commercial significance which also provides a habitat for certain species of finfish of recreational and commercial importance. (c) The Hawaiian monk seal Both FWS and NMFS share responsibility for the Hawaiian monk seal. NMFS is the lead agency for protection of the monk seal and its habitat on and around the coral atolls and islets of the ten northwestern Hawaiian Islands. Since part of the species' range is within the Hawaiian Islands National Wildlife Refuge, the FWS also has certain duties. The Commission has therefore had an important role in prodding the two agencies into coordinated action. There were 1,200 monk seals in 1958. By 1977, that number was reduced by nearly half, due in large part to human disturbances. Increased human intrusion on previously uninhabited islands has apparently forced females to abandon traditional sheltered rookery beaches and give birth on isolated sandspots where offspring survival prospects are much lower due to lack of shelter, more frequent shark attacks in deep water, high winds, and heavy surf. Based on the alarming decline in birth rate and population, in 1975 the Commission recommended that the monk seal be listed as "endangered" under the Endangered Species Act and designated as "depleted" under the Marine Mammal Protection Act. In July of the following year NMFS designated the monk seal as "depleted" and in November, in conjunction with FWS, classified it as "endangered." In 1977 and 1978, because neither FWS nor NMFS had programmed sufficient funds for the purpose, the Commission_provided support for a two-year field study of monk seal abundance, movements and productivity on Laysan Island to determine what steps must be taken to prevent their extinction. That study identified sharks as serious predators of Hawaiian monk seals, especially pups. Theorizing that pup survival might be increased if the number of large sharks in waters adjacent to pupping areas could be decreased, the Commission contracted for a study to determine the feasibility and possible benefits of a shark control program. That research led the Commission to recommend that NMFS establish a shark abatement program to assist in the recovery of the Hawaiian monk seal. Both the Endangered Species and Marine Mammal Protection Acts recognize the importance of habitat protection. The latter specifically calls for efforts to "protect rookeries, mating grounds, and areas of similar significance for each species of marine mammal from the adverse impact of man's actions," and the former provides limited protection to areas designated as "critical habitat" for endangered species. Beginning in December 1976, the Commission recommended that breeding and pupping areas and adjacent waters out to a distance of three miles be designated "critical habitat" and that breeding and pupping areas within the Refuge be closed to certain human uses, including commercial and sport fishing. Regrettably, NMFS has yet to act on this more than four-year-old recommendation. By the autumn of 1978, it was evident to the Commission that NMFS had no plans to constitute a recovery team or to develop a recovery plan, that NMFS and the State of Hawaii could not agree on how to protect and encourage recovery of the monk seal, and that NMFS probably would not be able to determine the cause of the recent "die-off" at Laysan Island, where 50-60 monk seals died, an unnaturally high mortality rate. On the advice of its Committee of Scientific Advisors, the Commission therefore convened a group of experts to develop a comprehensive fiveyear research plan for the species. The draft plan was prepared and sent to the Commission in January 1979, less than four months after it had been assigned. In February 1979, the Commission offered $10,000 to NMFS to help defray costs of continuing the Laysan Island study. NMFS had budgeted only $50,000 for monk seal-related activities in fiscal year 1979, and none in fiscal year 1980. The Commission again offered monetary and scientific assistance in June. During hearings on the fiscal year 1980 budget, Congress also took note of NMFS' slow response to Commission recommendations, and acted to appropriate $100,000 for the Commission to spend on Hawaiian monk seal research. The Commission immediately convened a meeting of monk seal experts to help prepare a preliminary plan for the most effective investment of the $100,000. The Commission then used its special appropriation to hasten the development and implementation of effective research and management programs. The Hawaiian monk seal may be the only member of the genus Monachus with a chance to survive the Twentieth Century. One of its most closely related species, the Caribbean monk seal, first seen by Columbus in 1494, is not extinct. Another, the Mediterranean monk seal, has been reduced to a population of fifty or less. Historical records prove that when seals are subjected to human disturbances on the pupping grounds, survival of the young declines. Eventually, through attrition of the older animals, the population disappears completely. To the best of its ability in its advisory role, the MMC has sought to halt this trend and preserve the Hawaiian monk seal. (d) Conclusion Since its inception, the Marine Mammal Commission has endeavored to cooperate with all agencies whose jurisdictions encompass marine mammals and to develop effective, coordinated resolution of any problems. Where agencies have failed to plan effectively or allocate resources responsibly, the Commission has supplied the needed material. To meet its overview responsibilities, the Commission has assisted the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) in predicting, assessing, and mitigating the adverse effects of OCS development on marine mammals. By initiating a review and assessment of BLM's Environmental Studies Program as it related to marine mammals, the Commission was able to help the Bureau develop and implement research programs to assess and monitor the effects of OCS oil and gas development on marine mammals and their habitats. The Marine Mammal Commission has consistently received high praise for efficient utilization of its very limited budget, including in a 1979 GAO draft report. Dollar-for-dollar, the Marine Mammal Commission has clearly provided the best return on Congressional appropriations under this Act. If there are to be any budgetary cuts for the Act's implementation, they should not be made at the expense of the Commission's consistently good work. 3. ALASKA The only other issue we wish to address is the unique situation of the State of Alaska. That state's situation is unique because of the special exemption afforded by the Act to Alaskan natives. The state and its native community have sometimes beeen at odds with respect to the authority of the former to regulate the taking of marine mammals by the latter. We very much desire that these differences be accommodated in a way that is both fair and in the best interest of the conservation of marine mammals. Such an accommodation must assure protection, and adequate opportunity for public participation. To that end we pledge our cooperation with all interested parties during the three-year period of reauthorization we seek. Dahonal Fishermen 2 april 1981 U.S.Tuna Boats Fare Better Than International Fleet By William C. Miller SAN DIEGO, CALIF - The catch of the U.S. tuna fleet in the eastern tropical Pacific last year surpassed the 1979 catch by 7,600 tons, according to Dr. James Joseph, director of the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission. This will provide the canning industry with an ample supply of raw fish, and all indications are that it will be needed. The packers enjoyed a good year in 1980 and report an even brighter outlook for 1981. Joseph notes that the U.S. catch in 1980 was about 15,000 tons lower than 1979 in the Conservation Yellowfin Regulatory Area, but a much larger than usual catch of 40,000 tons in the area west of the CYRA boosted the Americans' total landings to 232,373 tons, up from 1979's 224,752 tons. The international fleet's catch of yellowfin in the CYRA was the lowest since 1971 and was about 40,000 tons less than the previous year's. It definitely wasn't a good year for the international fleet, Joseph says. He blames overfishing of yellowfin, which resulted from the lack of a conservation program. "We've had no real conservation program for the last three years," says Joseph. That is, not since Mexico and Costa Rica dropped out of the IATTC. Furthermore, there will be no conservation program again this year (although the commission adopted one), because there is no way to implement the quota of 160,000 tons of yellowfin in the CYRA. Joseph cautions of further problems that foreign tunaboats will have in gaining access to the tuna grounds of the coastal nations. He also warns that within one year Mexico's termination of its bilateral agreement with the United States will have a severe impact on small boats that have been licensed to fish within 12 miles of the coast. Seizures by Mexico, Ecuador and Peru for illegal fishing cost American boats nearly $8 million. Regarding big purse seiners, Joseph says, "Mexico will look at the licensing of foreign vessels from the view of what the stocks can sustain.” The Mexicans are poised to take a larger share of the tuna off their coast. Mexico now has 46 purse seiners with 35,162-ton capacity and six baitboats with 700-ton capacities, more than double its fleet capacity of last year. "Probably a year from today," Joseph predicts, "Mexico will have a fleet capacity of 45,000 tons.' The United States took 192,573 tons of tuna from the CYRA, which was a major share of the total catch. Mexico was second with 23,532 tons, Ecuador tallied third with 20,810 tons, while the Netherlands Antilles, with 11,314 tons, and Panama, with 10,219 tons, far out-produced the rest of the field. Other nations taking part in the fishery were Costa Rica, Bermuda, the United Kingdom, Japan, Korea, Peru, Canada, New Zealand, Senegal, Spain and Venezuela. The major packers last year had a unit growth of 5% to 6%, an excellent record reflecting the actual number of cans shipped-not inflation's ballooning effect. Beginning 1981 with manageable inventories, the industry faces the rosy prospect of anticipating a 15%-20% price rise in meat, which would cause consumers to pass up the meat counters in favor of the canned tuna shelves. In the tuna packing industry, it's a good year when the per capita consumption of tuna is 3 lbs. Last year it was about 3.1 lbs. is expected to go as well this year, according to informed industry sources. The Tuna-Porpoise Problem: Management Aspects of a Fishery by Miles M. Croom Internship Report Submitted to. Marine Resource Management Program 1980 in partial fulfillment of Master of Science Internship: M/V Sea Treasure pilot/observer tuna fishery San Diego, California |