Cetacean research in the southern African subregion: a review of previous studies and current knowledge

Cetacean research, in terms of the number of papers, and areas for which data are available, has expanded considerably in the southern African subregion in the past decade, especially in the South-West Indian Ocean. We review cetacean research within this subregion from the 1800s to the present to provide an overview of findings, investigate trends and identify knowledge gaps. Data are presented separately for large whales (those subject to commercial whaling) and smaller cetaceans, and are separated by era and ocean basin. Over 550 peer-reviewed papers and books were identified relating to research on cetaceans within the subregion. More than half (284) have been produced since 1990 and 193 relate specifically to South African waters. The most-studied species are those that are most accessible due to their coastal distributions (southern right whale Eubalaena australis: 45 papers, humpback whale Megaptera novaeangliae: 31 papers, killer whales Orcinus orca: 27 papers, Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphin Tursiops aduncus: 30 papers, Indo-Pacific humpback dolphin Sousa chinensis (plumbea form): 25 papers) and/or were hunted commercially (sperm whale Physeter macrocephalus: 25 papers). Identified conservation concerns vary throughout the subregion, but include bycatch and directed hunts, oil and gas development, ecotourism activities, shifts in prey resources, and noise and chemical pollution. The inshore stocks of Bryde's whales Balaenoptera edeni, the Indo-Pacific humpback dolphin and the Atlantic humpback dolphin S. teuszii were identified as the populations of highest conservation concern, although there are considerable knowledge gaps relating to deep-water species and almost no data (even on species occurrence) are available for several areas and countries.     

Is climate change causing the increasing narwhal (Monodon monoceros) catches in Smith Sound, Greenland?

This paper evaluates recent changes in narwhal ( Monodon monoceros ) catches in Siorapaluk, the northernmost community in Greenland, in consideration of the effects of changing climate and uncertainty of stock delineation. The catch statistics show a significant increase in narwhal catches by hunters in Siorapaluk after 2002, which does not appear to be a result of increased effort. Hunters attribute the increase to changed sea-ice conditions providing access by boat to Smith Sound as early as June and July. This indicates that climate change is likely to have a considerable impact on narwhal hunting in northern Greenland. Traditional ecological knowledge and scientific surveys suggest that narwhal in Smith Sound constitute an independent stock. The absence of scientific recommendations for this stock has been seen as an opportunity to increase quotas in West Greenland. Scientific management recommendations are urgently needed to allow the authorities to assign sustainable quotas for this stock. The development of collaborative management agreements and locally based monitoring are recommended to ensure local acceptance of regulations, and to allow rapid responses to climate change.     

Policies governing the distribution of by-products from scientific and small-scale coastal whaling in Japan

The Japanese government is committed to resuming sustainable commercial whaling, both on the high seas and along the Japanese coastline. To this end scientific whaling programs are supported with public money and the byproducts of the catch are distributed to the public and utilized in a variety of ways. Here we review the policies which govern how these byproducts are disseminated within Japan, as well as how the population as a whole makes use of whale resources. Possibilities for the future, if and when the international moratorium on commercial whaling ends, are also discussed.     

Commercial whaling,tourism, and boycotts: An economic perspective

Commercial whaling is highly contentious, angering animal rights groups and conservation organizations, who threaten boycotts. Proponents of whaling argue that many whale stocks are plentiful enough to support sustainable harvests. In terms of economic efficiency, a nation's decision to engage in whaling depends on rents from the whaling industry, ecological and market linkages, and the potential for boycotts. We analyze the tradeoffs involved in a nation's decision to engage in whaling, whale-watching, and fishing. Scenarios exist in which whaling is economically rational. Indeed, sometimes it makes economic sense to subsidize whaling. In other circumstances, market pressures make commercial whaling inefficient.     

Commercial hunting activities in the Greenland Sea: The impact of the European blubber industry on East Greenland Inuit societies/Optically Stimulated Luminescence dating of Inuit settlement structures in coastal landscapes of Northeast Greenland

Geografisk Tidsskrift—Danish Journal of Geography 110(2):357–363, 2010

Geografisk Tidsskrift—Danish Journal of Geography 110(2):365–371, 2010     

Japan׳s whaling following the International Court of Justice ruling: Brave New World – Or business as usual?

Since 1987, Japan has conducted extensive special permit whaling (“scientific whaling”) in the Antarctic and North Pacific. This has been viewed by many as a way to circumvent the International Whaling Commission׳s (IWC) moratorium on commercial whaling, which was implemented in 1985. Recently, Australia took Japan to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) over this issue. Using various criteria, the Court ruled that Japan׳s whaling was not “for purposes of scientific research” as required by Article VIII of the International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling, and ordered Japan to immediately cease its JARPA II whaling program in the Antarctic. Despite optimism that the Court׳s ruling might spell the end of Japanese whaling in the Antarctic and even elsewhere, Japan has indicated that it will redesign its whaling programs and continue operations. Based upon Japan׳s history at the IWC, I argue here that this was an expected outcome; I predict the course of events over the next months, and suggest that the ICJ ruling, while satisfying as an independent vindication of Japan׳s critics, represents little more than a temporary setback for that nation׳s whaling enterprise.     

The scientific value of scientific whaling

Scientific whaling has polarized opinion for decades, and its scientific value has been intensely debated. Here, the output of scientific whaling programs is examined by comparing it to the scientific output pertaining to whales of countries that do not practice scientific whaling. Between 1986 and 2013, whaling and non-whaling countries produced, on average, similar total numbers of publications that were directly relevant to the goals of the scientific whaling permits issued by the International Whaling Commission (IWC), and similar numbers of papers that were relevant to whale ecology and conservation but not directly related to IWC goals. Half of the scientific productivity of scientific whaling countries resulted from non-lethal data collection. One-third of publications by whaling countries were published in peer-reviewed outlets, compared to twice as many for non-whaling countries. Publications by whaling countries were cited ~4 times less often than those of non-whaling countries, with no evidence of citation discrimination against whaling countries since the citation rates of papers that did and did not use lethal sampling were similar. These academic criteria suggest that although the overall volume of science produced by scientific whaling countries is similar to that of non-whaling countries, the quality of the science is not. Arguably, academic criteria are not the best way to assess the usefulness of science for management and conservation, but demonstrating links between the science produced by scientific whaling, its integration in management plans and actions, and shifts towards sustainable exploitation or recovery of whale populations is challenging.