Help Save Hawaii's False Killer Whales

Hawaii's insular false killer whales are perilously close to extinction. You can help. Please show your support for a National Marine Fisheries Service proposal to add Hawaiian insular false killer whales to the list of species protected under the U.S. Endangered Species Act.

BACKGROUND
False killer whales are marine mammals that have a life span similar to that of humans. They form long-lasting relationships and are known to engage in a fascinating sharing ritual of passing a caught fish between the members of their group before consuming it.

Hawaii is home to a genetically unique population of false killer whales, known to scientists as Hawaiian insular false killer whales.(The word "insular" means "of an island or pertaining to an island.")  Fewer than 123 are believed to be alive today  -- and it's estimated that only 46 are capable of breeding. This population is very close to extinction.

Please help save these oceanic residents of Hawaii. Show your support for a National Marine Fisheries Service proposal to add Hawaiian insular false killer whales to the list of species protected under the U.S. Endangered Species Act.

BECOME AWARE
• False killer whales (Pseudorca crassidens) are actually not whales; they are the 4th largest member of the oceanic dolphin family. These animals can weigh approximately 1,500 pounds at adulthood. These whales are gregarious and form strong social bonds. They are usually found in groups of ten to twenty that belong to much larger groups of up to 40 individuals in Hawaii and 100 individuals elsewhere.

• False killer whales are found in tropical to temperate waters around the world. Three populations of false killer whales have been identified in the central Pacific – the Hawaii insular, Hawaii pelagic and Palmyra Atoll stocks.

• Hawaiian insular false killer whales are a distinct population that lives around the Hawaiian islands, in an area ranging up to 70 miles from the islands. They have marked differences in their genetic characteristics from other false killer whales, different behaviors and different “cultural” patterns, including how and where they locate prey. This population spends its entire life around the Hawaiian islands.

• There are fewer than 123 Hawaiian insular false killer whales alive today  -- and it's believed that only 46 are capable of breeding. When you consider that a mature female false killer whale gives birth only once every 2 to 4 years on average, their current numbers are almost too small to sustain a population. 
 

IN CONFLICT WITH HAWAII'S LONGLINE FISHING INDUSTRY
• False killer whales feed on tuna, mahi mahi, wahoo (ono), and other large, deep-water fish. These fish are also targeted by Hawaii’s longline fisheries.

• Longlining features a long horizontal line that can stretch up to 50 miles long. Shorter lines dangle from the “long line” at spaced intervals. These shorter lines hold bait hooks, which attract fish.

False killer whales have learned to steal bait, as well as bite off hooked fish, from the miles of hooks set out by Hawaii’s longline fishing boats. But these “easy” meals come with risk: false killer whales get snagged or entangled, and can die or become injured.

• Between 1997 and 2009, 43 false killer whales were hooked or entangled with longline fishing gear in Hawaii. Of the 43, three died. False killer whale bycatch in Hawaii has exceeded “sustainable levels” since at least 1999, meaning that these animals are being killed at a rate that’s higher than what the population can sustain. 
 
• Longline fishers can take steps such as using circular hooks or weaker hooks, to protect false killer whales and other marine mammals.

• With the depletion of many fish species due to overfishing, false killer whales are struggling to find food in general. There are fewer fish to hunt, and the ones that are found are smaller than in the past. The fish they consume contain organochlorines (PCBs and PBDEs) and other contaminants that threaten these animals and people alike. Because false killer whales are top level predators, their bodies accumulate PCBs and other toxins, putting them at a greater risk of infection and disease. They need every protection that we can provide them -- right now.

PLEASE ACT NOW
• In November, National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) issued a proposal to protect Hawaiian insular false killer whales under the U.S. Endangered Species Act, by listing them as “endangered.”  NMFS accepted comments on this proposal through February 15, 2011.

Pacific Whale Foundation testified on its behalf at a NMFS hearing in Honolulu and also submitted written testimony, as well as hundreds of petition signatures. (Please scroll down to read our testimony.) We thank all of our members and supporters who also submitted testimony in support of this proposal.

Now the wait is on. National Marine Fisheries Service has until mid-November to evaluate the comments, testimony and data, and to issue its decision.

HOW YOU CAN HELP
1. Even though the public comment period is closed, you can let National Marine Fisheries Service know that you are interested in seeing Hawaiian insular false killer whales added to the U.S. Endangered Species List.  You can send written comments to Regulatory Branch Chief, Protected Resources Division, National Marine Fisheries Service, Pacific Islands Regional Office, 1601 Kapiolani Blvd., Suite 1110, Honolulu, HI 96814,
 

Here is a sample letter that you can cut, paste and edit:

Regulatory Branch Chief,?Protected Resources Division
National Marine Fisheries Service
Pacific Islands Regional Office
1601 Kapiolani Blvd. Suite 1110
Honolulu, HI 96814
Attn: Hawaiian insular false killer whale proposed listing
 
To Whom It May Concern,
 
I am writing to express my support for adding the Hawaiian insular false killer whale to the U.S. Endangered Species list. This population of whales requires our immediate protection to prevent it from disappearing.
 
As you know, the Hawaiian insular false killer whale population has experienced a dramatic decrease in recent years, to the point where there are fewer than 123 are believed to be alive today with only 46 thought to be capable of breeding. Do not let this unique population disappear. Please add the Hawaiian insular false killer whale to the U.S. Endangered Species list and enact new protections for it as quickly as possible.

Thank you.
Sincerely,
Your name:
Your address:
Your city:    State:   Zip:
Phone number:
Email address:

2. Print out and sign our petition. Click here to download your copy.

3. Help support Pacific Whale Foundation's ongoing study of wild dolphins and toothed whales found in the four-island region of Maui County. Our studies will focus on the behavioral ecology of these whales by following known groups of individuals, by boat, over periods of time, and recording social structure, feeding habits, and short-term movement patterns.

4. Choose seafood wisely to avoid purchasing fish that is caught in ways that undermine populations of false killer whales or other marine mammals. In general, choose fish that is caught with troll or pole-and-line fishing methods. Learn more at http://www.montereybayaquarium.org/cr/seafoodwatch.aspx

LEARN MORE
The following materials were used as references in compiling this Action Alert:

• NOAA Fisheries, Office of Protected Resources, False Killer Whale http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/species/mammals/cetaceans/falsekillerwhale.htm

• NOAA Fisheries, Office of Protected Resources, False Killer Whale Take Reduction Team (includes a link to the  Draft Take Reduction Plan to Reduce Bycatch of False Killer Whales in Hawaii-based Longline Fisheries):http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/interactions/trt/falsekillerwhale.htm

• Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch?: http://www.montereybayaquarium.org/cr/seafoodwatch.aspx

VIEW VIDEO
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e9TTEmVyA30

 
IN THE NEWS
?“Preserving Hawaii's False Killer Whales: Action is being taken to preserve a rare Hawaiian creature”: http://www.honolulumagazine.com/Honolulu-Magazine/September-2010/Preserving-Hawaii-039s-False-Killer-Whales/
 
“Fishing Plan to Reduce Loss of False Killer Whales: Lawsuits bring about changes” : http://www.islandsbusiness.com/islands_business/index_dynamic/containerNameToReplace=MiddleMiddle/focusModuleID=19105/overideSkinName=issueArticle-full.tpl

"NOAA Proposes the Hawaiian Insular False Killer Whale for Listing as Endangered" http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories2010/20101116_falsekillerwhale.html
 
 
PACIFIC WHALE FOUNDATION'S TESTIMONY:
Pacific Whale Foundation's Research Director Daniela Maldini, Ph.D. testified at a hearing in Honolulu on January 20, 2011 about adding Hawaiian insular false killer whales to the U.S. Endangered Species list. Here is her testimony:

On behalf of the Pacific Whale Foundation’s over 300,000 supporters, I would like to fully endorse the proposed listing of Hawaiian insular false killer whales as Endangered under the Endangered Species Act. This genetically unique population requires prompt and immediate protection, to halt the tragic decline that has been witnessed during the past twenty years in Hawaii.

While I have only recently joined the Pacific Whale Foundation as Research Director, my background includes studies of odontocete populations around the Hawaiian Islands and 22 years of research on marine mammals, especially cetaceans, in various countries around the world.

The Pacific Whale Foundation’s research team and I agree that there is adequate scientific evidence to demonstrate that Hawaiian insular false killer whales are a distinct genetic stock, based on the work by Chivers and colleagues and Baird and colleagues in particular.   

Listing this species under the Endangered Species List is appropriate, given the compelling evidence which suggests a decline of at least 50% in population size, based on comparative data over time (specifically work by Reeves and colleagues) and data on sighting rates based on aerial surveys by Mobley and colleagues

It is especially compelling to list Hawaiian insular false killer whales as endangered, given the extensive survey work by Baird and colleagues demonstrating that population size for the insular stock of false killer whales is unsustainably low (less than 150 individuals) and that this stock possibly has limited reproductive output because only 46 of these whales are reproductively active.

Immediate protective action is required, based on recent NMFS estimates of mortality from interactions with the Hawaiian commercial and recreational fisheries, which show annual rates of false killer whale mortality to be higher than the Potential Biological Removal (PBR), putting this population at risk of extinction.

Given the real risk of extinction of these animals, Pacific Whale Foundation strongly supports the immediate inclusion of Hawaiian insular false killer whales as endangered under the U.S. Endangered Species Act and immediate action to develop a management plan that will assess all the potential sources of false killer whale mortality in Hawaiian waters with the intent to reduce said mortality to zero in the immediate future.

Pacific Whale Foundation strongly supports an increase in the scope of the fishery observer program in Hawaii to include 100% coverage in all waters where longline fisheries operate and the immediate adoption of mitigation measures such as round hooks or weak hooks to protect wildlife caught as bycatch. We also support an indefinite and complete ban of longline fishing in waters frequented by the insular stock of Hawaiian false killer whales, if this measure should be deemed necessary to allow this population to recover.

As far as research is concerned, Pacific Whale Foundation encourages and supports increased long-term monitoring efforts to broaden our knowledge of the natural history, behavior, movement patterns and feeding habits of false killer whales in Hawaiian waters and the instauration of effective collaborative agreements among research group to share information and data about this species.
Much needed is also a comprehensive and inclusive reporting system for false killer whale sightings.

Gathering and sharing data about Hawaii’s false killer whales, and expanding the focus of our efforts to provide information to the NMFS and to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) managers will be an increasing priority at Pacific Whale Foundation. 

During the summer of 2010, we re-launched our study of odontocetes in Maui County waters. This NMFS-permitted study is a follow-up of earlier studies conducted since 1998.  In 2010, we covered 2,017 nautical miles of systematic line transect surveys within Maui County waters using a dedicated research vessel. Water depths during surveys ranged between 60 and over 600 ft.

During these surveys, we recorded 42 odontocete sightings but only three species were found. Bottlenose dolphins comprised 40% of the sightings, spotted dolphins 31% and spinner dolphins 26%. However, our educational marine ecotour fleet, covering similar depths, and waters within the same region, recorded 25 false killer whale sightings.

I have preliminarily examined historical records of wildlife sighted during Pacific Whale Foundation’s educational marine ecotours between 1995 and 2010 and have found 136 sightings of false killer whales recorded during that 5 year period. I am submitting to you a map showing the locations of sightings for which we have confirmed location information, which include data between 1998 and 2010.

?During our 1999-2000 research effort, conducted outside of our marine ecotour operations, we were able to individually identify 54 false killer whales, and we are currently analyzing additional photos. We hope to be able to add this information to future management plans and to scientific data already available.

Thanks to our newly developed whale and dolphin tracking software, as of this year, all of Pacific Whale Foundation's marine ecotour staff is required to log all cetacean sightings occurring  during our educational marine ecotours. Information collected using this Platform of Opportunity will include GPS location, school size, school composition and behavior. We anticipate that this will provide a powerful data source in the future.

Pacific Whale Foundation’s odontocete study will continue this year. It is one of our goals to add to the body of knowledge about Hawaii’s false killer whales, and to continue to share our findings with wildlife management agencies to provide data that will be useful in establishing and maintaining management plans for Hawaiian insular false killer whales. In addition, we are committed to educating the public about these lesser-known marine mammal residents of Hawaii and to help achieve greater public recognition of their importance in the ecosystem and of the value of protecting them.

On behalf of Pacific Whale Foundation’ s staff,  members and supporters
Daniela Maldini, Ph.D.
Research Director