North Atlantic Marine Mammal Commission (NAMMCO)

Volume 14 of the NAMMCO Scientific Publications series is waiting for your contribution! The volume’s theme will be “Anthropogenic Impacts on Marine Mammals”. So, if you are working on topics related to human disturbances of marine mammals in the North Atlantic, including (but not limited to) works on catch and by-catch, we invite you to submit your research. Submissions can be in the form of original Research Articles, Literature Reviews, Technical or Policy Notes, or Workshop Reports. ❗📅Deadline for submissions is December 31st 2024. More information regarding the submission, review and publication of manuscripts can be found here: https://lnkd.in/dzsM_TMw.

A study by Clare Andvik et al., titled “Intercorrelations of Chlorinated Paraffins, Dechloranes, and Legacy Persistent Organic Pollutants in 10 Species of Marine Mammals from Norway, in Light of Dietary Niche” was published in August 2024 in Environmental Science & Technology. The study aimed to assess pollutant levels in marine mammals in Norway. This research represents the first systematic sampling of stranded whales in Norway. With the help of the public, researchers collected samples from 46 whales across 10 different species. The team tested these samples for nearly 100 chemical pollutants. The results showed that sperm and killer whales were most at risk of pollution overall, while minke whales exhibited the highest levels of some newer chemicals, such as those found in plastics. All species showed elevated levels of unregulated chemicals that behave similarly to banned chemicals. Studies like these are crucial for understanding marine pollution and providing the basis for more effective regulations to protect marine ecosystems. Read the whole study by Andvik et al. here: https://lnkd.in/dbzzTMyD. Photo credit: Fernado Ugarte

A new study by Viivi Pöyhönen and colleagues dives into the fine-scale distribution and seasonal presence of sperm whales at high latitudes. The study titled: “High Arctic “hotspots” for sperm whales (Physeter macrocephalus) off western and northern Svalbard, Norway, revealed by multi‑year Passive Acoustic Monitoring (PAM)” was published in March 2024 in the Scientific Reports. To study the distribution of sperm whales in the area the researchers used eight passive acoustic monitoring sites around the Svalbard archipelago. They discovered that sperm whales were present at six out of the eight acoustic sites. There were some variations in the recordings between years and locations. Whales were more present at lower latitudes in the study area, with “hotspots” in ice-free areas, but even the northern-most location (at 81° N) recorded sperm whale vocal activity. If you would like to read the whole study by Pöyhönen et al., you can do so here: https://lnkd.in/dAV3if8J. Photo credit: NOAA Fisheries/Tim Cole

A new study by Jossey and colleagues titled “Population structure and history of North Atlantic Blue whales (Balaenoptera musculus musculus) inferred from whole genome sequence analysis” published in Conservation Genetics. In this study, the researchers provide the first insights into the genetic variation and history of blue whale populations from the North Atlantic using their genetic information. The authors used the total of 28 samples: 26 from the North Atlantic, one from the South Atlantic and one from the Antarctic. Of the 26 North Atlantic samples, 11 were samples from 2014–2019, and rest were historical samples from museum skeletons. In addition, they used archived genetic data sequences from a North Atlantic blue whale, as well as two sei whales downloaded from GenBank. Prior to this study, it was assumed that northeast and northwest Atlantic blue whale populations were separate based on their songs and photo identification. The genetic analysis in this work showed that the structure of the North Atlantic blue whale populations is more complex than just separating them into east and west populations. Those complexities are important to keep in mind when making conservation decisions. If you are interested, you can read the whole study by Jossey at al. here: https://lnkd.in/d3MUSQQv. Photo credits: NOAA Fisheries/Marjorie Foster

MINTAG keeps making waves! On August 11th, two blue whales were tagged north of Svalbard. The animals were tagged using MINTAG V0b tags by Christian Lydersen, Norsk Polarinstitutt • Norwegian Polar Institute researcher and member of the MINTAG Steering Group. The tags record the location of the animal and allow scientists to understand the movement of the whales. Unlike previous deployments from a vessel, the tags were deployed from the helicopter, capturing very valuable footage of the process and the tagged whales in their natural habitat! Want to know where the whales are now? Make sure to check out the MINTAG website: https://lnkd.in/dzeu9p4N.

A new study by Podolskiy, Teilmann, and Heide-Jørgensen offers new insights into the complex diving behaviour of bowhead whales. The paper, entitled “Synchronization of Bowhead Whales” and published last week in Physical Review Research, describes the investigation based on the analysis of 144 days of dive records from 12 bowhead whales tagged in Disko Bay, West Greenland. The researchers found that bowhead whales dive deeper during the daytime in spring, likely in sync with the vertical migration of their prey. Additionally, the study revealed that these whales can synchronize their behaviour with each other over distances of up to 100 kilometres, sometimes for as long as a week. You can read the full article by Podolskiy et al. here: https://lnkd.in/dZvEABUZ

All the ship surveys are now done with their transects, but the NASS 2024 is not done yet! The aerial survey in Greenland is in full swing. The survey is currently covering the east Greenlandic coast using a Twin Otter aircraft with four observers onboard. Check out how the survey is going, if the weather holding up, and what species have the observers been seeing on the website: https://lnkd.in/dRbpZG4A. Photo of the observer looking out the bubble observation window during the aerial survey.

The Report of the June meeting of the Committee on Hunting Methods is now online!   The Committee on Hunting Methods met online 20 June 2024. The meeting was chaired by Jóhann Ásmundsson (Iceland).    The Committee reviewed the 2023 catch database, and discuss to proceed with securing hunter presentations during the CHM meetings. The CHM was also informed about the plans to organise a workshop on animal welfare, which will be scheduled before the 32nd Annual Council Meeting (more information to come).   If you want to know more about the CHM, you can read here all their meeting reports: https://lnkd.in/gu7_FJY6.

The NAMMCO Working Group on Enhancing User Involvement in NAMMCO Decision Making (UIWG) held an online meeting on June 25, 2024, and the report is now available online. During the meeting the participants continued the discussions on how to successfully involve and better engage users in the process of marine mammal management. The group discussed actions that the UIWG and other NAMMCO bodies could recommend such as adding “User Knowledge” as a regular agenda item in Scientific Committee working group meetings, developing a tool for documenting non-hunting observations, compiling relevant literature on user involvement, and broadening the expertise within UIWG to include social scientists. You can access the full report on the NAMMCO website report library: https://lnkd.in/dvNUXYTm.

Anne Kirstine Frie and Ulf Lindstrøm's paper is titled: "Exploring the effects of methodological choices on the estimation and biological interpretation of life history parameters for harbour porpoises in Norway and beyond". It looks at how different research methods affect our understanding of harbour porpoise life history (how individuals of the species grow, survive, and reproduce over time). The study points out that different techniques for estimating age and reproductive status can lead to inconsistent and sometimes biased results. For example, the research shows that methods like counting growth layers in teeth, which is used for age estimation, can give different outcomes depending on how the analysis is done. That, in turn can impact the calculation of many other life history parameters. These differences are important because they affect how scientists interpret biological data and make conservation recommendations. By examining these methodological differences, challenges, and errors in the study of harbour porpoises, the study suggests ways to improve the accuracy and consistency of their life history data. This is crucial for better understanding and conserving harbour porpoises. You can read the full article by Frie and Lindström here: https://lnkd.in/dfD5bmMj. Photo credit: Peter Duley / NOAA Fisheries