Remote-biopsy surveys of Cook Inlet beluga whales : Field Report for 2017-2019 ...

• Main Authors: Wade, P. R., Sims, C., Baker, C. S., Goetz, K., McGuire, T., Michel, R., Moisan, M., Parsons, K.
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: Alaska Fisheries Science Center (U.S.) 2024
• Subjects: Beluga; Beluga whale; Beluga*; Delphinapterus leucas; Alaska
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.25923/2ekd-h347; https://repository.library.noaa.gov/view/noaa/56328

NOAA technical memorandum NMFS AFSC 481 ... : The Cook Inlet beluga whale (Delphinapterus leucas) is a genetically distinct, geographically separated population, which declined rapidly during the 1990s. In response to the critically low numbers of beluga whales following a period of over-hunting in Cook Inlet, Alaska, the U.S. federal government listed this small population as endangered in 2008. This population has not recovered and the cause(s) remain unknown. In 2016, NMFS included the Cook Inlet beluga whale as one of eight ‘Species in the Spotlight’ (SIS), defined as species at high risk needing immediate, targeted efforts to stabilize their population and prevent extinction. ...