Annual Report 2007 - 2008 North Atlantic Marine Mammal Commission Layout & editing: NAMMCO Secretariat Printing: BokstavHuset AS, Tromsø, Norway ISSN 1025-2045 ISBN 978-82-91578-23-1 Please cite this report as: NAMMCO Annual Report 2007 - 2008. North Atlantic Marine Mammal Commission, Tromsø, Norway, 399 pp. © North Atlantic Marine Mammal Commission 2009 CONTENTS COMMITTEES & OFFICE BEARERS ................................................................ 7 SECTION 1 COUNCIL 1.1 Report of the Seventeenth Meeting of the Council .................................. 11 Appendix 1 Agenda ...................................................................................28 Appendix 2 List of Documents ..................................................................30 Appendix 3 Opening Statements ...............................................................31 Appendix 4 Presentation by Peter Olsen, KNAPK ................................. 38 Appendix 5 Audited Accounts for 2007 ....................................................40 Appendix 6 Press Release .........................................................................4 1 1.2 Report of the Committee on Hunting Methods ....................................... 43 Appendix 1 List of Laws & Regulations for Marine Mammal Hunting in NAMMCO Member Countries ....................... 49 Appendix 2 List of References on Hunting Methods ............................ 52 1.1 Report of the Committee on Inspection and Observation ..................... 59 Appendix 1 Terms of Reference ................................................................6 1 SECTION 2 MANAGEMENT COMMITTEES 2.1 Report of the Management Committee for Ceteacenc ............................. 65 Appendix 1 Agenda .............................................................................. 79 Appendix 2 List of Documents ............................................................. 81 Appendix 3 Statement by Norway ........................................................ 82 Appendix 4 Statement by ICC-Greenland ............................................ 84 Appendix 5 Recommendations to member countries ........................... 85 Appendix 6 Proposed activities of a monitoring programme for long-finned pilot whales .................................................... 89 2.2 Report of the Management Committee for Seals and Walruses ............. 91 Appendix 1 Agenda .............................................................................. 99 Appendix 2 List of Documents ........................................................... 100 Appendix 3 Recommendations to member countries ......................... 101 SECTION 3 SCIENTIFIC COMMITTEE 3.1 Report of the Fifteenth Meeting of the Scientific Committee ............... 105 Executive Summary .................................................................................... 105 Main Report .......................................................................................... 115 Appendix 1 Agenda ............................................................................ 176 Appendix 2 List of Documents ........................................................... 180 Appendix 3 References ....................................................................... 184 ANNEX 1.1 Report of the NAMMCO Planning Committee on the Trans North Atlantic Sightings Survey, Working Group 3 ................... 186 ANNEX 1.2 Report of the NAMMCO Planning Committee on the Trans North Atlantic Sightings Survey, Working Group 4 ................... 211 ANNEX 1.3 Report of the NAMMCO Planning Committee on the Trans North Atlantic Sightings Survey, Working Group 5 ................... 219 ANNEX 2 Report of the NAMMCO Working Group on Abundance Estimates ....................................................... 252 ANNEX 3 Report of the NAMMCO Working Group on Pilot Whales, April 2008 ................................................. 273 ADDENDUM Report of the NAMMCO Working Group on Pilot Whales, July 2008 .................................................... 288 SECTION 4 NATIONAL PROGRESS REPORTS 4.1 Faroe Islands Progress Report on Marine Mammals 2006-7 ............ 303 4.2 Greenland Progress Report on Marine Mammals 2006-7 ............ 311 4.3 Iceland Progress Report on Marine Mammals 2006-7 ........... 321 4.4 Norway Progress Report on Marine Mammals 2006-7 ........... 337 SECTION 5 ADDRESSES 5.1 Delegates and Observers to the Seventeenth Meeting of the Council .. 381 5.2 Council Members in 2007-2008 .............................................................. 385 5.3 Management Committee Members 2007-2008 ...................................... 387 5.4 Scientific Committee Members 2007-2008 ............................................. 389 5.5 NAMMCO Scientific Planning Committee on T-NASS Working Group III .................................................................................. 391 5.6 NAMMCO Scientific Planning Committee on T-NASS Working Group IV .................................................................................. 393 5.7 NAMMCO Scientific Planning Committee on T-NASS Working Group V and Working Group on Abundance Estimates ............................................................................. 395 5.8 NAMMCO Working Group on Pilot Whales ........................................ 397 5.9 Secretariat ................................................................................................. 399 COMMITTEES AND OFFICE BEARERS Members of the Commission Councillors Faroe Islands (F) Ms Ulla S. Wang Greenland (G) Ms Amalie Jessen Iceland (I) Ms Ásta Einarsdóttir Norway (N) Mr Halvard P. Johansen Council Chairs – 1992-1995 Mr Kjartan Høydal (F) 1995-1997 Mr Halvard P. Johansen (N) 1997-1999 Mr Arnór Halldórsson (I) 1999-2004 Ms Amalie Jessen (G) 2004-2008 Ms Kate Sanderson (F) 2008…… Mr Halvard P. Johansen (N) Committee on Hunting Methods Chairs – 1994-1998 Ms Amalie Jessen (G) 1998-2005 Mr Jústines Olsen (F) 2005… Dr Egil Ole Øen (N) Committee on Inspection and Observation Chairs – 1993-1995 Mr Einar Lemche (G) 1995-2005 Dr Egil Ole Øen (N) 2005… Mr Ole Heinrich (G) Finance and Administration Committee Chairs – 1999-2000 Mr Øyvind Rasmussen (N) 2000-2005 Mr Einar Lemche (G) 2005… Ms Ásta Einarsdóttir (I) Management Committee (as of 2008 divided into MC for Cetaceans and MC for Seals and Walruses) Chairs – 1993-1994 Mr Kjartan Høydal (F) interim 1994-1998 Mr Einar Lemche (G) 1998-2004 Mr Kaj P. Mortensen (F) 2004-2008 Mr Halvard P. Johansen (N) Management Committee for Cetaceans Chairs - 2008…. Ms Ásta Einarsdóttir (I) Management Committee for Seals and Walruses Chairs – 2007... Ms Amalie Jessen (G) Scientific Committee Chairs – 1993-1995 Dr Jóhann Sigurjónsson (I) 1995-1997 Prof. Tore Haug (N) 1997-2000 Dr Mads Peter Heide-Jørgensen (G) 2000-2004 Mr Gísli A. Víkingsson (I) 2004 -2005 Prof. Lars Walløe (N) 2005… Dr Geneviève Desportes (F) Scientific Committee Working Group on Abundance Estimates Chair – 1996… Dr Nils Øien (N) Scientific Committee Working Group on the Economic Aspects of Marine Mammal – Fisheries Interactions Chairs – 1998-1999 Dr Gunnar Stefánsson (I) 1999-2000 Dr Aqqalu Rosing-Asvid (G) 2000 … Prof. Lars Walløe (N) Scientific Committee Working Group on the Population Status of Narwhal and Beluga Chair – 1999 -2008 Prof. Øystein Wiig (N) 2008... Dr Rob Hobbs Scientific Committee Working Group on the North Atlantic Fin Whales Chair – 1999-2003 Mr Gísli A. Víkingsson (I) 2003…. Prof. Lars Walløe (N) Scientific Committee Working Group on the Stock Status of Walruses in the North Atlantic and Adjacent Seas Chair – 2005…. Dr Erik Born (G) The NAMMCO Fund (Dissolved as of 2005) Chairs – 1998-2000 Ms Ulla S. Wang (F) 2000-2001 Ms Kate Sanderson (F) 2001-2005 Ms Ulla S. Wang (F) Secretariat General Secretary Dr Christina Lockyer Scientific Secretary Dr Mario Acquarone Deputy Secretary Ms Charlotte Winsnes NAMMCO Annual Report 2007 - 2008 SECTION 1 - COUNCIL 1.1 Report of the Seventeenth Meeting of the Council .................................. 11 Appendix 1 Agenda ...................................................................................28 Appendix 2 List of Documents ..................................................................30 Appendix 3 Opening Statements ...............................................................31 Appendix 4 Presentation by Peter Olsen, KNAPK ................................. 38 Appendix 5 Audited Accounts for 2007 ....................................................40 Appendix 6 Press Release .........................................................................41 1.2 Report of the Committee on Hunting Methods ....................................... 43 Appendix 1 List of Laws & Regulations for Marine Mammal Hunting in NAMMCO Member Countries ....................... 49 Appendix 2 List of References on Hunting Methods ............................ 52 1.1 Report of the Committee on Inspection and Observation ..................... 59 Appendix 1 Terms of Reference ................................................................6 1 NAMMCO Annual Report 2007 - 2008 1.1 REPORT OF THE SEVENTEENTH MEETING OF COUNCIL 2-4 September 2008, Sisimiut, Greenland 1. OPENING PROCEDURES The Chair of the Council, Kate Sanderson (Faroe Islands) opened the meeting at Taseralik, the Sisimiut Cultural House, and welcomed all delegates and observers. The list of participants is contained in Section 5.1. In her opening remarks, the Chair noted that it had been 18 months since the last Annual Meeting but that there