of killer whales. / NOAA
photo.
The researchers, led by Brad Hanson of the Northwest Fisheries
Science Center, are now trying to locate J pod during the day to
determine whether the tag fell off or simply stopped
transmitting.
I received this e-mail from Brad yesterday:
“We have been unable to locate them during daylight hours the
last two days. We detected the whales on our towed array on
Thursday evening after sunset near the west end of the Strait of
Juan de Fuca but we were not able to stay with them until daybreak
because they stopped vocalizing and echolocating about 0130 on
Friday.
“We spent most of Friday searching the central Strait of Juan de
Fuca before heading to Port Angeles late in the evening to avoid an
approaching storm. J pod calls were detected off San Juan Island
late Friday evening. We are waiting for winds to subside and will
resume our search as soon as possible.”
A decision about whether to attach a transmitter to another orca
in J pod will wait until the researchers get a look at J-26 to see
what may have happened to the transmission. No more than two tags
per year may used to track any one pod. Specific whales were
selected for tags, generally avoiding females that could contribute
to the population.
The ability to track the whales by satellite makes the research
work easier, but it does not change the priorities. Figuring out
where the Southern Residents travel in winter remains a primary
goal of the ongoing research. Two years ago, the crew went to sea
looking for the whales without the option of tagging, using the
same acoustic equipment being used now to find them.
The cruise also is collecting data on birds, zooplankton and
oceanographic conditions, as with the cruise in 2009, Brad told me.
The ability to use the satellite data to track the whales allows
researchers to collect information along the track where the whales
had been.
Without information about the location of the whales, the
researchers tend to follow systematic track lines with their
research vessel. When the whales are picked up on the acoustic
array, the effort to locate the animals takes precedence over data
collection. At night, changes in ship speed and heading limits the
type and quality of data that can be collected.
The risks of tagging can be debated, and I’ve tried to share the
concerns. Still, it is easy to see why researchers wish to have
this tool available to them as they try to figure out where the
whales go in winter.
UPDATE: Tracking J pod from
6 p.m. Monday to 9 a.m. Thursday, using a satellite tag attached to
J-26. This is the northwest corner of Washington state, with
Vancouver Island to the north.
Map: National Marine Fisheries Service
A team of killer whale researchers is tracking J pod by
satellite, after attaching a special radio tag to J-26, a
21-year-old male named “Mike.”
Brad Hanson, who is leading the research team from the Northwest
Fisheries Science Center, said the tagging occurred Monday without
incident as darkness fell over the Strait of Juan de Fuca.
“This is really exciting,” Brad told me today by cell phone from
the NOAA research ship Bell M. Shimada. “This
is something we have been planning on doing for quite a few years
now. Everything worked out to encounter the animals in decent
weather condition.”
The map above shows where the whales have traveled since Monday
afternoon. A
website showing the tracks, including an explanation of the
project, will be updated roughly once a day.
The goal is to learn where the Southern Resident killer whales
go in winter, what they’re eating and why they choose certain areas
to hang out. Until now, these questions could not be answered well,
because winter sightings were fairly limited.
When I talked to Brad about 4 p.m. Wednesday, the Shimada was
towing an acoustic array near Port Angeles, as the researchers
listened for the sounds of killer whales that might venture into
the strait.
J pod was fairly spread out Monday during the tagging operation,
and visibility was low Tuesday during heavy rains. As the whales
headed out into the ocean, the crew decided to stay in the strait
to avoid 20-foot seas and heavy winds off the coast. They could
have followed the whales out, Brad said, but the satellite tag
allows the crew to keep track of their location. In rough seas,
there’s a risk that the research equipment will be damaged.
“Everything is weather-dependent,” Brad said. “Our plan is to
try to catch up with them as soon as we can.”
The goal is to collect fecal samples and fish scales — as the
researchers do in summer when the whales are in the San Juan
Islands.
“That data is extremely valuable in determining the species of
fish,” he said, “and if it’s chinook, what stocks are
important.”
The satellite tagging has been controversial among some
researchers and killer whale advocates, but it was approved
following a study of the potential risks and benefits. See Water
Ways entries from 2010:
The researchers are scheduled to be out with the whales until
March 7.
“We’re keeping our options open,” Brad said. “We will spend as
much time with Js as we can. It looks like we could get one
low-pressure system after another, as is typical for February, but
we might get a break on Friday. Sometimes we’ll get these holes in
the weather system.
“Right now, we’re basically hanging out in the Strait of Juan de
Fuca. If other animals come in, we hope to detect that.”
The tagging permit allows for up to six orcas to be tracked each
year, but nobody expects the number of tagged animals to be close
to that.
Data from the satellite transmitter is relayed to a weather
satellite as it passes over. The information is then transferred to
a processing center that determines the location of the
transmitter. Through the process, the information gets delayed a
few hours.
Also on board the research vessel are seabird biologists and
other experts taking samples of seawater and zooplankton and
collecting basic oceanographic data.
Izumi Stephens of Bainbridge Island, who appeared in the program
“Whale Wars” last year, has returned to her native Japan as a “Cove
Guardian” for Sea Shepherd Conservation Society.
Izumi
Stephens
Izumi left yesterday, traveling with her daughter Fiona, who
will be 14 in April and who shares her mother’s passion to save
whales and dolphins.
Cove
Guardians are volunteers who document and photograph the
slaughter of dolphins in Taiji, Japan, a town made famous by the
award-winning documentary “The
Cove.”
I talked to Izumi Wednesday before she flew out. She was excited
and a little nervous. As a Japanese citizen who has lived in the
United States 19 years, she was not sure how she would be received
by Japanese residents when she stands alongside Sea Shepherd
volunteers.
A year ago at this time, Izumi was serving aboard the Sea
Shepherd vessel Steve Irwin as it followed Japanese whaling ships
and disrupted their activities in the Southern Ocean of Antarctica.
Izumi translated messages between the Japanese whalers and Sea
Shepherd and helped coordinate coverage by Japanese reporters.
Izumi was the first Japanese translator who did not conceal her
identity from the photographers filming “Whale Wars,” a weekly
reality program on Animal Planet. Izumi appeared in several scenes
but was not a major character. Check out my initial story for the
Kitsap Sun on Oct. 31, 2010, with follow-up reports on Water
Ways:
Jan. 4, 2011 …
Feb. 22, 2011 … and
June 1, 2011.
Izumi says her language skills may come in handy in Taiji. Also,
her understanding of Japanese values may help her build a “bridge
of understanding” with the Japanese people. Many see no difference
between killing dolphins and killing fish to eat, she said, yet
dolphins are intelligent mammals, and the rate of hunting cannot be
sustained.
“To them, killing dolphins is a tradition,” she said, “but every
country has its horrible traditions. Spain gave up the bull fight,
and Japan can give up this.”
Izumi said her daughter Fiona put together a school project
about the anti-whaling conflict last year, so she understands the
arguments on both sides.
Cove Guardians say they are careful to obey the local laws as
they document the daily killing of dolphins, which they claim is
about 20,000 per year. Besides documenting and filming the deaths
of dolphins and the movement of fishing boats, the general goal is
to create a sense of shame among the hunters and local residents,
they say.
Suzanne West of Seattle, whose husband Scott is coordinating
Cove Guardians in Japan, said Izumi may receive increasesd
attention from the Japanese media. Some people will be surprised at
her opposition to the hunt. By now, most Japanese are fairly used
to seeing Western visitors speaking in opposition to the events in
Taiji, said Suzanne, who coordinates efforts in the U.S.
“A big thing is making them aware that the world is watching,”
Suzanne said. “We got a lot of footage last year of them actually
killing the dolphins.”
Now, the hunters are conducting the slaughter behind tarps, she
noted, “but we can still count the actual bodies going in with none
coming out.”
Izumi will return to Bainbridge Island on Thursday, March 1. Two
days later, she will participate in a gathering of Sea Shepherd
supporters at Casa Rojas Mexican restaurant, 403 Madison Ave., on
Bainbridge Island. The event is free, with donations going to Sea
Shepherd. For reservations, e-mail Seattle Sea Shepherd.
Izumi’s arrival in Japan coincides with the release from jail of
Cove Guardian Erwin Vermeulen of the Netherlands, who was arrested
in December during a pushing incident while trying to photograph
dolphins in the cove.
A judge ruled that Vermeulen should pay a fine of 1,000 euros
($1,315 U.S.), but he cannot leave Japan pending an appeal by the
prosecutor. Officials with Sea Shepherd say they may file formal
proceedings to protest the two-month detention for a minor crime.
See
Expatica News.
Update, Feb. 18: After I posted this blog
entry, I received an e-mail from Sea Shepherd’s media department
that provides additional details and clarifies the Expatica report.
See News
Release (PDF 24 kb)
Advocates for the release of Morgan have failed in their appeal
to overturn the court ruling that transferred the young killer
whale to Loro Parque, a Spanish amusement park. An appeals court
ruled that the transfer was not unlawful. See
today’s Dutch News
“Morgan is provisionally kept in Tenerife. Fortunately, in Spain
animal protectors are attracting the fate of the orca and want to
continue our fight there. We’ll continue to monitor Morgan and we
will help where we can. And in the Netherlands we focus on the
future, to ensure that stranded cetaceans will no longer fall in
the hands of the commercial industry. The fact that the license for
the care of these animals is no longer in the name of the amusement
park Dolfinarium, but in the name of SOS Dolphin, is a good first
step.”
—–
UPDATE: Nov. 29
Morgan was loaded into a plane today and flown to her new home
in Loro Parque, an amusement park on the Spanish island of
Tenerife. The transport, which involved trucks on both ends of the
trip, was uneventful.
Toby Sterling covered the story for the Associated Press.
—– UPDATE: Nov. 21
A Dutch court ruled this morning that Morgan may be sent to live
at Loro Parque aquarium, ruling against advocates who had hoped to
reunite the young orca with her family in Norway.
In a written finding, Judge M. de Rooij said chances of the
female whale surviving in the wild were “too unsure,” according to
a report by Toby Sterling of the Associated
Press.
“Morgan can be transferred to Loro Parque for study and
education to benefit the protection or maintenance of the species,”
she was quoted as saying.
Reactions among supporters for her release are being compiled on
the Free Morgan
website.
Ingrid Visser, who helped lay the scientific groundwork for
Morgan’s release, was quoted as saying the only hope for Morgan now
now lie with the Spanish courts or the Norwegian government.
“Personally, I am devastated that after all these months of
fighting the good fight, to find that reason and science lost over
money and ulterior motives,” Visser wrote on the Free Morgan page. “Our long-term
goal of establishing laws to ever prevent an animal in need being
turned into an animal used for profit and personal gain will not
stop with Morgan’s incarceration.”
—–
Separate legal actions continue to swirl around two famous
killer whales, Morgan and Lolita.
The fate of Morgan, the orphan killer whale, lies with an
Amsterdam judge who is scheduled to decide tomorrow if the orca
should be moved permanently to an aquarium in Spain or be taken to
a coastal location where she might be reunited with her family.
said
Steve Hearn, head trainer
at Dolfinarium Harderwijk, plays with Morgan at feeding time two
weeks ago.
Associated Press photo by Peter Dejong
Morgan, estimated to be 3 to 5 years old, was rescued in poor
condition last year in the Wadden Sea and was nursed back to health
in a marine park called Harderwijk Dolfinarium. Advocates for her
release say Morgan is being commercially exploited in violation of
international law regarding marine mammals.
As for Lolita, animal-rights groups in the United States filed a
lawsuit last week regarding the killer whale captured in Puget
Sound in 1970 and kept in the Miami Seaquarium almost her entire
life.
The new lawsuit contends that Lolita should have not have been
excluded as part of the “endangered” population when the federal
government listed the Southern Residents under the Endangered
Species Act in 2005. The Animal Legal Defense Fund and People for
the Ethical Treatment of Animals say if Lolita is included among
the endangered orcas, it will lead to better treatment and possibly
a reunion with her relatives.
Morgan’s story
Advocates for Morgan’s release say her caretakers at the marine
park did a good job nursing her back to health, but the law
requires that every effort be made to release marine mammals after
rehabilitation is complete.
The dolphinarium filed a report saying that it is unlikely that
Morgan would be able to survive in the wild and that finding her
family was unlikely. Some experts who supported that initial report
have since changed their minds, however.
Dutch Agriculture Minister Henk Bleker sided with dolphinarium
officials, saying moving Morgan to a large tank at Loro Parque is
best under the circumstances. That decision was unchanged after the
judge ruled that the ministry must conduct its own evaluation,
independent of the dolphinarium.
The Animal Legal Defense Fund and People for the Ethical
Treatment of Animals are asking that Lolita be included in the
population listed as endangered under the Endangered Species
Act.
It isn’t clear what this would accomplish, but the groups make
the point that the Endangered Species Act makes some exceptions for
listing animals kept in captivity, but the focus is on using those
animals for recovery of the listed population and does not apply to
animals kept for commercial use, the groups argue. Quoting from the
lawsuit
filed in U.S. District Court in Seattle (PDF 92 kb):
“In its final listing decision (in 2005), NMFS provided no
explanation for its decision to exclude all of the captive members
of the Southern Resident killer whale population from the listing
of that population as endangered.
“Because of its final listing decision, NMFS has excluded Lolita
from the protections of the ESA, thereby allowing her to be kept in
conditions that harm and harass her, and that would otherwise be
prohibited under the “take” prohibition of the ESA, 16 U.S.C. §
1538(a), including, but not limited to, being kept in an inadequate
tank, without companions of her own species or adequate protection
from the sun.”
The group asks the court to set aside the portion of the listing
decision that excluded Lolita from the endangered population,
because it was “arbitrary and capricious, an abuse of discretion,
and not in accordance with law.”
A baby killer whale, which died within days of birth, could help
provide answers to ongoing questions about what Southern Resident
orcas need to survive and eventually rebuild a healthy population.
Please check out the story I wrote for
today’s Kitsap Sun.
Obtaining killer whale tissues for studies often involves taking
a plug of blubber from a whale’s skin while maneuvering a boat
close to the moving animal. Another way is to follow the whales and
grab bits of fecal matter floating on the water. I find it
remarkable the amount of information that can be obtained by these
methods.
So it should not be surprising that researchers got excited this
week when a baby killer whale essentially dropped into their laps
with pristine tissues to be examined. The calf, found on the
Washington coast, appears to have been dead less than 24 hours when
it was found, and the animal was small enough to be placed on ice.
Decomposition, which can progress at an exponential rate, had
barely begun.
“When we got it, it was still in rigor, and the tissues were
pretty much immaculate,” Dyanna Lamborn of the Washington
Department of Fish and Wildlife told me.
Federal biologists and policy-makers face a tough challenge as
they try to figure out how to restore endangered killer whales to a
healthy population. Needless to say, an intense effort is under way
to save this Northwest icon, the killer whale, from extinction.
It is generally believed that the most critical factors involve
food supply, toxic chemicals and stresses from vessels. But how do
we know that these are the main problems? What other factors, such
as disease or parasites, may play a role? And how do all these
factors interrelate with each other?
The answers to these questions depend on research. Careful
studies might assure us that, to improve the plight of the orcas,
we don’t need to shut down all salmon fishing or halt vessels
involved in whale-watching and commercial shipping. But research
has already begun to inform us that we also cannot ignore these
effects.
Determine the distribution and habitat use of the Southern
Residents in Puget Sound, Georgia Basin and the outer coast.
Investigate the diet of the Southern Residents, including
specific prey populations and the extent to which they eat hatchery
fish.
Analyze the demographics of the Southern Residents, including
mortality rates and potential causes of mortality.
Evaluate population growth rates and survival patterns,
population structure and changes in social structure.
Investigate the health and physiology of the Southern
Residents, including metabolic rates and energy requirements, along
with growth rates and health of individual members.
Given the excitement of the moment, including comments over the
radio, some people still believe that L-90, a 19-year-old female
orca named Ballena, was struck by a boat off the west side of San
Juan Island on Friday.
An experienced driver for the Prince of Whales whale-watching
company was mentioned as a likely witness.
I talked to a spokeswoman for the company who told me that
nobody she knows has any pictures. The only interviews granted by
staff were with enforcement officers for the Washington Department
of Fish and Wildlife.
Sgt. Russ Mullins, one of the WDFW officers who patrols that
area, said he has investigated the incident. As best as he can
tell, no collision occurred.
“Nobody witnessed an actual strike,” he told me. “It was a close
call perhaps, but we do not have vessel-related injuries on this
animal.”
Here are some of the details that Sgt. Mullins reported:
The boat reportedly involved in the incident was a slow-moving
liveaboard passing through the area. The speed was about 7 knots.
Mullins does not know why some news reports mentioned a high-speed
boat, except for the possible assumption that only a fast-moving
boat was likely to strike a killer whale.
A witness on the Prince of Whales boat told officers that the
orca in question and possibly others surfaced some 20 feet off the
bow the boat, which then stopped for a short time before leaving
the area.
The whale was acting sluggish, barely moving and logging on the
surface for quite some time. That behavior led people in the area
to believe a collision had occurred. Comments to that effect went
out over the radio.
“I heard the transmission,” Mullins said. “The close proximity,
combined with the unusual behavior of the whale, led some people to
think it had been struck. We assume the worst. As primary law
enforcement for the area we have a responsibility to respond…”
Another patrol boat quickly tracked down the suspect vessel.
“We talked to the skipper, who was very concerned,” Mullins
said. “He did not appear to be the kind of person who would strike
a whale and knowingly leave.”
Mullins said he stayed with the group of whales for 10 hours,
including part of Saturday. During that time, they passed the town
of Friday Harbor, where they became as active as he’s ever seen
them.
Experts familiar with the orcas assured him that the whale had
been acting strangely even before Friday’s incident and that
nothing had changed See my
Water Ways entry from Friday and
Erin Heydenreich’s further explanation later that day.
Technically, the driver of the boat was in violation of the
protective zone around the whales, 100 yards under state law and 200 yards
under
federal law. That applies even when the whales catch up to a
boat going the same direction, but officers have discretion to
consider the conditions.
Mullins said his department plans to issue a written warning to
the driver of the boat and refer all the information to officials
at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
“This guy’s biggest mistake is not being aware of his
surroundings,” the sergeant said, “but when the whales were within
his view, he took appropriate action.”
Scanning a 100-foot blue whale an inch at a time is an
impressive way to gain a perspective on the world’s largest
animal.
If you allow yourself a meditative moment, this Flash-based
graphic offers a rare form of amusement. Warning: Don’t be in a
hurry when you open this web page, brought to us by the Whale and
Dolphin Conservation Society. Ready?
CLICK HERE.
The scrolling image of the whale is purported to be “life-size,”
while a second image of the entire animal serves as a map for
navigating the massive body.
According to
Greener Magazine, the graphic was created by the German ad
agency Jung von Matt using Soulpix 3D animation. It is made up of
10,000 JPEG images, which the Flash engine downloads at the
appropriate time while the whale “swims” by. The entire image is
more than 80Mb.
The annual North of Falcon process is about to get under way
again, beginning with a public meeting in Olympia on Tuesday.
During Tuesday’s meeting, state, federal and tribal managers are
expected to outline their preseason forecasts of abundance for each
salmon species. See meeting announcement in the
Kitsap Sun and on the North of Falcon
website.
Chinook salmon are the
primary prey for Puget Sound's killer whales. Here, J-40 grabs a
fish off False Bay, San Juan Island
Photo by Astrid Van Ginneken, Center for Whale
Research.
This year, there will be a new elephant in the room … actually,
something as large as an elephant — a killer whale. But more about
that in a moment.
The process of determining how many salmon of each species are
available for harvest and how to divide up the catch has become a
complex project involving commuter simulations, policy discussions
and demands from fishing constituents. The goal is to make abundant
stocks of salmon available for harvest while protecting “weak runs”
— particularly those listed under the Endangered Species Act.
Sure, the process has its flaws, but I have not heard of any
better ideas for protecting weak runs outside of stopping all
fishing for a period of time. So far this year, I haven’t had time
to get a head start on what salmon managers are thinking, but I’ll
be following the discussions as they move along.
I’ve been thinking about the comments people sometimes post on
this blog, blaming all the salmon problems on commercial fishing,
tribal fishing or the locations of fishing nets. Because such
comments are often based on a lack of knowledge, I was wondering if
such folks ever consider attending these meetings to find out how
fishing decisions are made. The meetings, which are open to the
public, begin with general discussions and get more technically
oriented right up to the point when final decisions are made in
mid-April.
While the fishing issues are complex by themselves, it is
becoming clear that anglers and tribal fishermen may soon need to
share their chinook salmon — a highly prized sport and table fish —
with another species, the Southern Resident killer whale, an
endangered species.
In a
letter to salmon managers (PDF 1.5 mb), Will Stelle, regional
administrator for the National Marine Fisheries Service, announced
that he would convene a series of workshops to study the
relationship between chinook fishing and the survival of the Puget
Sound orcas:
“The basic question NMFS must answer is whether Chinook salmon
fisheries that affect the abundance of prey available to the killer
whales are significantly and negatively affecting the well-being of
the Southern Resident population and, if so, how those negative
effects might be reduced.
“At the conclusion of the scientific workshop process, NMFS and
others will be better able to determine what recovery actions are
appropriate and, more specifically, whether and under what
conditions additional constraints on salmon fishing may be
necessary.”
As recently as 2008, the federal agency concluded that fishing
at the levels allowed through the North of Falcon process had no
serious effects on the whales. But, according to Stelle, more
recent analyses may show otherwise:
“Our conclusions, which are preliminary at this point, strongly
suggest that the amount of Chinook available to the whales in
comparison to their metabolic requirements is less than what we
estimated in the 2008 consultation, particularly during those
summer months when the whales spend considerable time foraging in
the Salish Sea.
“This change results from several factors, including but not
limited to revised estimates of the metabolic requirements of the
whales, their selective preference for larger Chinook salmon, and
inclusion of a broader range of years to represent expected
variations in the abundance of Chinook salmon available to the
whales.”
While allocations for killer whales may not be explicit this
year, the workshops could result in reduced harvest under the next
Puget Sound Chinook Management Plan. For a more detailed discussion
of the early analysis, download “Effects
of Fisheries on Killer Whales” (PDF 345 kb).
Early in December, I wrote about a plan to attach satellite
transmitters to selected Puget Sound killer whales by shooting
darts into their dorsal fins. At the time, lots of people offered
questions and concerns, but few had taken a strong position. See my
story in the
Kitsap Sun of Dec. 5.
Since then, Ken Balcomb of the Center for Whale Research and
others involved in research, education and advocacy have come out
against the tagging program as currently proposed. On the other
hand, several other researchers are encouraging the federal
government to push the tagging program forward.
After 140 days, marks are
apparent where barbs of satellite tag entered the dorsal fin of the
transient killer whale known as T-30.
Click to enlarge
As Ken explained it to me, his bottom line is that the
information gathered by tracking the whales by satellite may not be
worth the injury caused by shooting barbed darts into the whales’
fins. He argues that more follow-up investigation is needed into
the short- and long-term effects of the darts, which eventually
work their way out.
Ken was actually the first to apply for a permit from the
National Marine Fisheries Service to conduct the tagging program
with barbed darts. While not wishing to criticize his fellow
researchers, Balcomb said he had been overly assured that the risk
of injury was exceedingly small.
“I was shown pictures of almost-healed wounds,” Ken told me. “I
was given assurance that there was not an issue. I didn’t even
think about these titanium leaves coming out and leaving a hole
that size (in the fin).”
The current design of the
dart used to attach satellite transmitters to killer
whales.
The turning point was when Ken saw a photo of a transient killer
whale, T-30, who had carried one of the satellite tags. (See the
picture, above right.) He said the long-term scarring was “ugly and
unacceptable to me personally,” and he believed that many whale
supporters also would object.
Ken turned down the approved tagging permit — in part because it
was granted as an amendment to his existing permit for
photographing and identifying orcas as part of his ongoing census.
If unacceptable injury were to occur to the subject whales, he
said, his entire permit could be suspended. That, in turn, would
prevent him from continuing the identification work he has done for
more than 30 years.
