The morning talk was great. Graham Burnett, a historian from Princeton University, took us through the history of cetacean research.
In 1963, major scientists from various fields of cetacean research met together for the first time at the 1st International symposium on cetacean research.
The three fields of cetacean research were stated as:
(1) Hip-Boot Scientists – scientists who worked from whaling stations(and wore hip-boots), like those in Antarctica (RSS Discovery), and collected data from harpooned whales. The discussion of these scientists was conflicted – it seems that the environment was troublesome for some, evidenced by water color and writings depicting the horrendous scene of dead leviathans, but natural for others who saw the whale hunts as very beneficial sources of data.
(2) Bioacousticians – scientists who wanted to understand the sounds produced by dolphins, includes Navy, Schevill, Watkins.
(3) Brain / Behavior / Language – scientists interested in dolphin cognition & social intelligence like Ken Norris, John C. Lilly (yes, in the same breath). The historian reports that the Brain / Behavior / Language scientists have been the most effective group for raising public awareness 
This meeting was a volatile boiling pot, and resulted in a book edited by Ken Norris, called “Whales, Dolphins, and Porpoises” (1966/1980ish) that includes the discussion at the meeting “verbatium” (though edited…?…)
Burnett spent a good amount of time describing John Lilly’s work. Pre-1964, Lilly was a very respected scientist. He had a lifetime research grant from NSF, as well as major funding from NASA (Lilly:Dolphins ::. Sagan:Aliens). (more maybe later, until then, if you don’t know , the end story is that Lilly gets wiped off science, along with a bunch of future funding, by feeding LSD to dolphins).
The first panel was on whaling, how countries are bypassing whaling restrictions, and what the US can do to decrease whaling internationally.
DJ Schubert spoke about US policy on whaling. The Polly Amendment (citation 22 USC %1978) allows the US to (1) stop trade with countries violating IWC rules, (2) give certificates to countries abiding by IWC rules. In the last 6(+?) years, we have done only #2, which is disregarded by other countries. Most of US policy on whaling has been maintained by Ted Stevens (the embezzling senator from Alaska) in light of bowhead whale quotas. Needless to say, not very good.
Jonathan Stern & Phil Clapham discussed Japan’s exploitation of article 8 of the IWC rules, which is the article allows nations to continue whaling for scientific purposes.
Jonathan Stern explained that Japan’s science is based on a theory of ecosystem based management. They argue that they are being out-competed by the whales for fish. Because Japan gets most of their protein from the sea, they see the whales as competitors for an essential resource. Stern claimed that the science is fundamentally flawed: removing the top predator in an ecosystem would cause an increase in fish, a decrease in crill, and an increase in plankton (skewing the whole system). Further, Stern reported that fish eat more fish than whales do. Whales aren’t a limiting species, the fish are prey limited, not predator limited, and that the amount of food that the fish have dictates population size.
Phil Clapham investigated the Japan’s claimed science. He said that if competition was the question, Japan’s scientific studies should focus on whale stock size and mortality rates. But, in 18 years, and 1600 dead whales, there has been no scientific advancement. Clapham accused Japanese scientists of “writing their conclusions before starting the study.” The substaintial science that is done was reported by Clapham to be tangental and weird (artificially inseminating whale ovum with cow sperm). Japan’s last IWC report said that the population could be growing, decreasing, or remaining the same, and include no mortality rates.
SPLASH
The second panel was about the program SPLASH, which documents the “Structure of Populations, Levels of Abundance, and Status of Humpbacks” in the North Pacific ocean.
In this project, (1) abundance is documented using photo ID, as well as mark & recapture; (2) Population stock structure using photo ID and genetic markers; and (3) Status, or anthropogenic effects, by analyzing skin cells for biological contaminants.
John Calambokidis and his research study abundance and population stock structure using photo ID. The dorsal fin of whales are captured on film, then compared to other pictures taken down the coast of North America. Calambokidis et al. report that in the summer, humpbacks are found in multiple sites scattered along the northern coast of North America, from California to the Aleutian Islands. These whales all meet up at the winter breeding grounds, but, save 1 or 2 whales, go back to their same individual group site for summer feeding. They estimate a population size of 20,000 Humpbacks, a 7% increase since 1966 (after the international moratorium on whaling in 1973).
David Mattila spoke about health of, and human impacts on, humpback whales. He estimates that >300,000 whales die in entanglements from fishing gear each year, and suggested that populations where no scars are observed may mean populations that die immediately when entangled, or come into contact with larger & lethal equipment (rather than assuming that since there is no visual evidence, it doesn’t happen). As alluded to, he and his team analyze entanglements by looking at the scarring patterns on humpback whale tails. If a whale has a scar across each fluke, is considered evidence that that whale had escaped from entanglement. In the Southeast Alaska population, Mattila estimates 50% of the whales show signs of entanglement. At least 30% of the humpbacks seen off the coast of Hawaii show signs of entanglement. Many whales arrive to the annual breeding grounds in Hawaii having towed fishing equipment from fisheries in Alaska and Canada. Matilla asked the audience to consider how many whales were dying if 50% showed scarring.
There are two main types of gear that harm cetaceans: small, light, near shore gear such as ropes and lines; and large offshore gear, such as large crab cages. The larger the gear, the more lethal to the whale who comes into contact with it.
Scott Baker heads the genetic analysis studies conducted by SPLASH. His results mirrored those of Calambokidis very accurately. Baker et al. reported that there are 3 pure stocks of humpback whales: (1) those that migrate from Alaska/Canada to Hawaii (2) those that migrate from southern Baja California & Mexico, and (3) populations that migrate from China, Japan, and the Philippines.
Baker reports that for these three populations, there is “strong maternal fidelity that goes back to the ice age.” He made this discovery by analyzing samples of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA), obtained from bits of skin and bone. mtDNA is passed down through females to their offspring (in all mammals). A geneticist can use mtDNA to create family trees, tracking populations through similarities in the mtDNA gene structure. Baker also pointed out that whaling can cause the demise of an entire population, eradicating the “cultural memory” of a location, or a migration path. This is likely the case, e.g., in the Mediterranean Sea where before there was a population of Sperm Whales, and after heavy whaling, the population no longer exists, and hasn’t returned since the 1973 moratorium.
Killer Whales (Orcinus orca) (& Monterey Bay population)
The last talk of the afternoon was given by Nancy Black, who has conducted a 20+ year study on the killer whale population in Monterey Bay. After a fascinating overview of killer whales (found all over the world, sexually diamorphic, 5-9 year inter-birth-interval, sexually mature at 12-17, populations include post-reproductive females, residents are nice, transients are mean), spoke about the different hunting behavior employed by killer whales.
Transient killer whales hunt a wide variety of other mammals, including seals, sea otters, dall’s porpoise, Risso’s dolphins, pacific white sided dolphins, humpback calves, grey whale calves, blue whale calves (etc.). They employ three different tactics, based on their type of prey.
Seals and sea otters are the easiest targets, since they don’t start to swim away from the killer whales until it’s too late. Orcas use their strong flukes to slap the pinniped out of the water, which sends them flying in the air and kills them. Black reports that mother orcas will sometimes spend a longer amount of time hunting these animals when there is a calf nearby.
Dolphins are harder to catch: the killer whale must first sneak up on the dolphin, then beat them at a chase that ends when the orca moves its body under the dolphin and bucks it until it dies.
Mysticete whale calves (humpbacks, grey, blue, etc.) are generally hunted when they “swim through the wrong part of town.” That is, when they go through the bay, instead of around it in the open sea. Mysticete calves are larger than orcas, creating a different challenge for the orca. The calves meet their end when orcas team up, sometimes adopting roles, to drown them. The tongue and blubber are eaten first.
I had hoped to ask Dr. Black about her provokativ use of words (learning, cultural transmission, etc.) but had only a chance to clarify the reproductive age (12-17), and how post-reproductive females were determined (lots of years of watching them). Perhaps I’ll find her tomorrow.
