Studies show dramatic decline of Hawaiian false killer whales

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Studies show dramatic decline of Hawaiian false killer whales

Thursday, 12 November 2009 07:36

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photo: Robin W. Baird/ www.cascadiaresearch.org. Visitors and residents alike marvel at the sight of Hawaii's cetacean winter residents, the humpback whales. Due to a few decades of protected species status and continuing research, we know that their once-dwindling numbers have steadily rebounded.

But recent studies indicate a lesser-known species, Pseudorca crassidens, or the false killer whale, has the smallest population of the 18 species of toothed whales and dolphins found in Hawaiian waters. Robin Baird of Olympia, Washington-based Cascadia Research—a 30-year-old nonprofit founded by biologists at Evergreen State College—has studied marine mammals in the Hawaiian Islands since 2000. He's taken a keen interest in Pseudorca, and is helping to elucidate the reasons for their steady decline.

It is now believed there are approximately 123 individuals in the insular Pseudorca population, which has been determined to be genetically unique. In other words, these whales are truly kama'aina. And they're in trouble.

False killer whales are also known for taking fish off hooks, a behavior that has resulted in the creatures being killed as bycatch in open ocean longline fisheries. Observation of dorsal fin disfigurement is a probable indication of interacting with line fisheries.... Read Full Article by Rob Parsons