Notice2023-01242
Draft 2022 Marine Mammal Stock Assessment Reports
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
January 24, 2023
Issuing agencies
Commerce DepartmentNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Abstract
NMFS reviewed the Alaska, Atlantic, and Pacific regional marine mammal stock assessment reports (SARs) in accordance with the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA). SARs for marine mammals in the Alaska, Atlantic, and Pacific regions were revised according to new information. NMFS solicits public comments on the draft 2022 SARs. NMFS is also requesting new information for strategic stocks that were not updated in 2022.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 88 Issue 15 (Tuesday, January 24, 2023)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 15 (Tuesday, January 24, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 4162-4167]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2023-01242]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
[RTID 0648-XC506]
Draft 2022 Marine Mammal Stock Assessment Reports
AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Notice; request for comments and new information.
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SUMMARY: NMFS reviewed the Alaska, Atlantic, and Pacific regional
marine mammal stock assessment reports (SARs) in accordance with the
Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA). SARs for marine mammals in the
Alaska, Atlantic, and Pacific regions were revised according to new
information. NMFS solicits public comments on the draft 2022 SARs. NMFS
is also requesting new information for strategic stocks that were not
updated in 2022.
DATES: Comments must be received by April 24, 2023.
ADDRESSES: The 2022 draft SARs are available in electronic form via the
internet at <a href="https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/marine-mammal-protection/draft-marine-mammal-stock-assessment-reports">https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/marine-mammal-protection/draft-marine-mammal-stock-assessment-reports</a>.
Copies of the Alaska Regional SARs may be requested from Nancy
Young, Alaska Fisheries Science Center; copies of the Atlantic, Gulf of
Mexico, and Caribbean Regional SARs may be requested from Elizabeth
Josephson, Northeast Fisheries Science Center; and copies of the
Pacific Regional SARs may be requested from Jim Carretta,
[[Page 4163]]
Southwest Fisheries Science Center (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT
below).
You may submit comments on this document, identified by NOAA-NMFS-
2022-0130, by any of the following methods:
<bullet> Electronic Submission: Submit all electronic public
comments via the Federal e-Rulemaking Portal. Go to <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a> and enter NOAA-NMFS-2022-0130 in the Search box.
Click on the ``Comment'' icon, complete the required fields, and enter
or attach your comments.
<bullet> Mail: Submit written comments to Dr. Zachary Schakner,
Protected Species Science Branch, Office of Science and Technology,
National Marine Fisheries Service, 1315 East-West Highway, Silver
Spring, MD 20910-3226, Attn: Stock Assessments.
Instructions: Comments sent by any other method, to any other
address or individual, or received after the end of the comment period,
may not be considered by NMFS. All comments received are a part of the
public record and will generally be posted for public viewing on
<a href="http://www.regulations.gov">www.regulations.gov</a> without change. All personal identifying
information (e.g., name, address, etc.), confidential business
information, or otherwise sensitive information submitted voluntarily
by the sender will be publicly accessible. NMFS will accept anonymous
comments (enter ``N/A'' in the required fields if you wish to remain
anonymous).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Zachary Schakner, Office of Science
and Technology, 301-427-8106, <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#b9e3d8dad1d8cbc097eadad1d8d2d7dccbf9d7d6d8d897ded6cf"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="0a506b69626b7873245969626b61646f784a64656b6b246d657c">[email protected]</span></a>; Nancy Young,
206-526-4297, <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#6b250a0508124532041e050c2b05040a0a450c041d"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="a9e7c8c7cad087f0c6dcc7cee9c7c6c8c887cec6df">[email protected]</span></a>, regarding Alaska regional stock
assessments; Elizabeth Josephson, 508-495-2362,
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#10557c796a71727564783e5a7f63756078637f7e507e7f71713e777f66"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="2461484d5e454641504c0a6e4b5741544c574b4a644a4b45450a434b52">[email protected]</span></a>, regarding Atlantic, Gulf of Mexico, and
Caribbean regional stock assessments; or Jim Carretta, 858-546-7171,
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#0a40636724496b78786f7e7e6b4a64656b6b246d657c"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="145e7d793a5775666671606075547a7b75753a737b62">[email protected]</span></a>, regarding Pacific regional stock assessments.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
Section 117 of the MMPA (16 U.S.C. 1361 et seq.) requires NMFS and
the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) to prepare stock assessments
for each stock of marine mammals occurring in waters under the
jurisdiction of the United States, including the U.S. Exclusive
Economic Zone (EEZ). These stock assessment reports (SARs) must contain
information regarding the distribution and abundance of the stock,
population growth rates and trends, estimates of annual human-caused
mortality and serious injury (M/SI) from all sources, descriptions of
the fisheries with which the stock interacts, and the status of the
stock. Initial SARs were completed in 1995.
The MMPA requires NMFS and FWS to review the SARs at least annually
for strategic stocks and stocks for which significant new information
is available, and at least once every 3 years for non-strategic stocks.
The term ``strategic stock'' means a marine mammal stock: (A) for which
the level of direct human-caused mortality exceeds the potential
biological removal level or PBR (defined by the MMPA as the maximum
number of animals, not including natural mortalities, that may be
removed from a marine mammal stock while allowing that stock to reach
or maintain its optimum sustainable population); (B) which, based on
the best available scientific information, is declining and is likely
to be listed as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act
(ESA) within the foreseeable future; or (C) which is listed as a
threatened species or endangered species under the ESA or is designated
as depleted under the MMPA. NMFS and FWS are required to revise a SAR
if the review indicates that the status of the stock has changed or can
be more accurately determined.
In order to ensure that marine mammal SARs constitute the best
scientific information available, the updated SARs under NMFS'
jurisdiction are peer-reviewed within NMFS Science Centers and by
members of three regional independent Scientific Review Groups
established under the MMPA to independently advise NMFS and the FWS. As
a result of time involved in the assessment of new scientific
information, revision, and peer-review of the SARs, the period covered
by the 2022 draft SARs is 2016 through 2020. While this represents a
time lag, the extensive peer review process ensures the SARs are based
upon the best scientific information available.
NMFS reviewed the status of all marine mammal strategic stocks and
considered whether significant new information was available for all
other stocks under NMFS' jurisdiction. As a result of this review, NMFS
revised reports for 25 stocks in the Alaska, Atlantic, and Pacific
regions to incorporate new information. The 2022 revisions to the SARs
include proposed revisions to stock structures, updated or revised
human-caused M/SI estimates, and updated abundance estimates.
Additionally, revised stock structure is proposed for all North Pacific
humpback whale stocks and Southeast Alaska harbor porpoises following
the process outlined in NMFS' procedural directive (NMFS 2019).
Proposed revisions to stock structure and the addition of new reports
resulted in five newly designated strategic stocks and three newly
designated non-strategic stocks. No stocks changed in status from
``non-strategic'' to ``strategic.'' Eight Western North Atlantic common
bottlenose dolphin stocks changed from ``strategic'' status to ``non-
strategic.''
NMFS solicits public comments on the draft 2022 SARs. To ensure
NMFS is aware of new information relevant to all strategic stocks, NMFS
also requests new information for strategic stocks that were not
updated in 2022. Specifically, new relevant information could include
peer-reviewed information on human-caused M/SI, fishery interactions,
abundance, distribution, population structure, habitat concerns, and
other information on emerging concerns for strategic stocks that could
be incorporated into the SARs.
North Pacific Humpback Whale Stocks
The three existing North Pacific humpback whale stocks (Central
North Pacific and Western North Pacific stocks contained in the Alaska
regional SAR and the CA/OR/WA stock contained in the Pacific regional
SAR) are proposed to be replaced by five stocks to better align with
the 2016 listing of humpback whale distinct population segments (DPSs)
under the Endangered Species Act (ESA, 81 FR 62260, September 8, 2016).
While the criteria for determining stocks under the MMPA and DPSs under
the ESA are different, these units are both based on the best
scientific information available and consider population structure,
which, in some cases, may result in the units being equivalent in
practice.
In revising North Pacific humpback whale stock structure, NMFS
followed the process outlined in its procedural directive 02-204-03:
Reviewing and Designating Stocks and Issuing Stock Assessment Reports
under the Marine Mammal Protection Act (NMFS 2019). NMFS evaluated
multiple lines of evidence, including genetics and movement data, to
identify three demographically independent populations (DIPs), as well
as four ``units'' that may contain one or more DIPs (Martien et al.
2021, Taylor et al. 2021, Wade et al. 2021, Oleson et al. 2022). From
these DIPs and units, NMFS proposes designating five new humpback whale
stocks in the North Pacific: the Western North Pacific, Hawai'i, and
Mexico-North Pacific stocks contained in the Alaska regional SAR; and
the Mainland Mexico-CA-OR-WA and the Central America/Southern
[[Page 4164]]
Mexico-CA-OR-WA stocks contained in the Pacific regional SAR.
Western North Pacific Humpback Whale Stock
NMFS evaluated the ESA-listed Western North Pacific (WNP) DPS as a
potential stock under the MMPA and found strong lines of evidence
(movements and genetics) that it is composed of multiple DIPs (Oleson
et al. 2022). At present, two units can be defined: the Philippines/
Okinawa-Northern Pacific unit that winters near the Philippines and
Okinawa and summers primarily off the Russian mainland, and the Mariana
Islands/Ogasawara-Northern Pacific unit that winters off the Mariana
Archipelago and other unidentified areas and summers off the Commander
Islands and other feeding grounds off the Russian coast in the Bering
Sea. It is possible that these units contain multiple DIPs, but the
available data and analyses are not sufficient to evaluate that
possibility at this time. Given the lack of data on distribution,
movement, and abundance of these two units, there is no clear
conservation benefit to splitting the humpback whales that belong to
the WNP DPS into two MMPA stocks. Thus, the humpback whales that belong
to the WNP DPS listed under the ESA are proposed to comprise a single
stock under the MMPA.
The proposed WNP humpback whale stock (contained in the Alaska
SAR), contains the WNP DPS, which is listed as endangered under the ESA
(81 FR 62259, September 2016, Oleson et al. 2022) and would, therefore,
be considered a strategic and depleted stock under the MMPA. The
abundance estimate was derived from a reanalysis of the 2004-2006
Structure of Populations, Levels of Abundance and Status of Humpback
Whales in the North Pacific (SPLASH) data (Wade 2021). The annual
human-caused M/SI is estimated for the entire stock (4.46, which
exceeds the calculated stock-wide PBR of 3.4), as well as for the
portion of the stock that spends time in U.S. waters (0.06, which is
below the calculated U.S.-only PBR of 0.2); however, observers have not
been assigned to several U.S. fisheries that are known to interact with
this stock, and bycatch in foreign fisheries is often unreported or
data are not available, making the estimated M/SI an underestimate.
Hawai'i Humpback Whale Stock
NMFS evaluated the Hawai'i DPS identified under the ESA as a
potential stock under the MMPA and found strong lines of evidence
(movements and genetics) that indicate the Hawai'i DPS contains at
least two units: the Hawai'i-southeast Alaska/northern British Columbia
DIP (Hawai'i-SEA/NBC DIP) and the Hawai'i-North Pacific unit (Hawai'i-
NorPac unit) (Wade et al. 2021). There may be sufficient data to
delineate further DIPs within the Hawai'i -NorPac unit, but the
photographic data have not been fully stratified in the way required to
evaluate additional putative DIPs (Wade et al. 2021). Given the lack of
a current abundance estimate for the Hawai'i-NorPac unit and spatial
information on this unit in Hawaiian waters, there is no clear
conservation benefit to splitting the humpback whales that belong to
the Hawai'i DPS into two MMPA stocks. Thus, the humpback whales that
belong to the Hawai'i DPS identified under the ESA are proposed to
comprise a single stock under the MMPA (81 FR 62259, September 2016).
The proposed Hawai'i humpback whale stock (contained in the Alaska
SAR) includes the Hawai'i DPS of humpback whales (81 FR 62259,
September 2016).Wade et al. 2021), which is not listed under the ESA.
The proposed Hawai'i stock of humpback whales does not include whales
from any listed DPSs and, therefore, would not be considered depleted
nor strategic under the MMPA due to its ESA status. It would also not
be strategic because total annual human-caused M/SI (19.6) does not
exceed the proposed stock's PBR (127). The draft SAR presents a new
estimate of abundance that was derived from a species distribution
model and represents the peak abundance of humpback whales around the
main Hawaiian Islands during 2020 (Becker et al. 2022). Because the
estimate is derived from the model output for a specific one-month time
period, this may under-represent the full abundance of whales that
overwinter in the region because individual whales may not have a very
long residence time in Hawai'i.
Mexico-North Pacific and Mainland Mexico--CA-OR-WA Humpback Whale
Stocks
NMFS evaluated the ESA-listed Mexico DPS as a potential stock under
the MMPA and found strong lines of evidence (movements and genetics)
for two units within the Mexico DPS: a DIP composed of whales that
winter in the waters off mainland Mexico (MMex) and summer off of the
contiguous U.S. West Coast, referred to as the MMex-CA/OR/WA DIP
(Martien et al. 2021), and a unit of humpback whales that winter in
mainland Mexico and the Revillagigedo Archipelago and summer in more
northerly waters (mainly in Alaska and to a lesser extent in Russia),
referred to as the Mex-NPac unit (Martien et al. 2021). Available
movement data suggest the existence of multiple DIPs within the Mex-
NPac unit, but the photographic data have not been stratified in the
way required to formally evaluate additional putative DIPs (Martien et
al. 2021). NMFS evaluated the conservation and management benefits and
risks associated with managing these humpback whales and determined
that managing these two units as separate stocks under the MMPA
provides greater potential conservation benefit than managing them as a
single stock that contains the entire DPS. Thus, the humpback whales
that belong to the Mexico DPS are proposed to comprise two stocks under
the MMPA: the Mex-NPac stock and the MMex-CA-OR-WA stock.
The proposed Mex-NPac humpback whale stock (contained in the Alaska
SAR) includes the portion of the humpback whales from the Mexico DPS
that winter in mainland Mexico and the Revillagigedo Archipelago and
mainly summer in Alaska and to a lesser extent in Russia (Bettridge et
al. 2015, Martien et al. 2021). The Mexico DPS is listed as threatened
under the ESA; and, therefore, the proposed Mex-NPac humpback whale
stock would be considered depleted and strategic under the MMPA. The
minimum population estimate for the stock is considered unknown; and,
therefore, PBR is undetermined. The annual human-caused M/SI in U.S.
waters is estimated to be 0.56 whales.
The proposed MMex-CA-OR-WA humpback whale stock (contained in the
Pacific SAR) includes the portion of the humpback whales from the
Mexico DPS that winter in the waters off mainland Mexico and summer off
of the contiguous U.S. West Coast (Bettridge et al. 2015, Martien et
al. 2021). The Mexico DPS is listed as threatened under the ESA; and,
therefore, the proposed MMex-CA-OR-WA humpback whale stock would be
considered depleted and strategic under the MMPA. The draft SAR
presents a new estimate of abundance derived from the difference
between the mark-recapture estimate for humpbacks off the U.S. West
Coast (Calambokidis and Barlow 2020) and the Central America/Southern
Mexico--CA-OR-WA humpback whale stock (Curtis et al. 2022). The
estimated annual human-caused M/SI is 30.7 humpback whales, which does
not exceed the proposed stock's PBR (32.5).
[[Page 4165]]
Central America/Southern Mexico-CA-OR-WA Humpback Whale Stock
NMFS evaluated the ESA-listed Central America DPS as a potential
stock under the MMPA and found strong lines of evidence (movements and
genetics) that the Central America DPS contains a single DIP: the
Central America/Southern Mexico-CA/OR/WA (CenAm/SMex-CA/OR/WA) DIP
(Taylor et al. 2021). Thus, the humpback whales that belong to the
Central America DPS identified under the ESA are proposed to comprise a
single stock under the MMPA.
The proposed CenAm/SMex-CA-OR-WA humpback whale stock (contained in
the Pacific SAR) includes the Central America DPS of humpback whales,
which is listed as endangered under the ESA (Bettridge et al. 2015,
Taylor et al. 2021) and would, therefore, be considered depleted and
strategic under the MMPA. The draft SAR presents a new estimate of
abundance derived from spatial capture-recapture methods based on
photographic data of whales wintering in southern Mexico and Central
America between 2019 and 2021 (Curtis et al. 2022). The estimated
annual human-caused M/SI is 18.4, which exceeds the proposed stock's
PBR (2.6).
Alaska Reports
NMFS reviewed new information for 35 existing stocks (including all
of the strategic stocks) in the Alaska Region and updated information
or developed new reports for nine stocks under NMFS' jurisdiction: four
strategic stocks (Southern Southeast Alaska Inland Waters harbor
porpoise, Western North Pacific humpback whales, Mexico-North Pacific
humpback whales, and Western Arctic bowhead whales) and five non-
strategic stocks (Eastern Bering Sea beluga whales, Eastern North
Pacific Alaska Resident killer whales, Northern Southeast Alaska Inland
Waters harbor porpoise, Yakutat/Southeast Alaska Offshore Waters harbor
porpoise, and Hawai'i humpback whales). A list of the new or revised
SARs in 2022 for the Alaska region is presented in Table 1, followed by
a summary of the more notable revisions for particular stocks within
the Alaska region aside from humpback whales (see above). Information
on the remaining Alaska region stocks can be found in the final 2021
SARs (Muto et al. 2022).
Table 1--List of Marine Mammal Stocks in the Alaska Region Revised in
2022
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Strategic stocks Non-strategic stocks
------------------------------------------------------------------------
<bullet> Bowhead whale, Western Arctic <bullet> Beluga whale, Eastern
*. Bering Sea.*
<bullet> Harbor porpoise, Southern <bullet> Killer whale, Eastern
Southeast Alaska Inland Waters North Pacific Alaska
[dagger]. Resident.*
<bullet> Humpback whale, Mexico-North <bullet> Harbor porpoise,
Pacific [dagger]. Northern Southeast Alaska
Inland Waters.[dagger]
<bullet> Humpback whale, Western North <bullet> Harbor porpoise,
Pacific [dagger]. Yakutat/Southeast Alaska
Offshore Waters.[dagger]
<bullet> Humpback whale,
Hawai'i.[dagger]
------------------------------------------------------------------------
* Includes updated abundance estimates.
[dagger] Denotes a new stock.
Southeast Alaska Harbor Porpoises
The Southeast Alaska harbor porpoise stock is proposed to be split
into three stocks, all contained within one SAR: the Northern Southeast
Alaska (N-SEAK) Inland Waters, Southern Southeast Alaska (S-SEAK)
Inland Waters, and Yakutat/Southeast Alaska (Y-SEAK) Offshore Waters
harbor porpoise stocks. In revising stock structure, NMFS followed the
process outlined in its procedural directive 02-204-03: Reviewing and
Designating Stocks and Issuing Stock Assessment Reports under the
Marine Mammal Protection Act (NMFS 2019). Multiple lines of evidence
(genetics, trends in abundance, and discontinuous distribution)
supported delineation of two DIPs within the inland waters of southeast
Alaska. Until additional information is available to evaluate potential
structure within the offshore waters, the remaining harbor porpoise
offshore in southeast Alaska were grouped into a single unit (Zerbini
et al. 2022). NMFS evaluated the conservation and management benefits
and risks associated with managing these harbor porpoise and determined
that managing the two DIPs and single unit as separate stocks under the
MMPA provides greater potential conservation benefit than managing them
as a single stock. Thus, the Southeast Alaska harbor porpoise stock is
proposed to be split into three stocks corresponding with the DIPs and
unit identified in Zerbini et al. (2022). The draft SAR presents
abundance estimates for the proposed N-SEAK and S-SEAK harbor porpoise
stocks, derived from a vessel survey in 2019. A current abundance
estimate is not available for the proposed Y-SEAK stock.
The draft SAR includes a reassessment of human-caused M/SI to
reflect the new proposed stock boundaries. The annual human-caused M/SI
estimated for the proposed N-SEAK Inland Waters stock (5.6) does not
exceed the calculated PBR (13 Also, the N-SEAK Inland Waters stock is
not designated as depleted under the MMPA nor listed as threatened or
endangered under the ESA. Therefore, the N-SEAK Inland Waters stock of
harbor porpoise is not classified as a strategic stock.
The annual human-caused M/SI estimated for the proposed S-SEAK
Inland Waters stock (7.4) exceeds the calculated PBR (6.1); therefore,
the stock would be considered strategic. However, the S-SEAK Inland
Waters stock is not designated as depleted under the MMPA nor listed as
threatened or endangered under the ESA. A current abundance estimate
for the proposed Y-SEAK stock is not available.
Beluga Whale, Eastern Bering Sea Stock
NMFS withdrew the final 2020 EBS beluga whale SAR to allow for
consultation with NMFS co-management partner, the Alaska Beluga Whale
Committee, and is subsequently revising the SAR in 2022. The revised
report contains an updated best estimate of abundance, derived from a
2017 aerial line-transect survey and corrected for various biases, of
12,269 beluga whales. This is an increase from the 2000 estimate of
6,994, which was considered to be an underestimate. Other sources of
potential negative bias may still affect the estimate but additional
information is necessary for further refinement. The estimated annual
human-caused M/SI (227) is less than the calculated PBR (267). Also,
the Eastern Bering Sea stock is not designated as depleted under the
MMPA nor listed as threatened or endangered under the ESA. Therefore,
the Eastern Bering Sea stock of beluga whales is not classified as a
strategic stock.
Atlantic Reports
In 2022, NMFS reviewed all stocks in the Atlantic region for new
information
[[Page 4166]]
(including the Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, and U.S. territories in
the Caribbean) under NMFS' jurisdiction and revised reports for 11
stocks (Table 2). Since the time the previous SAR was published for the
Northern Gulf of Mexico Stock of Bryde's whale, the stock has been
recognized as a distinct species known as Rice's whale, (Balaneoptera
ricei) (Rosel et al. 2021) and its ESA species designation has been
updated (86 FR 47022, DATE). Therefore, the Northern Gulf of Mexico
Bryde's whale SAR has been updated to reflect the name changes and is
now the Northern Gulf of Mexico Rice's whale SAR. The remaining
revisions to SARs in the Atlantic region consist primarily of updated
abundance estimates and revised human-caused M/SI estimates for common
bottlenose dolphin stocks. Eight Western North Atlantic common
bottlenose dolphin stocks changed from ``strategic'' status to ``non-
strategic.'' A list of the new or revised SARs in 2022 for the Atlantic
region is presented in Table 2, followed by a summary of the more
notable revisions for particular stocks within the Atlantic region.
Information on the remaining Atlantic region stocks can be found in the
final 2021 SARs (Hayes et al. 2022).
Table 2--List of Marine Mammal SARs in the Atlantic Region Revised in
2022
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Strategic stocks Non-strategic stocks
------------------------------------------------------------------------
<bullet> North Atlantic right whale.... <bullet> Common bottlenose
dolphin, Northern South
Carolina Estuarine System
Stock.*
<bullet> Rice's whale (previously <bullet> Common bottlenose
Bryde's whale). dolphin, Charleston Estuarine
System Stock.
<bullet> Common bottlenose
dolphin, Northern Georgia/
Southern South Carolina
Estuarine System Stock.
<bullet> Common bottlenose
dolphin, Central Georgia
Estuarine System Stock.
<bullet> Common bottlenose
dolphin, Southern Georgia
Estuarine System Stock.
<bullet> Common bottlenose
dolphin, Jacksonville
Estuarine System Stock.
<bullet> Common bottlenose
dolphin, Indian River Lagoon
Estuarine System Stock.*
<bullet> Common bottlenose
dolphin, Biscayne Bay Stock.
<bullet> Common bottlenose
dolphin, Florida Bay Stock.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
* Includes updated abundance estimates.
North Atlantic Right Whale, Western North Atlantic
The new abundance estimate calculated for the western North
Atlantic right whale stock is 338 individuals, which is a decrease from
the previous estimate of 368 individuals contained in the final 2021
report. This updated estimate is based on a published state-space model
of the sighting histories of individual whales identified using photo-
identification techniques (Pace et al. 2017, Pace 2021). It reflects
the overall low reproductive rate of the species and the impacts of the
ongoing Unusual Mortality Event declared in 2017 (NMFS 2022), which,
for the covered time period, includes 78 dead, seriously injured, or
sub-lethally injured or ill whales (i.e., morbidity cases, which are
now included in the SAR for the first time) primarily due to vessel
strikes and entanglements in fishing gear.
Pacific Reports
In 2022, NMFS reviewed all 85 stocks in the Pacific region (waters
along the U.S. West Coast, within waters surrounding the main and
Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, and within waters surrounding U.S.
territories in the Western Pacific) for new information, and revised
SARs for five stocks (four strategic and one non-strategic). A list of
revised SARs in 2022 for the Pacific region is presented in Table 3.
Information on the remaining Pacific region stocks can be found in the
final 2021 SARs (Carretta et al. 2022). Following development of the
draft 2022 SARs, NMFS published new population information for the
Eastern North Pacific (ENP) gray whale. As a result, we plan to revise
the ENP gray whale SAR in the 2023 cycle to incorporate the updated
information.
Table 3--List of Marine Mammal SARs in the Pacific Region Revised in
2022
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Strategic stocks Non-strategic stocks
------------------------------------------------------------------------
<bullet> Killer whale, Eastern North <bullet> Cuvier's beaked whale,
Pacific Southern Resident *. California/Oregon/Washington.
<bullet> Hawaiian monk seal.*
<bullet> Humpback whale, Central
America/Southern Mexico-CA-OR-
WA.[dagger]
<bullet> Humpback whale, Mainland
Mexico-CA-OR-WA.[dagger]
------------------------------------------------------------------------
* Includes updated abundance estimates.
[dagger] Denotes a new SAR.
References
Becker, E.A., K.A. Forney, E.M. Oleson, A.L. Bradford, R. Hoopes,
J.E. Moore, and J. Barlow. 2022. Abundance, distribution, and
seasonality of cetaceans within the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone
around the Hawaiian Archipelago based on species distribution
models. U.S. Department of Commerce, NOAA Technical Memorandum NMFS-
PIFSC-131, 45 p.
Bettridge, S., Baker, C.S., Barlow, J., Clapham, P.J., Ford, M.,
Gouveia, D., Mattila, D.K., Pace, R.M., III, Rosel, P.E., Silber,
G.K. and Wade, P.R. (2015). Status review of the humpback whale
(Megaptera novaeangliae) under the Endangered Species Act. U.S.
Department of Commerce, NOAA Technical Memorandum NMFS NOAA-TM-NMFS-
SWFSC-540.
Calambokidis, J. and J. Barlow. 2020. Updated abundance estimates
for blue and humpback whales along the U.S. West Coast using data
through 2018, U.S. Department of Commerce, NOAA Technical Memorandum
NMFS-
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Dated: January 18, 2023.
Evan Howell,
Director, Office of Science and Technology, National Marine Fisheries
Service.
[FR Doc. 2023-01242 Filed 1-23-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P
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