Baleen whales: conservation issues and the status of the most endangered populations
Abstract Most species of baleen whales were subject to intensive overexploitation by commercial whaling in this and previous centuries, and many populations were reduced to small fractions of their original sizes. Here, we review the status of baleen whale stocks, with an emphasis on those that are...
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crwiley:10.1046/j.1365-2907.1999.00035.x 2024-06-23T07:50:37+00:00 Baleen whales: conservation issues and the status of the most endangered populations Clapham, Phillip J. Young, Sharon B. Brownell, Robert L. 1999 http://dx.doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2907.1999.00035.x https://api.wiley.com/onlinelibrary/tdm/v1/articles/10.1046%2Fj.1365-2907.1999.00035.x https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1046/j.1365-2907.1999.00035.x en eng Wiley http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/termsAndConditions#vor Mammal Review volume 29, issue 1, page 37-62 ISSN 0305-1838 1365-2907 journal-article 1999 crwiley https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2907.1999.00035.x 2024-06-06T04:23:10Z Abstract Most species of baleen whales were subject to intensive overexploitation by commercial whaling in this and previous centuries, and many populations were reduced to small fractions of their original sizes. Here, we review the status of baleen whale stocks, with an emphasis on those that are known or thought to be critically endangered. Current data suggest that, of the various threats potentially affecting baleen whales, only entanglement in fishing gear and ship strikes may be significant at the population level, and then only in those populations which are already at critically low abundance. The impact of some problems (vessel harassment, and commercial or aboriginal whaling) is at present probably minor. For others (contaminants, habitat degradation, disease), existing data either indicate no immediate cause for concern, or are insufficient to permit an assessment. While the prospect for many baleen whales appears good, there are notable exceptions; populations that are of greatest concern are those suffering from low abundance and associated problems, including (in some cases) anthropogenic mortality. These include: all Northern Right Whales Eubalaena glacialis , Bowhead Whales Balaena mysticetus of the Okhotsk Sea and various eastern Arctic populations, western Gray Whales Eschrichtius robustus , and probably many Blue Whale Balaenoptera musculus populations. We review the status of these populations and, where known, the issues potentially affecting their recovery. Although Humpback Whales Megaptera novaeangliae and Southern Right Whales Eubalaena australis were also heavily exploited by whaling, existing data indicate strong recovery in most studied populations of these species. Article in Journal/Newspaper Arctic Balaena mysticetus Balaenoptera musculus baleen whale baleen whales Blue whale Eubalaena glacialis Megaptera novaeangliae okhotsk sea Wiley Online Library Arctic Okhotsk Mammal Review 29 1 37 62 |
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Open Polar |
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Wiley Online Library |
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crwiley |
language |
English |
description |
Abstract Most species of baleen whales were subject to intensive overexploitation by commercial whaling in this and previous centuries, and many populations were reduced to small fractions of their original sizes. Here, we review the status of baleen whale stocks, with an emphasis on those that are known or thought to be critically endangered. Current data suggest that, of the various threats potentially affecting baleen whales, only entanglement in fishing gear and ship strikes may be significant at the population level, and then only in those populations which are already at critically low abundance. The impact of some problems (vessel harassment, and commercial or aboriginal whaling) is at present probably minor. For others (contaminants, habitat degradation, disease), existing data either indicate no immediate cause for concern, or are insufficient to permit an assessment. While the prospect for many baleen whales appears good, there are notable exceptions; populations that are of greatest concern are those suffering from low abundance and associated problems, including (in some cases) anthropogenic mortality. These include: all Northern Right Whales Eubalaena glacialis , Bowhead Whales Balaena mysticetus of the Okhotsk Sea and various eastern Arctic populations, western Gray Whales Eschrichtius robustus , and probably many Blue Whale Balaenoptera musculus populations. We review the status of these populations and, where known, the issues potentially affecting their recovery. Although Humpback Whales Megaptera novaeangliae and Southern Right Whales Eubalaena australis were also heavily exploited by whaling, existing data indicate strong recovery in most studied populations of these species. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Clapham, Phillip J. Young, Sharon B. Brownell, Robert L. |
spellingShingle |
Clapham, Phillip J. Young, Sharon B. Brownell, Robert L. Baleen whales: conservation issues and the status of the most endangered populations |
author_facet |
Clapham, Phillip J. Young, Sharon B. Brownell, Robert L. |
author_sort |
Clapham, Phillip J. |
title |
Baleen whales: conservation issues and the status of the most endangered populations |
title_short |
Baleen whales: conservation issues and the status of the most endangered populations |
title_full |
Baleen whales: conservation issues and the status of the most endangered populations |
title_fullStr |
Baleen whales: conservation issues and the status of the most endangered populations |
title_full_unstemmed |
Baleen whales: conservation issues and the status of the most endangered populations |
title_sort |
baleen whales: conservation issues and the status of the most endangered populations |
publisher |
Wiley |
publishDate |
1999 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2907.1999.00035.x https://api.wiley.com/onlinelibrary/tdm/v1/articles/10.1046%2Fj.1365-2907.1999.00035.x https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1046/j.1365-2907.1999.00035.x |
geographic |
Arctic Okhotsk |
geographic_facet |
Arctic Okhotsk |
genre |
Arctic Balaena mysticetus Balaenoptera musculus baleen whale baleen whales Blue whale Eubalaena glacialis Megaptera novaeangliae okhotsk sea |
genre_facet |
Arctic Balaena mysticetus Balaenoptera musculus baleen whale baleen whales Blue whale Eubalaena glacialis Megaptera novaeangliae okhotsk sea |
op_source |
Mammal Review volume 29, issue 1, page 37-62 ISSN 0305-1838 1365-2907 |
op_rights |
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/termsAndConditions#vor |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2907.1999.00035.x |
container_title |
Mammal Review |
container_volume |
29 |
container_issue |
1 |
container_start_page |
37 |
op_container_end_page |
62 |
_version_ |
1802641530506182656 |