WDCS says critically endangered right whales are at risk of extinction if entanglement risk is not immediately reduced.

The Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society (WDCS) will be urging the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) to immediately release its plan to reduce the risk to large whales from entanglements. On December 6th the Atlantic Large Whale Take Reduction Team (ALWTRT), a stakeholder group comprised of fishermen, conservationists, scientists and state and federal agency representatives will meet in Virginia Beach. They will be there to review recent entanglement cases and find out why NMFS, the agency charged with protecting these whales, has yet to release its plan. The goal is to reduce the likelihood of whales entangling in gear while still allowing fishermen to fish. “NMFS is several years behind in releasing their gear modification plan requiring sinking line for fixed fishing gear set in federal waters. This delay is literally jeopardizing the survival of critically endangered right whales” said Regina A. Asmutis-Silvia, WDCS Senior Biologist and member of the ALWTRT.

WDCS holds one of only five conservation stakeholder seats on the congressionally mandated TRT and will be present at the upcoming meeting. Entanglements in fixed fishing gear continue to be one of the biggest known sources of human-caused mortality to large whales on the US east coast. In 2006 alone the Atlantic Large Whale Disentanglement Network has received 26 reports of live large whales that are entangled in gear. These numbers do not reflect the actual number of animals that become entangled and yet go unreported, or as is the case with the humpback in this photograph, die and are not recovered. While some animals are able to free themselves from entangling gear, others carry the lines on them for months and sometimes years. This often leads to progressive infection and, ultimately, a slow and painful death.

“No one believes the fishermen are intentionally harming these animals” Asmutis-Silvia said “Frankly, without the aid of whale watch vessel and fishermen reports, many entanglement cases would go undetected and even more animals would have died. It would, however, be criminal to drive an entire species to extinction due to continuing bureaucratic delay.”

Picture Credit - C: T. Voorheis www.gulfofmaineproductions.com

Notes to Editor
The Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society (North America) Inc., (WDCS) is the global voice for the protection of whales and dolphins and their environment. It is based in East Falmouth MA and is part of the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society, a charity registered in England. The group has over 70,000 supporters world-wide and has a presence in a number of countries in Europe as well as in Argentina and Australia. For further information on the extent and scope of the organization’s work, or adopting a whale, please visit www.whales.org.

Contact:
Regina Asmutis-Silvia
Senior Biologist
WDCS (NA) Inc
508 451 3853
regina.asmutis-silvia@wdcs.org

Source: WDCS