1. Marine Protected Species: Serving warm, fuzzy, and cute since 1972 Dr. Jason Turner Department of Marine Science, University of Hawai‘i at Hilo

2. Marine Protected Species: Serving warm, fuzzy, and cute since 1972 1. Who are protected 2. Pertinent Legislation 3. U.S. vs. International Protection 4. History of Protection 5. Case studies/Future implications

3. Who are Marine Protected Species?

4. Who are U.S. Marine Protected Species? 1. All Marine Mammals Whales, dolphins, porpoises, seals, sea lions, walrus, manatees, sea otters, polar bears 2. Sea Turtles Green, Hawksbill, Leatherback, Loggerhead, Kemp’s Ridley, Olive Ridley

5. Who are U.S. Marine Protected Species? 3. Fishes - Salmon Coho, Sockeye, Chum, Chinook, Atlantic 4. Invertebrates Elkhorn & Staghorn Coral, White Abalone

6. Protected Species Legislation 1. Marine Mammal Protection Act - 1972 2. Endangered Species Act - 1973 3. CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) - 1975

7. Marine Mammal Protection Act Prohibits, with certain exceptions, the take of marine mammals in U.S. waters and by U.S. citizens on the high seas the importation of marine mammals and marine mammal products into the U.S. - Since 1972 Definitions Take: to harass, hunt, capture, or kill, or attempt to harass, hunt, capture or kill any marine mammal. Harassment: any act of pursuit, torment, or annoyance

8. Marine Mammal Protection Act All Marine Mammals within U.S. waters Whales, dolphins, porpoises, seals, sea lions, walrus, manatees, sea otters, polar bears What are U.S. waters?

9. Exclusive Economic Zone Law of the Sea treaty – established 200-mile-wide EEZs – granting coastal nations exclusive rights with respect to natural resources

10. Protected Species Legislation 1. Marine Mammal Protection Act - 1972 2. Endangered Species Act - 1973 3. CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) - 1975

11. Endangered Species Act Purpose: Recovery of endangered and threatened species USFWS (Fish & Wildlife) & NOAA (Fisheries) ID & Publish list of threatened or endangered spp Species given full legal protection = no “take” Federal gov’t prohibited harming species or habitat Recovery plan Includes “critical habitat”

12. Endangered is the classification provided to an animal or plant in danger of extinction within the foreseeable future throughout all or a significant portion of its range Threatened is the classification provided to an animal or plant likely to become endangered within the foreseeable future throughout all or a significant portion of its range Critical Habitat are "all areas essential to the conservation" of the target species; the original ESA of 1973 allowed the FWS and NOAA Fisheries to designate specific areas as protected "critical habitat" zones What is Endangered?

13. Who is listed?

15. How are they listed? A species can be listed in two ways: 1) FWS or NOAA Fisheries to take the initiative and directly list the species 2) Via individual or organizational petition which prompts FWS or NMFS to conduct a scientific review

16. Has the listing process changed?

17. Listings by year (under different administrations) Ford (47 listings, 15 per year) Carter (126 listings, 32 per year) Reagan (255 listings, 32 per year) George H. W. Bush (231 listings, 58 per year) Clinton (521 listings, 65 per year) George W. Bush (60 listings, 8 per year) as of 5/24/08) Recent administration has proposed more listing power to Agencies, reduced roles of citizens and independent scientists

18. Is there International Protection?

19. Protected Species Legislation 1. Marine Mammal Protection Act - 1972 2. Endangered Species Act - 1973 3. CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) - 1975

20. CITES CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) is an international agreement between Governments Its aim is to ensure that international trade in specimens of wild animals and plants does not threaten their survival

21. CITES Works by subjecting international trade in specimens of selected species to certain controls All import, export, re-export and introduction from the sea of species covered by the Convention has to be authorized through a licensing system

22. IUCN International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) - an international organization dedicated to natural resource conservation IUCN brings together 83 states, 108 government agencies, 766 Non-governmental organizations and 81 international organizations and about 10,000 experts and scientists from countries around the world

23. IUCN Mission is to influence, encourage and assist societies throughout the world to conserve the integrity and diversity of nature and to ensure that any use of natural resources is equitable and ecologically sustainable Since 1963 has produced the IUCN Red List - world's most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of plant and animal species

24. IUCN

25. IWC International Whaling Commission (IWC) - an international body set up (1946) to "provide for the proper conservation of whale stocks and thus make possible the orderly development of the whaling industry“ 1970’s - dominated by governments opposed to commercial whaling 1986 – Moratorium in commercial whaling for its members

26. Whale Wars “The Society's fight to eradicate Japanese whaling on the high seas — where international laws are interpreted by different countries and organizations in different ways —”

27. Whale Wars Sea Shephard says that Japan is “Violating an International Ban on Whaling” by conducting Scientific Whaling Japanese Whalers say they are legally whaling Who is Right?

28. Scientific Whaling Moratorium applies only to commercial whaling Whaling under the scientific-research and aboriginal-subsistence provisions of the IWC is still allowed in Norway, Iceland, Japan

29. Scientific Whaling Are Norway, Iceland & Japan getting a fair shake? Japan has issued scientific permits every year in recent years. In the current year, permits are for the JARPA II programme (850±10% Antarctic minke whales, 50 fin whales and 50 humpback whales) and the JARPN II programme (340 minke, 50 Bryde's, 100 sei and 10 sperm whales) ARTICLE VIII, Para 2 “Any whales taken under these special permits shall so far as practicable be processed and the proceeds shall be dealt with in accordance with directions issued by the Government by which the permit was granted”

30. Scientific Whaling Which means… Under the IWC permits Japan is allowed to take certain whales and based upon Article VIII, Para 2 – are required to process whale that is taken with permit http://www.iwcoffice.org/conservation/permits.htm

31. Scientific Whaling

35. Aboriginal Subsistence Whaling Bering-Chukchi-Beaufort Seas stock of bowhead whales (taken by native people of Alaska and Chukotka) - A total of up to 280 bowhead whales can be landed in the period 2008 - 2012, with no more than 67 whales struck in any year (and up to 15 unused strikes may be carried over each year). Eastern North Pacific gray whales (taken by native people of Chukotka and Washington State ) - A total catch of 620 whales is allowed for the years 2008 - 2012 with a maximum of 140 in any one year.

36. IWC Regulations Moratorium on Whaling (1986) Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary (1994) – 11.8 million sq mile sanctuary Scientific Whaling No “teeth”

37. To Protect or not to Protect Critical issues: Who we protect? How we protect? Why we protect?

38. To Protect or not to Protect Why - Serving warm, cute, and fuzzy Protected:Not Protected: All marine mammalsAny Sharks All sea turtlesAny Billfishes Relatively few: plants insects other inverts

39. To Protect or not to Protect

40. How – Species, Ecosystem, Trophic role everything Sea turtles – protected because numbers were reduced by man’s influence When numbers rebound they would become de-listed

41. To Protect or not to Protect Would de-listing of sea turtles ever happen?

42. To Protect or not to Protect Would de-listing of sea turtles ever happen?

43. To Protect or not to Protect How: We list marine mammals because of their taxonomy, not their population status

44. To Protect or not to Protect If based upon population status, only a relative few marine mammals would be protected

45. Why we protect?

50. Polar Bear, Polar Bear, What Do You Hear?

52. Global Warming Threats? December 2006: USFWS proposes listing Polar Bears as “Threatened” due to melting pack ice 12 month study process Critical habitat issues Would not affect Native Alaskan subsistence hunting

53. What’s the Catch? On May 14, 2008, the United States Department of the Interior listed the polar bear as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act Did not designate critical habitat citing Alaskan Subsistence hunting, etc. Also – listing is based upon climate change

54. What’s the Catch? If we provide Critical Habitat to polar bears based upon climate change we are: 1) Formally acknowledging that we are a cause of global warming 2) Are responsible for reversing this trend (i.e. – changing emissions policy, etc)

55. Global Warming Threats?