Review for humpback whales

The US federal government is considering taking the humpback whale off the endangered species list in response to data showing the population of the massive marine mammal has been steadily growing in recent decades. The species were nearly hunted to extinction for their oil and meat by industrial-sized whaling ships well through the middle of the 20th century.

The government is required by law to review the endangered species status of an animal or plant if it receives significant new information and in 2008, the National Marine Fisheries Service, a NOAA agency, received results from an extensive study showing that the North Pacific humpback population has been growing 4 to 7 percent a year in recent decades. It's the first review for humpbacks since 1999 but its unclear yet what the decision on delisting the humpback will be. A panel of scientists will study the data and produce a scientific report on their analysis in late spring or early summer of next year.

Marine Connection has concerns over the delisting because whales in general face many threats including climate change and therefore its vital that humpbacks should only be removed from the list if populations have sufficiently recovered. Positive news however is that there are now an estimated 18,000 to 20,000 humpbacks in the North Pacific, up from just 1,400 in the mid-1960s. An early 1990s survey of humpbacks in the North Atlantic showed the population there was some 10,600. The global humpback population is estimated to be about 60,000 but here are some subpopulations of humpbacks, however, that aren't as robust. A South Pacific group that feeds in the Antarctic and then migrates to the warm waters off New Caledonia, Samoa and Tonga to breed and calve isn't doing as well. Whale experts say this is because commercial whaling, and later, illegal whaling by the Soviet Union, shrunk this population so dramatically that it's had a harder time recovering.

There are also humpback populations about which relatively little is known which include humpbacks that spend the winter in waters off southern Japan and the Philippines and the summer near Russia's Far East coast. This group also appears to be relatively small, with only about 1,000 whales so there may be a chance the review could lead to the removal of healthier subpopulations from the endangered species list while other groups that are still at risk could be left on.Something similar happened in 1994 when the federal government removed a U.S. West Coast population of the gray whale from the endangered species list but left on the list a separate population of gray whale that lives off Russia's Pacific coast. The charity will keep our supporters updated on this important issue.