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Endangered Species Coalition 2016 Top 10 Report Nominating Form Deadline: July 29, 2016 General Information Nominating Organizations: Please use this Column to Provide the Requested Information 1 Organization & Web address Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) www.nrdc.org 2 Contact name for species info Zak Smith (Senior Attorney, Land & Wildlife Program/Marine Mammals Protection Project) 3 Address 1314 2nd Street, Santa Monica, CA 90401 4 Email & phone [email protected] / (310) 434-2334 5 Communications staff contact name Kimiko Martinez 6 Email & phone Office: (310) 434-2344 / Cell: (310) 500-9505 General Species Information 7 Common name, genus, and species Main Hawaiian Islands (MHI) insular false killer whale (Pseudorca crassidens) 8 Geographic range The MHI insular false killer whale is resident to the MHI in waters both shallow (<50 m) and deep (>4000 m), up to 112 km from shore (Oleson et al. 2010). 9 Conservation status The MHI insular false killer whale distinct population segment (DPS) is the single whale or dolphin population most at risk in Hawaiian waters (Baird 2016). The DPS was listed as an “Endangered” species under the Endangered Species Act on December 28, 2012. The listing decision was made in direct response to a petition to list submitted by NRDC on October 1, 2009. The DPS is also considered “Depleted” by the Marine Mammal Protection Act and is listed under CITES Appendix II throughout its range. 10 Remaining population size The estimated abundance is between 150 and 200 animals (Baird et al. 2012; Caretta et al. 2012; Oleson et al. 2012; Baird 2016). The estimated effective population size is estimated at 45.8 individuals (95% CI 32.4-69.4; Chivers et al. 2010), below the threshold at which inbreeding depression is expected (N=50). Report Questions 11 Can you provide high-resolution photos? Yes 12 If your species is selected, will you use the Yes report to advocate for the species? 13 5 free reports provided; additional copies = TBD $2.60/each. If you’d like additional copies, how many (bulk orders may be cheaper)? Public Engagement Questions (Please explain why the species is interesting, why it matters, why decision-makers + the public should care.)0 Please cite any substantiating scientific studies 14 Provide background information, including False killer whales are large members of the dolphin family. Females reach lengths of interesting facts, for the species profile. approximately 5 m, and males approximately 6 m. False killer whales don’t stop growing until they are between 25- and 30-years of age (Baird 2016). The oldest animal aged was 63 years old, but it is likely that individuals may live until their 70s or 80s (Baird 2016).

MHI false killer whales are highly genetically isolated from pelagic false killer whales, including when compared at a broad scale with whales in the central North Pacific and eastern North Pacific, and at a finer scale with pelagic whales in Hawaiian waters (all comparisons to Hawaiian insular false killer whales have p-values <0.001) (Martien et al. 2014). Little to no immigration from other areas into the Hawaiian insular population is evident (Martien et al. 2014).

False killer whales form strong long-term social bonds (Baird et al. 2008) and are usually found in social groups of 10 or 20 that, in Hawaii, belong to much larger groups of up to 40 individuals that are often closely related (Wade & Gerrodette 1993; Baird 2009; Baird et al. 2010; Baird 2016). Some of the bonds between individuals likely last for life, and females appear to remain within the social group in which they were born (Baird 2016). These large aggregations can spread over tens of kilometers yet appear to have coordinated movement directions (Baird et al. 2008). This grouping behavior makes the species vulnerable to mass strandings, and mass mortality events have been documented in many regions (Ross 1984).

They feed during the day and night on fish and cephalopods and exhibit interesting feeding behaviors, including traveling in broad ‘bands’ that can be several miles wide to increase success of finding prey and also sharing food between individuals. Food sharing is one of the most unusual aspects of the behavior of false killer whales but has been regularly documented, with members of a group often passing fish back and forth amongst themselves without taking a bite before the fish is returned to the individual that caught it. Then all share in feeding (Baird 2016). False killer whales have also been documented to attempt to share food with humans, presenting fish to divers and offering salmon to boaters (Baird 2016). Such behavior probably serves to reinforce strong bonds among individuals that may be constant and long-term hunting companions in an environment where the benefits of cooperatively finding and

Please cite any substantiating scientific studies catching prey allow them to survive as top predators (Baird 2016).

False killer whales make rapid and regular movements throughout the MHIs; some whales tagged off Hawaii have remained around that island for extended periods (days to weeks), but individuals from all tagged groups eventually ranged widely through the MHIs, including movements to the west of Kauai and Niihau (Baird 2009; Forney et al. 2010). It is likely that movement patterns of the whales vary over time depending on the density and movement patterns of their prey species (Baird 2009). 15 What is your organization’s most important The MHI false killer whale has uniquely developed to take advantage of the oasis the lead message for the public about this Hawaiian Islands represent in the Pacific. This fidelity puts the whales in peril as they species’ decline to be included in the report? are susceptible to localized environmental stressors from overfishing, toxics, and ocean noise. 16 Is your NGO saving the species? If yes, how? NRDC filed a successful petition to have the MHI false killer whale listed under the Endangered Species Act and we are actively working to obtain a meaningful critical habitat designation. NRDC also serves on the take reduction team looking to eliminate take associated with commercial and recreational fishery activities. 17 How can individuals help? Please be specific. Individuals can push for a robust critical habitat designation; raise awareness about a population that is unique to Hawaii (a national and state treasure); and advocate for the population’s recovery by supporting better management of the threats to the population. 18 What action should the new administration The new administration should fully and vigorously enforce the MMPA and ESA to take to save the species? How can they protect the species. The new administration should develop an aggressive recovery accomplish this action? plan and use the power it has under the MMPA and ESA to manage the competing interests (commercial and recreational fisheries; U.S. Navy activities) that threatn the whales. Criteria-specific Questions – Please feel free to answer N/A or “see above/below” as appropriate. Please cite scientific studies. 19 Detail the ecological importance of the Marine mammals are important indicator species for ecosystem health (according to species. Does it play a critical function in its the Sea Mammal Research Unit at the University of St. Andrews, marine mammals are ecosystem, e.g., as a foundational species or useful indicator species as they are measurable, simple to interpret, relevant, keystone species? How does the ecosystem comparable, cost-effective to measure, and features of the environment that people depend on this species (e.g., keystone will value). Of the 11 resident species to the MHIs, false killer whales are at the top of predator, keystone pollinator, ecological the food web. As top predators with long life spans and blubber that accumulates engineer, refugia provider, etc.)? lipophilic contaminants, MHI insular false killer whales are sentinels of change for the marine environment (Foltz et al. 2014); changes in whale distribution, abundance and Please cite any substantiating scientific studies behavior may indicate changes in other parts of the ecosystem. 20 Detail information on any social or economic As a small and isolated population, the MHI insular false killer whale provides benefits the species provides—e.g., its value important benefits for marine mammal and ecosystem researchers. Their ecological for clean water, recreation, medicine, significant feeding behaviors (see #21, below) and long-term and complex social scientific research, etc.—if any. (Optional) structure provides the opportunity for scientists to learn more about the ecology of related species found in inaccessible, offshore waters. The small size and genetic isolation of the insular false killer whale population also affords important insights into the conservation biology of small populations of marine mammals, an important field of study. 21 Can the species be an ambassador for its Hawaiian insular false killer whales can be an ambassador for their habitat as they habitat or taxonomic group? If yes, detail. persist in an ecological setting unique for the taxon. The whales sometimes consume prey associated with island habitat, suggesting a specialized knowledge of locations and seasonal conditions that aggregate prey or make them more vulnerable to predation. In an insular habitat such foraging grounds may occur more regularly or in more predictable locations than on the high seas (Oleson et al. 2010).

Hawaiian insular false killer whales can be an ambassador for their taxonomic group as they exhibit an ecologically significant and unique feeding strategy. The relatively high population density of Hawaiian insular false killer whales relative to other false killer whale populations suggest they employ a unique, island associated foraging strategy compared to other false killer whales (Oleson et al. 2010). Judge’s Score for Importance of Species: 22 Describe the specific threat(s) to the species. According to the most recent NOAA OPR Status Review (Oleson et al. 2010) and the What are the greatest impacts? ESA-listing Final Rule (Federal Register 2012), the most significant key limiting factors for the MHI insular false killer whale are:

1. Reduced food quality and quantity. False killer whales in Hawaii feed on large pelagic game fish, most of which are subject to high levels of both commercial and recreational fishing pressure. There has been a large reduction in both the number and size of yellowfin tuna, one of their primary prey, around the main Hawaiian Islands. This threat is considered to represent a medium risk factor in that it encompasses an intermediate number of threats that are likely to contribute to the decline of the MHI insular false killer whale population or contains some

Please cite any substantiating scientific studies individual threats identified as moderately likely to contribute to the decline of the population at many locations within its range. These threats include: reduced total prey biomass, reduced prey size, competition with commercial fisheries, and competition with recreational fisheries. 2. Interactions with commercial fisheries (hooking and entanglement). False killer whales have been taking fish off fisherman’s lines in Hawaiian waters for a long time, likely related to sharing their prey being an integral part of their behavior (Baird 2016). Such ‘depredation’ can put the whales at risk in a number of ways: first, they can ingest fishing hooks that may indirectly increase the risk of mortality – an individual that had stranded and died was found to have five fish hooks in its stomach (Baird et al. 2014); second, false killer whales are the most frequently hooked species in the pelagic longline fisheries – a rate of bycatch that exceed their potential biological removal (Baird et al. 2014); and third, direct conflict with fisherman due to fish stealing may lead to some individuals being intentionally killed (Baird 2016). The intense and increased fishing activity within the known range of the insular false killer whale since the 1970s suggests a high level of risk with fisheries interactions; however, there is a lack of reporting and observing of nearshore fisheries interactions. While interactions with commercial longline fisheries have now been reduced (although are still present) due to its exclusion from the known range of the insular false killer whale, interactions with commercial troll, handline, shortline, and kaka line fisheries are projected to have a high level of current and future risk based on their scale and distribution. 3. Disease. Insular false killer whales are at risk from accumulation of natural, environmental, or anthropogenic contaminants, including persistent organic pollutants (POPs) such as polychlorinated biphenyl (PCBs). Concentrations of PCBs in 84% of sampled false killer whales (36 individuals) exceeded proposed threshold levels for health effects in marine mammals (including maternal failure and thyroid and immune system dysfunction) (Foltz et al. 2014). Mechanistic evidence is becoming available that supports the epidemiological suspicion that prevalent PCBs can induce endocrine disruption in a cancer cell line (Tremoen et al. 2014). Furthermore, a recent review notes that, despite their discontinued industrial use, there is little if any downward trend in overall PCB levels measured in cetaceans since 2008 (Law 2014), confirming that the threat of toxicity from persistent organics is not abating with time (Foltz et al. 2014). Harmful algal

Please cite any substantiating scientific studies blooms and discharge of raw or partially treated sewage effluent and contaminated freshwater runoff into marine coastal waters also may increase the risk of disease through transmission of novel pathogens or increasing pathogen loads in the environment. 4. Small population size. This threat represents a high risk because the current estimated number of breeding adults is approaching levels where reduced genetic diversity, inbreeding depression and other Allee effects could have increasing negative effects in population growth rate and because other social factors (such as efficiency in group foraging and potential loss of knowledge needed to deal with unusual environmental events) may further compromise recovery.

Other identified threats include short and long-term climate change and anthropogenic noise. 23 Detail the current and projected decline of There are several lines of evidence supporting a finding that the insular false killer the species. whale is in decline. An aerial survey in 1989 observed large group sizes (larger than the current abundance estimate) of insular false killer whales (Reeves et al. 2009). The results of five surveys from 1993 to 2003 show a downward trend in sighting rates of false killer whales, further supporting a decline of the insular population (Mobley et al. 2000; Baird 2009). Low resighting rates of individual false killer whales photo- identified in the 1980s and an unpublished analysis of mean annual survival rate (Baird & Barlow) also suggests a low survival rate in the 1990s relative to other long- lived cetacean species.

Based on the best scientific and commercial information, the ESA-listing Final Rule (Federal Register 2012) concluded that the MHI insular false killer whale DPS is presently in danger of extinction throughout all of its range. Most population viability analysis (PVA) models for the species indicate a probability of greater-than-90 percent likelihood of the DPS declining to fewer than 20 individuals within 75 years, which would result in functional extinction beyond the point where recovery is possible (Federal Register 2012). 24 If not described above, detail the status of According to the ESA-listing Final Rule (Federal Register 2012), critical habitat was the species’ habitat(s). What are the threats, indeterminable at the time of listing as sufficient information was not available i) to if any? Is there adequate connectivity? assess impacts of designation, ii) on the geographical area occupied by the species, and iii) regarding the physical and biological features essential to conservation.

Please cite any substantiating scientific studies 25 Describe the timing of the species’ threat(s). Reduced food quality and quantity and interactions with commercial fisheries are Is it a current, eminent, or future threat? current threats that are expected to continue and likely worsen as fisheries continue to expand and diversify. Threats from disease and small population size are currently impacting the population, but are expected to do so increasingly in the imminent and future timescales. Anthropogenic noise and climate change are impacting the DPS currently and are projected to become more serious threats in the future. 26 Indicate if there is an associated political Commercial and recreational fisheries and the U.S. Navy are a potential threat to threat, e.g., does an industry group or actions taken to protect the population. member of Congress threaten this species? Judge’s Score for Severity and Extent of Threat: Judge’s Final Score

Please submit to [email protected] by July 29, 2016, and thank you for participating in the 2016 Top 10 Report.

Please cite any substantiating scientific studies