1 Subsistence harvest of bowhead whales (Balaena mysticetus) by Alaskan Eskimos during 2006
In 2006, 39 bowhead whales (Balaena mysticetus) were struck during the Alaskan subsistence hunt resulting in 31 animals landed. The efficiency ( # landed / # struck) of the hunt was 79.5%, which is similar to the average during 1996-2005 (mean = 79%, SD = 8%). Of the landed whales, 21 were males and...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Text |
| Language: | English |
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| Online Access: | http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.462.8000 http://www.arlis.org/docs/vol1/B/648772492/648772492-2006.pdf |
| Summary: | In 2006, 39 bowhead whales (Balaena mysticetus) were struck during the Alaskan subsistence hunt resulting in 31 animals landed. The efficiency ( # landed / # struck) of the hunt was 79.5%, which is similar to the average during 1996-2005 (mean = 79%, SD = 8%). Of the landed whales, 21 were males and 10 were females. Of the females, only one was presumably mature (>13.4m in length) and she was not discernibly pregnant; however, the animal was harvested in a remote village and was not closely examined by biologists. The average number of whales landed in the 10 previous years was 41.8 (SD = 6.8). Thus, the number of landed whales in 2006 was lower than recent years. Challenging sea ice and weather conditions in the spring precluded 6 of the 8 spring-hunting villages from landing any whales. The spring harvest was the lowest recorded in the last 35 years and only the villages of Wainwright and Barrow were able to land a total of five whales during the spring hunt. Fall harvests in the Beaufort Sea villages (Kaktovik, Nuiqsut and Barrow) were consistent with past years. In the Bering Sea, the St. Lawrence Island villages of Savoonga and Gambell were not able to land any whales during the winter as they have in recent years. |
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