Assessing the Potential of Important Marine Mammal Areas to Address
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Assessing the potential of Important Marine Mammal Areas to address connectivity and promote marine mammal conservation by Amalia Alberini Primary advisers: Patrick N. Halpin, Daniel C. Dunn Secondary adviser: Giuseppe Notarbartolo di Sciara April 2018 Masters Project submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Master of Environmental Management degree in the Nicholas School of the Environment of Duke University 2018 Table of Contents Executive Summary ABBREVIATIONS General Introduction p. 1 CHAPTER 1 I. Introduction p. 3 II. Background i. Overview of marine mammal migratory species in the Mediterranean Sea p. 4 ii. Regulatory framework p. 6 III. Methods p. 8 IV. Results p. 9 Sperm whales p. 9 i. Existing information on migratory patterns based on literature review p. 9 ii. A complete hypothesis of migration at the basin level p. 12 iii. Concluding remarks on the proposed migratory patterns p. 13 iv. Recommendations for future research to validate the hypotheses p. 16 Fin whales p. 16 Mediterranean (MED) population p. 17 i. Existing information on migratory patterns based on literature review p. 17 ii. A complete hypothesis of migration at the basin level p. 20 iii. Concluding remarks on the proposed migratory patterns p. 21 North East North Atlantic (NENA) population p. 22 i. Existing information on migratory patterns based on literature review p. 22 ii. A complete hypothesis of migration at the basin level p. 23 iii. Concluding remarks on the proposed migratory patterns p. 23 iv. Recommendations for future research to validate the hypotheses p. 23 MED and NENA fin whale populations p. 24 MED fin whale population p. 24 NENA fin whale population p. 24 V. Discussion p. 25 VI. Proposed approach to formulate and include migratory connectivity within IMMAs p. 26 VII. Recommendations for incorporating migration within the IMMA process p. 32 VIII. Conclusion p. 38 CHAPTER 2 I. Introduction p. 39 II. Background p. 41 III. Human activities and marine mammals in Palau p. 42 IV. Regulatory Framework and Stakeholders p. 43 V. Recommendations p. 44 VI. Conclusion p. 47 General Conclusion p. 48 REFERENCES p. 49 ANNEX p. 61 Executive Summary This study examines and identifies the potential of marine mammal scientific data tools, namely the Important Marine Mammal Areas (IMMAs) and the Migratory Connectivity in the Ocean (MiCO) system, can have in contributing towards advancing current knowledge on marine mammals. This report examines how these tools can significantly improve the synthesis and availability of existing marine mammal data in different ocean regions, using two case studies, the Mediterranean Sea and the Southwest Pacific Ocean. Chapter 1 integrates the migration data stemming from the MiCO system and other available data on the two main migratory species, the sperm and fin whales to develop hypotheses for the migratory patterns of the two species in the Mediterranean Sea. The existing data is combined with the IMMAs designed for the two species in the region to identify the migration status and connectivity between these areas and to provide the baseline for the designation of a representative network of IMMAs based on marine mammal migrations. In the Mediterranean Sea, we demonstrate that the established IMMAs, although they include migration as one of the criteria for their designation, are limited in the manner and in the degree to which they address and incorporate marine mammal migrations. In terms of the methodology used, although we confirm that the main data on migration is captured through the MiCO system’s data review process, we identify significant gaps in the marine mammal connectivity literature reviewed by this systematic process (i.e., which contained only 38% of the total reviewed literature examined in this study). Thus, we recommend a more exhaustive literature review process to complement our understanding on marine mammal migrations in the Mediterranean Sea. Based on the findings, we propose scientific methodologies to be conducted to better account for the entire life-history of key migratory species within and between IMMAs in the region. Chapter 2 assesses the potential of IMMAs in strengthening existing scientific knowledge and promoting marine mammal conservation at the national scale using two case studies in Palau, in the Southwest Pacific Ocean. This study represents an initial attempt to examine the potential of establishing an IMMA to foster and advance marine mammal research and to provide the baseline for management decisions for marine mammal conservation in a poor-data region. In the case of Palau, the lack of marine mammal knowledge seriously hampers the ability of expert driven processes, such as IMMAs, to address efficiently major data gaps. This is the first study done to explore how the presence of IMMAs in an ocean region where limited data exists can contribute to increasing and complementing science, policy, and management efforts to address existing knowledge gaps on marine mammals. Based on the main gaps identified, general and specific recommendations at all levels are provided to address main threats on marine mammal species. Overall, this study provides evidence for the first time that these science tools (i.e., MiCO system and IMMA process), which have been designed to comprehensively capture knowledge on the distribution of marine mammals, if combined and fully integrated, can contribute to a more comprehensive and holist understanding of the dynamic nature of marine mammals and ultimately to the design of area-based management planning for the effective conservation of marine mammal habitats in the oceans. i ABBREVIATIONS ABNJ – Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction ACCOBAMS – Agreement on the Conservation of Cetaceans of the Black Sea, Mediterranean Sea and contiguous Atlantic area AoI – Area of Interest CBD – Convention of Biological Diversity Chl-a – Chlorophyll-a cIMMA – candidate Important Marine Mammal Area CMS – Convention of Migratory Species EBSA – Ecological Biological Special Area eDNA – Environmental DNA EAR – Ecological Acoustic Recorder EEZ – Exclusive Economic Zone GIS – Geospatial Identification System GOBI – Global Ocean Biodiversity Initiative ICMMPA – International Conference of Marine Mammal Protected Areas IKI – German International Climate Initiative IMMA – Important Marine Mammal Area IMO – International Maritime Organization IUCN MMPA TF – International Union of Conservation for Nature Marine Mammal Protected Areas Task Force KBA – Key Biological Area MARU – Marine Autonomous Recording Unit MPA – Marine Protected Area MED – Mediterranean fin whale population MiCO – Migratory Connectivity in the Ocean system MGEL – Marine Geospatial Ecology Lab MNRET – Palau Ministry of Natural Resources, Tourism, and Environment MSFD – European Union Marine Strategy Framework Directive NENA – North East North Atlantic fin whale population NEPC – National Environmental Protection Council PAN – Palau Protected Areas Network PCS – Palau Conservation Society PICRC – Palau International Coral Reef Center PMMS – Palau Marine Mammal Sanctuary PNMS – Palau National Marine Sanctuary PSSA– Particularly Sensitive Sea Area SPA/BD Protocol – Specially Protected Areas and Biological Diversity in the Mediterranean SPAMI – Specially Protected Area of Mediterranean Importance SST – Sea Surface Temperature ii General Introduction Marine mammals are to a large extent cosmopolitan species that use extensive oceanic regions as their habitats (Luschi 2013). Marine mammals are top marine predators that regulate food webs, indicator species of habitat and ecosystem health, and highly vulnerable to human activities (Zacharias and Roff 2001; Wirsing et al. 2008; Hoyt 2011). Nonetheless, the current international ocean management system has been unable to establish and integrate effective conservation measures for preserving transboundary ocean resources, such as marine mammals (Bjorndal et al. 2000). Marine mammal conservation in Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction (ABNJ) has proven highly challenging since: a) there is still limited knowledge of their distribution, b) limited well- defined regulations exist, and c) international governing bodies exhibit limited capacity to effectively address key human impacts (Weilgart 2016). Marine mammals can be used as stewards to protect overall marine biodiversity against threats stemming from human-related activities to enhance global conservation efforts, while in parallel, they can be utilized to address dynamic ocean processes. Despite the possibility that promoting the conservation of marine mammal species per se could encounter strong opposition, marine mammals could be used as catalysts to promote advocacy and be utilized as overarching frameworks for conservation to strengthen global marine management in ABNJ. Recently, research on marine mammals has included the collection and compilation of knowledge into global data repositories and mapping of their distribution into well-defined areas. Work by the Global Ocean Biodiversity Initiative (GOBI), through a grant funded by the German International Climate Initiative (IKI), is such an effort towards establishing a better understanding of area-based distribution of key marine species, including marine mammals, to inform policy and management decisions on marine resources around the globe1. This study seeks to integrate the work in progress conducted in two of the six of the GOBI’s work packages, namely the Migratory Connectivity in the Ocean (MiCO) system developed by the Duke Marine