The U.S. is considering adopting new regulations that would double the distance boats must keep from killer whales in the Puget Sound – and those in B.C.'s whale-watching industry worry it could hurt business.
The proposed mandatory rules would prohibit all vessels from coming within 183 metres of killer whales, double the distance of the voluntary buffer zone many tour operators already follow.
"For that distance to double, it would mean that tourists or anyone who wanted to view the marine mammals might have to use telephoto lenses or binoculars," said Larry Paike of the Department of Fisheries and Oceans.
The DFO says whales, particularly southern resident killer whales, suffer from noise pollution and struggle to naturally migrate and feed.
"Any of these types of disturbances places additional stress on the animals and it may prevent their long-term productivity. That's what we're trying to minimize. We're essentially speaking for the animals," Paike said.
Tour operators fear impact on business
But Dan Kukat of Springtide Whale Tours in Victoria said the move is going to hurt business.
"The further away you get ... the more difficult it is for that personal interaction to be touched. It's that emotion you need to draw on to get people to do something," he said.
Kukat said greater public awareness and action to protect marine life comes from the millions of people who have taken whale-watching tours and seen the mammals up close.
Visitor David MacAulay said he's not sure he'd spend the money to be so far away.
"As a tourist looking for photographs, it's not a good thing."
Tourist Ken Scott agreed.
"You'd probably think twice about it."
With the U.S. moving forward with the proposed regulations, those in the industry expect Canada will likely be close behind.
vrijdag 31 juli 2009
dinsdag 28 juli 2009
Proposal by NOAA Fisheries on vessel traffic near Southern Resident Orcas
"As part of the recovery program for endangered Southern Resident killer whales, NOAA Fisheries Service is proposing new rules for vessel traffic aimed at further protecting the whales in navigable waters of Washington State. The proposed rules would prohibit vessels from approaching any killer whale closer than 200 yards and forbid vessels from intercepting or parking in the path of a whale. In addition, the proposed regulations would set up a half-mile-wide no-go zone along the west side of San Juan Island from May 1 through the end of September, where generally no vessels would be allowed.
There would be exemptions to the rules for some vessels, including those actively fishing commercially, cargo vessels traveling in established shipping lanes, and government and research vessels. The no-go zone would also have exemptions for treaty Indian fishing vessels, and limited exceptions for land owners accessing private property adjacent to it.
The news release, proposed rule, draft environmental assessment, and other supporting documents are available on our web site at NOAA,along with instructions for submitting comments. There is a 90 day public comment period and we will hold public hearings Sept. 30 in Seattle, and Oct. 5 in Friday Harbor to provide additional information on the proposed rule."
There would be exemptions to the rules for some vessels, including those actively fishing commercially, cargo vessels traveling in established shipping lanes, and government and research vessels. The no-go zone would also have exemptions for treaty Indian fishing vessels, and limited exceptions for land owners accessing private property adjacent to it.
The news release, proposed rule, draft environmental assessment, and other supporting documents are available on our web site at NOAA,along with instructions for submitting comments. There is a 90 day public comment period and we will hold public hearings Sept. 30 in Seattle, and Oct. 5 in Friday Harbor to provide additional information on the proposed rule."
zaterdag 18 juli 2009
Scientists leave Shetland Isles
For the last two summers a team of scientists led by Andy Foote has been studying killer whales around Shetland, part of a bigger study of the population of the north-east Atlantic.
During their time here the “whalers”, as they were referred to locally, spent most of their time in the North Isles and the Wind Dog Cafe in Gutcher was something of a home and headquarters to them.
Not only could they eat at the Wind Dog, but they could use the wireless connection for their computers and keep up with their emails. Now the work here is complete and they leave Shetland, the next project a study in the Western Isles.
Last year when the Shetland study started the team gave an illustrated presentation to an interested gathering and through that and all the friends they made they were able to built up a network of people who kept them informed of any whale sightings. They were highly mobile and responded at a moment’s notice.
Last Wednesday evening the Wind Dog was packed to the door with people listening to Dr Foote give an hour-long talk about the work in Shetland and at the end there was generous time given to questions and the opportunity to speak to him and his colleagues.
They have identified around 1,000 killer whales in the north-east Atlantic and they have been able to obtain a large number of samples to build a DNA database. They have discovered that, like some land animals, whales sometimes die because their teeth have worn away and they can no longer feed.
It seems that the killer whales that feed on seals have far less wear on their teeth than the animals that dine on herring and mackerel. They may live to be as old as 60 or even 80, whereas fish eaters may be finished at the age of 30 or 40. To satisfy hunger whales will eat at least one seal per day and the fish eaters will devour herring by the hundred.
The talk was part of the Shetland Nature Festival and it was attended by many of those involved. Organiser Helen Moncrieff was there as well as Brydon Thomason and Wendy Dickson. Television presenter Simon King was there with his family and he was seen busying himself helping the staff to clear tables and shift chairs.
At the end of the talk and the questions Dr Foote thanked the Wind Dog, especially Margaret Tulloch and Maggie Bowler for all their hospitality and friendship, and he presented a framed set of four photographs of killer whales to Andy Ross, co-owner of the cafe, to mark the landmark birthday that he has recently celebrated.
The whalers have clearly enjoyed their time here. Dr Foote said he would be back and added that “Shetland would not be a bad place to live”.
During their time here the “whalers”, as they were referred to locally, spent most of their time in the North Isles and the Wind Dog Cafe in Gutcher was something of a home and headquarters to them.
Not only could they eat at the Wind Dog, but they could use the wireless connection for their computers and keep up with their emails. Now the work here is complete and they leave Shetland, the next project a study in the Western Isles.
Last year when the Shetland study started the team gave an illustrated presentation to an interested gathering and through that and all the friends they made they were able to built up a network of people who kept them informed of any whale sightings. They were highly mobile and responded at a moment’s notice.
Last Wednesday evening the Wind Dog was packed to the door with people listening to Dr Foote give an hour-long talk about the work in Shetland and at the end there was generous time given to questions and the opportunity to speak to him and his colleagues.
They have identified around 1,000 killer whales in the north-east Atlantic and they have been able to obtain a large number of samples to build a DNA database. They have discovered that, like some land animals, whales sometimes die because their teeth have worn away and they can no longer feed.
It seems that the killer whales that feed on seals have far less wear on their teeth than the animals that dine on herring and mackerel. They may live to be as old as 60 or even 80, whereas fish eaters may be finished at the age of 30 or 40. To satisfy hunger whales will eat at least one seal per day and the fish eaters will devour herring by the hundred.
The talk was part of the Shetland Nature Festival and it was attended by many of those involved. Organiser Helen Moncrieff was there as well as Brydon Thomason and Wendy Dickson. Television presenter Simon King was there with his family and he was seen busying himself helping the staff to clear tables and shift chairs.
At the end of the talk and the questions Dr Foote thanked the Wind Dog, especially Margaret Tulloch and Maggie Bowler for all their hospitality and friendship, and he presented a framed set of four photographs of killer whales to Andy Ross, co-owner of the cafe, to mark the landmark birthday that he has recently celebrated.
The whalers have clearly enjoyed their time here. Dr Foote said he would be back and added that “Shetland would not be a bad place to live”.
vrijdag 17 juli 2009
Hebridean Orca pod spotted off Western Ireland
West coast killer whale on the move
JULY 2009. With the National Whale and Dolphin Watch underway, there has been exciting news for whale watchers with confirmation that the killer whale (orca) pod that is normally seen in the Hebrides of Scotland has been spotted some 400 kilometres away off western Ireland. The pod included four that are well-known to scientists who have called them John Coe, Floppy Fin, Nicola and Aquarius.
Seen off the Hebrides since 1990s
"John Coe" was originally named by Christopher Swann of Western Isles Sailing Company on a Sea Watch survey in the early 1990s, and is known to have ranged around the Hebrides since at least the late 1980s when he was regularly seen by different groups, including Sea Watch, Sea Life Surveys, and the Hebridean Whale and Dolphin Trust (HWDT) until 2000. He then disappeared from view until being seen in a pod of 10 orcas between Tory Island and Malin Head, County Donegal, in September 2004, and again off the Pembrokeshire coast in June 2008.
The latest sighting of him, in a pod of four (thought to be all from the Hebridean group), was at the mouth of Galway Bay, between the Aran Islands and Black Head by the Irish Whale and Dolphin Group (IWDG) and confirmed by Sea Watch
Second pod of Orcas
On the same day, another pod of orcas, two males and three females, was sighted off Erris Head, Co. Mayo, heading east towards the Stags of Broadhaven. Two of the males were also well known to Hebridean watchers, as "Floppy Fin" and "Aquarius" and one of the females was "Nicola".
The sightings, say Sea Watch Director Peter Evans, who has worked closely with both IWDG and HWDT over many years to collate sightings and identify individual whales, suggest that the whole of this Hebridean killer whale community might have been on the move to distant pastures.
The piecing together of the movements of this group of killer whales was achieved through collaboration between the Irish Whale & Dolphin Group, Aberdeen University, Hebridean Whale & Dolphin Trust and Sea Watch Foundation
Wide ranging animals
Sea Watch research director Dr Evans said: "What they were doing off County Mayo remains a mystery, but as elsewhere, these killer whales clearly regularly range over a very wide area. We have in the past followed this pod travelling more than 100 kms in a single day down the entire chain of the Hebrides, and we've observed these individuals shift from feeding upon herring to going after seals.
"We hope that during National Whale and Dolphin watch, when more people will be looking out, that we might receive further reports and photographs that might help us better understand their movement patterns.
"The collaboration of different research groups and the help of individuals in reporting and photographing sightings are vital throughout the year if we are to understand the behaviour of whales, dolphins and harbour porpoises around our coast and develop appropriate and effective conservation policies."
Killer whales can live to at least 80-90 years, and Floppy Fin has been seen in the Hebrides many times over the last 20 years along with Nicola and Aquarius and the others.
Sea Watch, a marine research charity, organises National Whale and Dolphin Watch which this year is being held from July 18-26. Anyone can take part and details are on www.seawatchfoudnation.org.uk
In total, 28 different species of whales, dolphins and porpoises have been recorded in UK and Irish waters, with 13 species known to live around or regularly visit our coasts.
The National Whale and Dolphin Watch, sponsored by BG, is now in its eighth year.
JULY 2009. With the National Whale and Dolphin Watch underway, there has been exciting news for whale watchers with confirmation that the killer whale (orca) pod that is normally seen in the Hebrides of Scotland has been spotted some 400 kilometres away off western Ireland. The pod included four that are well-known to scientists who have called them John Coe, Floppy Fin, Nicola and Aquarius.
Seen off the Hebrides since 1990s
"John Coe" was originally named by Christopher Swann of Western Isles Sailing Company on a Sea Watch survey in the early 1990s, and is known to have ranged around the Hebrides since at least the late 1980s when he was regularly seen by different groups, including Sea Watch, Sea Life Surveys, and the Hebridean Whale and Dolphin Trust (HWDT) until 2000. He then disappeared from view until being seen in a pod of 10 orcas between Tory Island and Malin Head, County Donegal, in September 2004, and again off the Pembrokeshire coast in June 2008.
The latest sighting of him, in a pod of four (thought to be all from the Hebridean group), was at the mouth of Galway Bay, between the Aran Islands and Black Head by the Irish Whale and Dolphin Group (IWDG) and confirmed by Sea Watch
Second pod of Orcas
On the same day, another pod of orcas, two males and three females, was sighted off Erris Head, Co. Mayo, heading east towards the Stags of Broadhaven. Two of the males were also well known to Hebridean watchers, as "Floppy Fin" and "Aquarius" and one of the females was "Nicola".
The sightings, say Sea Watch Director Peter Evans, who has worked closely with both IWDG and HWDT over many years to collate sightings and identify individual whales, suggest that the whole of this Hebridean killer whale community might have been on the move to distant pastures.
The piecing together of the movements of this group of killer whales was achieved through collaboration between the Irish Whale & Dolphin Group, Aberdeen University, Hebridean Whale & Dolphin Trust and Sea Watch Foundation
Wide ranging animals
Sea Watch research director Dr Evans said: "What they were doing off County Mayo remains a mystery, but as elsewhere, these killer whales clearly regularly range over a very wide area. We have in the past followed this pod travelling more than 100 kms in a single day down the entire chain of the Hebrides, and we've observed these individuals shift from feeding upon herring to going after seals.
"We hope that during National Whale and Dolphin watch, when more people will be looking out, that we might receive further reports and photographs that might help us better understand their movement patterns.
"The collaboration of different research groups and the help of individuals in reporting and photographing sightings are vital throughout the year if we are to understand the behaviour of whales, dolphins and harbour porpoises around our coast and develop appropriate and effective conservation policies."
Killer whales can live to at least 80-90 years, and Floppy Fin has been seen in the Hebrides many times over the last 20 years along with Nicola and Aquarius and the others.
Sea Watch, a marine research charity, organises National Whale and Dolphin Watch which this year is being held from July 18-26. Anyone can take part and details are on www.seawatchfoudnation.org.uk
In total, 28 different species of whales, dolphins and porpoises have been recorded in UK and Irish waters, with 13 species known to live around or regularly visit our coasts.
The National Whale and Dolphin Watch, sponsored by BG, is now in its eighth year.
Killer whales attack southern right calf
LIKE a scene from a David Attenborough documentary, killer whales hunted a baby southern right whale in Port Fairy bay.
Two giant ocean hunters chased the calf from its mother and launched a spectacular attack that lasted for almost an hour and was watched by three fishermen.
"The killer whales kept rolling over on top of the calf as the mother tried to protect it," Clark Smock told The Standard yesterday.
"It was very spectacular. They were sailing nine feet out of the water. In all my years at sea I've never seen anything like it before.
"At one point we could see the mother slapping around, probably very anxious."
Mr Smock, a former abalone diver, took friends Bruce Black and David Hounslow out on a snapper fishing trip last Thursday when they noticed the spectacle about 500 metres away in the bay.
Mr Hounslow described the killer whales' fins as "like the conning towers of a submarine".
"The killer whales looked like they were set to have lunch," he said.
"They seemed to be giving the whale and calf a hard time. We certainly saw quite a lot of activity from the killer whales."
Mr Black said at first it looked like all the whales were southern rights, but it became obvious killer whales were trying to separate the calf from its mother.
"There was a lot of activity then they dispersed."
It appeared the calf survived the ordeal as there were no reports of a carcass on local beaches and three sets of mothers and calves were reported off the south-west coast this week.
Two giant ocean hunters chased the calf from its mother and launched a spectacular attack that lasted for almost an hour and was watched by three fishermen.
"The killer whales kept rolling over on top of the calf as the mother tried to protect it," Clark Smock told The Standard yesterday.
"It was very spectacular. They were sailing nine feet out of the water. In all my years at sea I've never seen anything like it before.
"At one point we could see the mother slapping around, probably very anxious."
Mr Smock, a former abalone diver, took friends Bruce Black and David Hounslow out on a snapper fishing trip last Thursday when they noticed the spectacle about 500 metres away in the bay.
Mr Hounslow described the killer whales' fins as "like the conning towers of a submarine".
"The killer whales looked like they were set to have lunch," he said.
"They seemed to be giving the whale and calf a hard time. We certainly saw quite a lot of activity from the killer whales."
Mr Black said at first it looked like all the whales were southern rights, but it became obvious killer whales were trying to separate the calf from its mother.
"There was a lot of activity then they dispersed."
It appeared the calf survived the ordeal as there were no reports of a carcass on local beaches and three sets of mothers and calves were reported off the south-west coast this week.
donderdag 16 juli 2009
Transients operate in Clayoquot
For kawkawin, killer whale, orca, Black Fish -- whatever you care to call them -- Clayoquot seemed to be the place to be in June. We were treated to 16 days of visitation for the month.
Killer whales pillaged their way in and out of most every seal/sea lion haunt as they worked their way along the coast.
On June 4, Ted's gang isolated a bull California Sea Lion and were about to close in for the kill when the lion, choosing the lesser of two evils, dashed over to one of the whale watching vessels seeking sanctuary. Hey, that's a good strategy.
After unsuccessfully trying to scramble aboard, the lion hung suspended upside down beside the boat in order to see and avoid a possible attack from below. A real strategist.
Two young bulls who we'd never seen before toured right through Tofino Harbour and wandered their way 18 miles inland to the head of Tranquil Inlet gobbling up a harbour seal along the way.
After spending the night in Clayoquot, the pair took their leave at the crack of dawn. It will be interesting to see if this new partnership holds over the long term.
Aside from the two new bulls, we saw an additional two new animals on June 4. This is curious in that a few years after starting our monitoring (January, 1991) of Kawkawin, it was rare to see a new animal and here we are with four newbies in one month.
While the transient killer whales that we see are small gangs of three to six animals, this month we had up to six gangs travelling together with as many as 15 animals in the Sound on a given day.
Long time Scuttle Butt readers may recall that in May of 2006, we saw a badly injured young killer whale we named Trauma.
I'm sorry to report that while this tough youngster managed to hang in there for over a year, he has now passed away. This is yet another tragedy for the gang we call the Motley Crew.
Through the early to mid 1990s this five member gang was our most frequent visitors. The matriarch Janice (Joplin) survives several of her gang members. First the late middle-aged bull U2 disappeared in 2001 and is presumed dead. Then Cindi (Lauper), after loosing a calf disappeared and is presumed dead. To top it off, this June we were concerned in that young Axle (Rose) was missing.
Last month we were saddened to report the demise of the old bull T044 from Ted's gang.
An interesting note from colleague Jim Borrowman tells us -- "We managed to get T044 when he went to the great kelp bed in the sky. Interesting amount of seal claws in the stomach and a tag which we traced to a young elephant seal that was born in California in 2007."
On the sea otter front, we have seen rafts of up to 30 animals at Schooner Cove which is even further south than previously reported. Daily reports of small groups and individuals scattered from one end to the other of our exposed to semi-exposed coast line continue to come in.
We have been curious about seeing otters up to five nautical miles offshore. Are they fishing for something in the water column, simply lazing about letting the currents take them were they may or are they actually bottom feeding as is their norm?
A note from our advisor, Marine Mammal Biologist Linda Nicholl at the Pacific Biological Station, advises us that a study in Alaska with transmitter laden otters shows them as attaining depths of up 100 meters! This seems astounding for an animal with such cumbersome-appearing locomotion tools.
Speaking of advisors, Simon Fraser Professor Brian Hartwick gave me a gentle poke reminding me that he had photographed a mom and pup otter at Cleland Island in August of 1972, that's 25 years previous to our first reported re-establishment of these animals in Clayoquot after 200 years of virtually annihilated absence.
I had not included this sighting in the report as it was felt that these were transient animals trying to work their way back to Alaska after having been reintroduced at Neah Bay likely that same year. None the less, a very interesting sighting.
The Strawberry Isle Research Society conducts primary research and monitoring of various marine ecosystems in Clayoquot Sound, promotes public interest and awareness of the marine environment, and supports other researchers in their related studies.
Killer whales pillaged their way in and out of most every seal/sea lion haunt as they worked their way along the coast.
On June 4, Ted's gang isolated a bull California Sea Lion and were about to close in for the kill when the lion, choosing the lesser of two evils, dashed over to one of the whale watching vessels seeking sanctuary. Hey, that's a good strategy.
After unsuccessfully trying to scramble aboard, the lion hung suspended upside down beside the boat in order to see and avoid a possible attack from below. A real strategist.
Two young bulls who we'd never seen before toured right through Tofino Harbour and wandered their way 18 miles inland to the head of Tranquil Inlet gobbling up a harbour seal along the way.
After spending the night in Clayoquot, the pair took their leave at the crack of dawn. It will be interesting to see if this new partnership holds over the long term.
Aside from the two new bulls, we saw an additional two new animals on June 4. This is curious in that a few years after starting our monitoring (January, 1991) of Kawkawin, it was rare to see a new animal and here we are with four newbies in one month.
While the transient killer whales that we see are small gangs of three to six animals, this month we had up to six gangs travelling together with as many as 15 animals in the Sound on a given day.
Long time Scuttle Butt readers may recall that in May of 2006, we saw a badly injured young killer whale we named Trauma.
I'm sorry to report that while this tough youngster managed to hang in there for over a year, he has now passed away. This is yet another tragedy for the gang we call the Motley Crew.
Through the early to mid 1990s this five member gang was our most frequent visitors. The matriarch Janice (Joplin) survives several of her gang members. First the late middle-aged bull U2 disappeared in 2001 and is presumed dead. Then Cindi (Lauper), after loosing a calf disappeared and is presumed dead. To top it off, this June we were concerned in that young Axle (Rose) was missing.
Last month we were saddened to report the demise of the old bull T044 from Ted's gang.
An interesting note from colleague Jim Borrowman tells us -- "We managed to get T044 when he went to the great kelp bed in the sky. Interesting amount of seal claws in the stomach and a tag which we traced to a young elephant seal that was born in California in 2007."
On the sea otter front, we have seen rafts of up to 30 animals at Schooner Cove which is even further south than previously reported. Daily reports of small groups and individuals scattered from one end to the other of our exposed to semi-exposed coast line continue to come in.
We have been curious about seeing otters up to five nautical miles offshore. Are they fishing for something in the water column, simply lazing about letting the currents take them were they may or are they actually bottom feeding as is their norm?
A note from our advisor, Marine Mammal Biologist Linda Nicholl at the Pacific Biological Station, advises us that a study in Alaska with transmitter laden otters shows them as attaining depths of up 100 meters! This seems astounding for an animal with such cumbersome-appearing locomotion tools.
Speaking of advisors, Simon Fraser Professor Brian Hartwick gave me a gentle poke reminding me that he had photographed a mom and pup otter at Cleland Island in August of 1972, that's 25 years previous to our first reported re-establishment of these animals in Clayoquot after 200 years of virtually annihilated absence.
I had not included this sighting in the report as it was felt that these were transient animals trying to work their way back to Alaska after having been reintroduced at Neah Bay likely that same year. None the less, a very interesting sighting.
The Strawberry Isle Research Society conducts primary research and monitoring of various marine ecosystems in Clayoquot Sound, promotes public interest and awareness of the marine environment, and supports other researchers in their related studies.
zondag 12 juli 2009
California water plan aims to save Puget Sound orcas
A plan to restore salmon runs on California's Sacramento River also could help revive killer whale populations 700 miles to the north in Puget Sound, as federal scientists struggle to protect endangered species in a complex ecosystem that stretches along the Pacific Coast from California to Alaska.
Without wild salmon from the Sacramento and American rivers as part of their diet, the killer whales might face extinction, scientists concluded in a biological opinion that could result in even more severe water restrictions for farmers in the drought-stricken, 400-mile-long Central Valley of California. The valley is the nation's most productive farm region.
The plan has faced heated criticism from agricultural interests and politicians in California, but environmentalists said it represented a welcome departure by the Obama administration from its predecessor in dealing with Endangered Species Act issues.
The Sacramento plan, they add, is in sharp contrast to the plan for restoring wild salmon populations on the Columbia and Snake rivers in Washington state and Idaho. That plan, written by the Bush administration, essentially concluded the long-term decline in those federally protected runs didn't jeopardize the killer whales' existence because hatchery fish could make up the difference.
The 85 orcas of the southern resident killer whale population travel in three separate pods, spending much of their time roaming the inland waters of Washington state from the San Juan Islands to south Puget Sound. During the winter they have been found offshore, ranging as far south as Monterey Bay in California and as far north as British Columbia's Queen Charlotte Islands. Each orca has distinctive markings, which allows them to be tracked.
In the mid-1990s, there were nearly 100 orcas in the three southern resident pods. The population fell to fewer than 80 in 2001. In 2005, they were granted federal protection as an endangered species. They have been studied closely for only 30 years or so, but historically there may have been up to 200 southern resident orcas.
Researches think the decline has resulted from pollution — which could cause immune- or reproductive-system dysfunction — and from oil spills, noise and other vessel disturbances, along with a reduced quantity and quality of prey.
The Sacramento and American river systems combined were once among the top salmon-spawning rivers on the West Coast, trailing only the Columbia and Snake rivers.
Prompted by lawsuits, the National Marine Fisheries Service last month published its latest plan for the Sacramento and American rivers' winter and fall chinook salmon runs. Without further curtailments of water for the federal Central Valley Project — a several-hundred-mile network of dams, canals and pumping plants — and the California State Water Project — the nation's largest state-built water and power development and conveyance system, which supplies water for 23 million Californians — the two runs are in jeopardy of extinction, the plan said.
Without changes, the southern resident killer whales, a run of steelhead and a population of North American green sturgeon almost certainly would disappear, according to the plan.
The latest plan for the Columbia-Snake wild salmon runs concluded continued operation of the federal hydroelectric dams on the two rivers was "not likely to adversely affect" the killer whales. Earlier, federal scientists found that "perhaps the single greatest change in food availability for resident killer whales since the late 1800s has been the decline of salmon from the Columbia River basin."
Despite the decline in wild runs, the scientists who worked on the Columbia plan concluded hatchery fish would be able to make up any deficit in the orcas' diet.
Though the Columbia-Snake salmon plan acknowledges the potential problems with hatchery fish, it dismisses, at least for now, their impact on killer whale food supplies.
Lynne Barre, a National Marine Fisheries Service scientist in Seattle who helped write both plans, downplays any differences.
"I think we say the same thing in both opinions," Barre said, adding both plans recognize hatchery fish could be a short-term substitute for wild fish, but there were concerns about whether hatchery fish could be a long-term food source for orcas. "The general principles are similar."
Environmentalists, however, say the differences couldn't be more obvious.
"The contrasts are striking," said Todd True, a lawyer for the Seattle office of Earthjustice, which has challenged the Columbia-Snake plan in a lawsuit in federal court in Portland, Ore.
True said the Sacramento salmon plan was a "candid piece of work that had a strong independent review and the absence of political interference." As for the Columbia-Snake plan, True said that it "pretends there isn't a problem."
The judge in the Portland case has given the Obama administration until Aug. 15 to indicate whether it will stick with the Columbia-Snake salmon plan written during the Bush administration or offer a new one. True said he'd raise the orca issue again.
Without wild salmon from the Sacramento and American rivers as part of their diet, the killer whales might face extinction, scientists concluded in a biological opinion that could result in even more severe water restrictions for farmers in the drought-stricken, 400-mile-long Central Valley of California. The valley is the nation's most productive farm region.
The plan has faced heated criticism from agricultural interests and politicians in California, but environmentalists said it represented a welcome departure by the Obama administration from its predecessor in dealing with Endangered Species Act issues.
The Sacramento plan, they add, is in sharp contrast to the plan for restoring wild salmon populations on the Columbia and Snake rivers in Washington state and Idaho. That plan, written by the Bush administration, essentially concluded the long-term decline in those federally protected runs didn't jeopardize the killer whales' existence because hatchery fish could make up the difference.
The 85 orcas of the southern resident killer whale population travel in three separate pods, spending much of their time roaming the inland waters of Washington state from the San Juan Islands to south Puget Sound. During the winter they have been found offshore, ranging as far south as Monterey Bay in California and as far north as British Columbia's Queen Charlotte Islands. Each orca has distinctive markings, which allows them to be tracked.
In the mid-1990s, there were nearly 100 orcas in the three southern resident pods. The population fell to fewer than 80 in 2001. In 2005, they were granted federal protection as an endangered species. They have been studied closely for only 30 years or so, but historically there may have been up to 200 southern resident orcas.
Researches think the decline has resulted from pollution — which could cause immune- or reproductive-system dysfunction — and from oil spills, noise and other vessel disturbances, along with a reduced quantity and quality of prey.
The Sacramento and American river systems combined were once among the top salmon-spawning rivers on the West Coast, trailing only the Columbia and Snake rivers.
Prompted by lawsuits, the National Marine Fisheries Service last month published its latest plan for the Sacramento and American rivers' winter and fall chinook salmon runs. Without further curtailments of water for the federal Central Valley Project — a several-hundred-mile network of dams, canals and pumping plants — and the California State Water Project — the nation's largest state-built water and power development and conveyance system, which supplies water for 23 million Californians — the two runs are in jeopardy of extinction, the plan said.
Without changes, the southern resident killer whales, a run of steelhead and a population of North American green sturgeon almost certainly would disappear, according to the plan.
The latest plan for the Columbia-Snake wild salmon runs concluded continued operation of the federal hydroelectric dams on the two rivers was "not likely to adversely affect" the killer whales. Earlier, federal scientists found that "perhaps the single greatest change in food availability for resident killer whales since the late 1800s has been the decline of salmon from the Columbia River basin."
Despite the decline in wild runs, the scientists who worked on the Columbia plan concluded hatchery fish would be able to make up any deficit in the orcas' diet.
Though the Columbia-Snake salmon plan acknowledges the potential problems with hatchery fish, it dismisses, at least for now, their impact on killer whale food supplies.
Lynne Barre, a National Marine Fisheries Service scientist in Seattle who helped write both plans, downplays any differences.
"I think we say the same thing in both opinions," Barre said, adding both plans recognize hatchery fish could be a short-term substitute for wild fish, but there were concerns about whether hatchery fish could be a long-term food source for orcas. "The general principles are similar."
Environmentalists, however, say the differences couldn't be more obvious.
"The contrasts are striking," said Todd True, a lawyer for the Seattle office of Earthjustice, which has challenged the Columbia-Snake plan in a lawsuit in federal court in Portland, Ore.
True said the Sacramento salmon plan was a "candid piece of work that had a strong independent review and the absence of political interference." As for the Columbia-Snake plan, True said that it "pretends there isn't a problem."
The judge in the Portland case has given the Obama administration until Aug. 15 to indicate whether it will stick with the Columbia-Snake salmon plan written during the Bush administration or offer a new one. True said he'd raise the orca issue again.
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