GREAT WHALE CONSERVANCY STRATEGIC PLAN 2017-2027 Every other breath we take comes from the sea.. The Great Whale Conservancy is dedicated to protecting the world s great whales, and returning global populations towards their pre-whaling abundance, with special focus on the blue whales. "White Eyes" - well known blue whale in Baja and the California coast, easily identifiable by its distinctive fluke. Photo Great Whale Conservancy..
This remarkable day produced about as many blue whales as I have ever seen in one day 30-35 with 17 different individuals photographically identified... It almost seemed like the days before whaling came alive again with blue whales everywhere we went all day long... Today I can imagine a world where whales are abundant, well protected and able to help sustain a healthy ocean and abundant fish populations... and where humans value and understand the critical role that whales play in healthy and sustainable oceans. Michael Fishbach, reporting on Baja Season, March 6, 2017 GWC s Goal is to double Blue Whale numbers by 2050 and restore all great whale populations toward pre-whaling abundance. Pre-whaling blue whale populations were estimated to be 350,000. Now scientists estimate the global blue whale population at 8,000-15,000. The Southern Ocean holds the greatest promise for blue whale recovery -- where this species was most abundant prior to commercial whaling and where their primary food source krill is most prolific. Humpback whale surface feeding, Baja, Mexico, February 2017. Photo Great Whale Conservancy.
Whales are one of the most charismatic and beloved group of animals on earth. They are a part of our myths, legends and history. And at this moment, all over the world, blue whales are finding each other in the ocean by sound. In fact, they are doing most everything they do by sound... But this whale is teetering on the edge of extinction. We killed 98% of them in the days of whaling.... and the thought of losing them is just unbearable. Michael Fishbach Blue whale takes a breath. Photo Great Whale Conservancy.
Saving whales is of vital importance due to their unique and critical role in ensuring healthy oceans. Marine scientists have now shown how whales are ecosystem engineers. Whale fecal plumes stimulate the growth of phytoplankton that form the basis of the entire marine food chain. Phytoplankton blooms also produce 50% of the world s oxygen. Blue whale fluke with Isla Danzante in the background. Photo Great Whale Conservancy.
The Problem: Ship strikes ship-on-whale collisions are a critical problem for most species of great whales. Northeast pacific blue whale populations have remained stagnant after 50 years of no whaling. For blue whales, the loss of even a few adults is a serious impairment to their post-whaling recovery. Significantly reducing ship strikes through responsible shipping is urgently needed. Responsible Shipping means that shipping companies do everything possible to reduce the risk of striking a whale. Separation of the ships from the whales in space and time is the surest way to eliminate the risk of many whales being struck by massive cargo ships, oil tankers and other large vessels. Blue whale feeding off California coast with tanker nearby. Blue whale feeding off California coast with tanker nearby.
With science informing policy this problem can be solved. IN MARINE SCIENCE, RESEARCH NEWS, SCIENCE & NATURE / 28 MAY 2014 WWF, June 27, 2003 - SAINT JOHN, New Brunswick - To better protect some of the world's most endangered whales from collisions with ships, Canadian authorities are changing the shipping lanes in the Bay of Fundy beginning July 1. The move marks the first time shipping lanes have been altered to protect an endangered species. Over the last decade, ship collisions have been responsible for about 40 percent of all known North Atlantic right whale deaths. The Republic of Panama s proposal to implement four Traffic Separation Schemes for commercial vessels entering and exiting the Panama Canal and ports was approved unanimously by the International Maritime Organization in London, May 23. Based on studies by Smithsonian marine ecologist Hector Guzman, the new shipping lanes are positioned to minimize overlap between shipping routes and humpback whale migration routes and reduce vessel speed four months a year at the peak of the whale overwintering season... Based on his analysis of whales tagged with satellite transmitters, Guzman estimates the new policy will reduce potential areas of collision between ships and whales by 93 percent and reduce the interactions between ships and whales by 95 percent in the Gulf of Panama. Humpback whale breaching off Isla Carmen, Sea of Cortez.
Shipping lanes intersecting with key whale habitat areas along US coast GWC map showing areas of greatest concern in US waters, where shipping lanes intersect with whale habitat. Color codes: Blue - blue whales; Yellow - humpback; Red fin whales; Purple grey whale; Brown right whale.
The time is NOW... Momentum is gaining on many levels to stop ship strikes on whales... The International Whaling Commission (IWC) has identified the need to produce a Strategic Plan describing its activities intended to reduce the threat of ship strikes with cetaceans in the near and distant future... [and to] develop approaches and solutions by 2020 to achieve a permanent reduction in ship strikes of cetaceans. The UN has positioned Ship Strikes on Whales as one of its calls to action at its upcoming UN Oceans Conference in June 2017 which is focused on Sustainability Goal 14 To conserve and sustainably use the world s oceans, seas and marine resources.
GWC Ships Strikes Campaign GWC plans to achieve its goal of doubling the blue whale population by 2050 from about 10,000 to 20,000 by accelerated and sustained efforts to gain commitments from governments to move shipping lanes out of critical habitat. This will decrease ship strikes that lead to whale fatalities. Through these efforts, blue whales should be able to rebound towards their pre-whaling numbers, just as their close relatives the humpback and fin whales have done. EDUCATING, INFLUENCING AND ADVISING KEY STAKEHOLDERS These are animals supremely adapted to surviving in a challenging marine environment and fast, large ships is something they have not had to deal with or are evolved to deal with. John Calambokidis, research biologist and one of the founders of the Olympia, Wash.-based Cascadia Research Collective. The GWC persuaded key organizers at the United Nations to include ship strikes on great whales in the pre-conference forum leading up to the United Nations Oceans Conference in New York City on June 5-9, 2017. Our goal is to educate government leaders as to the severity of the ship strike issue globally and to leverage those leaders with whale/ship problems to act in their home countries to minimize ships strikes on whales. The GWC is engaged in bilateral discussions with the Director of Environmental Affairs for the World Shipping Council (WSC), reaching an understanding that while its ships are part of the problem, their organization can be part of the solution. The WSC and its high-powered board of directors represent over 4 trillion dollars of economic activity annually. The GWC intends to continue to work with the WSC to develop strategies for addressing ship/whale issues around the world. The GWC has launched a series of meetings with key stakeholders involved with the shipping activity of the Ports of LA/Long Beach. The goal of these meetings is to work towards an agreement on a nighttime ban of large vessel traffic during blue whale feeding season. Research shows that blue whales revert to increased surface feeding at night since their light-sensitive prey krill migrate to the surface. Increased duration at or near the surface at night makes ship strikes more likely. A reduction in nighttime traffic into LA/Long Beach is a key strategy in reducing whale fatalities. The GWC works with a coalition of political leaders and businesses supporting our efforts to save whale lives off the California coast.
COLLECTING SCIENTIFIC DATA TO SUPPORT DECISION-MAKING Fecal plume. But most whales actually deposit waste that floats at the surface of the ocean, "very liquidy, a flocculent plume," says University of Vermont whale biologist, Joe Roman. And this liquid fecal matter, rich in nutrients, has a huge positive influence on the productivity of ocean fisheries, Roman and his colleague, James McCarthy from Harvard University, have discovered. Their discovery, published Oct. 11 in the journal PLoS ONE, is what Roman calls a "whale pump." The GWC is collaborating with Chilean blue whale biologists preparing to collect data on dive profiles in 2018. Dive profiles help indicate when and how long whales are at or near the surface and thereby at greater risk to ship strikes. This research will help make the case that blue whales in their region can be protected if nocturnal ship traffic can be minimized or eliminated during their annual blue whale season from December to April. The GWC s research over 20 years in the Sea of Cortez has contributed hundreds of individual identifications and vast amounts of data on the Northeast Pacific sub-population of blue whales which is the largest subpopulation remaining on earth. GWC s blue whale photo identify-cations are incorporated into two long-standing research catalogues that can be used to track whale longevity, migration patterns and other relevant statistics. GWC collaborates with a number of the world s leading scientific whale research groups, such as Cascadia Research Collective and the Mingan Island Cetacean Study. For example, feces samples collected during the GWC annual field research seasons (February- March) are sent to Harvard University as part of their research on the whale pump.
TELLING THE STORY OF HOW WHALES CONTRIBUTE TO A HEALTHY OCEAN GWC s Executive Director Michael Fishbach travels worldwide to bring the story of the whales to all kinds of audiences, including: Appearing on numerous television shows and networks; Presenting to TedX audiences; Speaking to members and guests of the Explorer s Club in New York City Addressing students in numerous educational institutions. Michael has worked with the BBC and theatrical film crews on films and documentaries involving the plight of whales and cetaceans (The Cove, Racing Extinction). GWC possess the world s most accurate, true-to-life, 85-foot inflatable female blue whale, named Mz. Blue. Mz. Blue has appeared at festivals, parades and even on the Mall in Washington DC. Mz. Blue is a popular, attention-getting educational tool, and is used to bring attention not just to the problems, but to the solutions for preserving this most remarkable species. The GWC is creating an interactive world-wide map documenting the problem zones where shipping lanes and prime whale habitat overlap. GWC will be hosting this educational tool to raise greater awareness of problem areas and a vivid data-drive way to show successes region by region as they occur.
MOVING FORWARD THE GWC WILL: STRATEGY 1.0 PARTNER WITH IN-COUNTRY MARINE SCIENTISTS AND FIELDWORKERS TO ACCELERATE DATA GATHERING AND RESEARCH TO SUPPORT SOUND DECISION MAKING AROUND MOVING SHIPPING LANES. 1.1 Loreto, Mexico: Continue to identify blue whale populations to follow the lives of the oldest known blue whales and increase knowledge and observations of the best known blue whale sub-population on earth, the Northeast Pacific subpopulation. Keeping track of positive or negative changes in this group is critically important. 1.2 Chile: Partner with the Centro de Cetacea, and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute to establish the dive profiles of blue whales on the west side of Chacao Canyon near Puerto Montt. This data will be utilized in our effort to halt nighttime traffic during blue whale season, January through April. 1.5 Artic Ocean: Assemble an international team to create baseline surveys of whale populations so that new shipping lanes being developed are done so in a whale-safe manner. 1.4 Sri Lanka: GWC advises, assists and supports ongoing efforts by the World Shipping Council (WSC) and the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) in their ongoing efforts to move ships out of harms way of blue whales off of Sri Lanka s south coast. 1.3 Australia: Partner with local scientists to collect data on abundance, distribution, and dive profiles of blue whales. Hire a research assistant to gather data on shipping activity and patterns in critical whale habitat. The Australian government recognizes the existence of ship-whale collisions off its coasts.
STRATEGY 2.0 CONVENE AND PARTICIPATE IN MEETINGS WITH SELECT GROUPS AND KEY PARTNERS; PARTICIPATE IN EDUCATIONAL AND FUNDRAISING EVENTS; RAISE PUBLIC AWARENESS Port of LA/Long Beach: Summer 2017 Host meetings in Los Angeles with key personnel (such as PMSA, tanker shipping association, NOAA, Coast Guard, and Port of LA/Long Beach) who have the authority to change commercial sea traffic and thereby save lives of blue whales who migrate between Southern California, the west coast of Baja California, the Sea of Cortez and the Costa Rica dome. UN Oceans Conference: June 2017 Attend UN Oceans Conference with the goal of arranging private meetings with country officials to discuss shipping lane issues, and to meet with other NGOs working towards common goals. Ship Strike Interactive Educational Map Produce interactive map using shipping and whale data showing key problem areas to raise awareness and track successes. Educational & Fundraising Events New England -- Fall 2017 -- Public speaking event. Las Vegas -- Spring 2018 -- Summerland Library Performing Arts Center. Speaking event & gallery presentation.
GREAT WHALE CONSERVANCY BOARD OF DIRECTORS & ADVISORS Michael Fishbach Dr. David Guggenehim Louis Psihoyos President Chairman Advisor Karen McCall Dinah Nieburg Heather Watrous Vice Chairman & Treasurer Secretary Education Director Ashanka Kanada Ashanka Kanada John Calambokidis Lenard Milich Communications Director Scientific Advisor Scientific Advisor