Results of a Pilot Program to Document Interactions between Sperm Whales and211 Longline Vessels in Alaska Waters

摘要

Interactions between sperm whales (Physeter Macrocephalus) and longline fisheries211u001ehave been well-documented in the Southern Ocean, but in Alaska waters only 211u001eanecdotal reports of sperm whales interacting with longline operations have been 211u001eavailable. In 1996, NMFS receive report from observers on commercial fishing 211u001evessels that sperm whales were preying on sablefish (Anoplopoma fimbria) targeted 211u001eby longline vessels in the Gulf of Alaska. As a result, a pilot project was 211u001einitiated to characterize the nature and extent of the interactions between sperm 211u001ewhales and the commercial longline fishery in Alaska. Between 17 May and 14 211u001eDecember 1997, fishery observers aboard 16 different vessels monitored 557 211u001elongline sets and recorded observations and behavior of sperm whales and any 211u001edamage to fish brought aboard. Likewise, between 31 March and 14 November 1998, 211u001efishery observers aboard 41 different vessels monitored 1,060 longline sets. 211u001eSperm whales were not present during any of the 1,075 sets in the Bering Sea.