PREVENTING EXTINCTION MONDAY Which whale am I? My species used to include three distinct population segments which were found in different oceans, with one of those populations being hunted to extinction. My species is also the first population of whales ever to be removed from the U.S. endangered species list after making a recovery. Answer: I am the gray whale. There were historically three populations of gray whales - the Atlantic, the Eastern Pacific which migrates along the North America coast, and the Western Pacific which feeds off Sakhalin Island, Russia. The Atlantic population of gray whales was hunted to extinction by whalers in the 1700’s. The Eastern Pacific population has recovered from whaling and in 1994, they became the first whale to be removed from the U.S. endangered species list. The Western Pacific population is still considered critically endangered at less than 200 individuals. However, many of these whales have been seen migrating over to the Eastern Pacific in the winter so scientists are no longer sure if it is a separate population. While the Eastern Pacific gray whale is considered stable and no longer endangered, they are currently undergoing what is called an Unusual Mortality Event due to a large number of them dying all along the migration route. Scientists are still not sure what is causing the whales to die, although most of them were found to be thin and malnourished. The good news is that gray whales are very robust (hence their scientific name Eschrichtius robustus) and they have quickly recovered from mortality events in the past. We hope that will be the case this time as well. You can help by reporting your gray whale sightings to Orca Network, cleaning garbage off a beach so it isn’t accidentally eaten by a gray whale, planting native plants to help combat climate change, and telling a friend what you have learned! For more information on Eastern gray whales: here https://acs- la.org/volunteer/gray-whale-census-behavior-project/ https://us.whales.org/whales-dolphins/species-guide/gray-whale/ For more information on Western gray whales: https://www.mmc.gov/priority-topics/species-of-concern/western-north- pacific-gray-whales/ PREVENTING EXTINCTION TUESDAY I am the world’s most endangered cetacean (the group that includes whales, dolphins and porpoises). Who am I? Answer: I am the Vaquita - which means “little cow” in Spanish. I am not only the most endangered cetacean in the world, I am also one of the smallest at only 4.5 to 5 feet long. Vaquita live only in the northern Gulf of California and are very shy and elusive. Their decline is due to bycatch in illegal fishing nets for a fish called totoaba. In 1997 there were around 600 vaquita; today there are less than 20 left. The good news is that a vaquita was recently seen with a calf, and scientists know that they are able to have babies each year. What this means is that if we can figure out a way to stop the illegal fishing, we still have a chance to prevent their extinction. Many people don’t know about the vaquita and the problems they face, so make sure to tell a friend! For more information about the Vaquita and how to help: https://www.vaquitacpr.org/ https://seashepherd.org/milagro/ To rent a great documentary about the vaquita: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/films/sea-of-shadows/en/#/ PREVENTING EXTINCTION WEDNESDAY The right whale is one of the most endangered whales in the world. Why were they named the right whale and why are they endangered today? Answer: Right whales were named because they were the right whale to hunt, due to the fact that they are slow moving and floated for a long time after dying. They are no longer hunted but they still face some serious threats. The North Atlantic right whale, which lives off the east coast of North America, has been steadily declining since 2010 and they are listed as critically endangered. There are only about 400 left, and there were no calves born in 2018. Their main threats are entanglement in fishing gear, ship strikes and noise pollution. The Southern right whale, which lives in the southern hemisphere, is beginning to recover with a population of around 10,000 animals, but they are facing the same threats and are still listed as endangered. You can help by supporting organizations trying to prevent the extinction of the North Atlantic right whale. For more information about the right whale: https://us.whales.org/whales-dolphins/species-guide/north- atlantic-right-whale https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/species/north-atlantic-right- whale PREVENTING EXTINCTION THURSDAY Blue whales were heavily hunted by commercial whalers and were pushed almost to extinction. How many blue whales are left in the world? Answer: The current population is somewhere between 10,000 and 20,000 animals. Historically there were about 350,000 blue whales in the world, but up to 97% of them were killed by whalers. They have been protected from whaling since 1966 and some populations are slowly recovering while others, like the Antarctic population, are still critically endangered. Their biggest threats today are ship strikes and entanglement in fishing gear. The Eastern North Pacific population of blue whales generally feeds off California during the summer and fall months. This is the biggest blue whale population in the world at close to 2000 animals. They can often be seen on whale watching trips from several cities in California. For more information about blue whales: https://us.whales.org/whales-dolphins/species- guide/blue-whale https://www.acsonline.org/blue-whale https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/feature-story/big- hearted-blue-whale PREVENTING EXTINCTION FRIDAY Which species of cetacean is the only one to become extinct due to habitat destruction by humans? Answer: The Baiji, or Yangtze River Dolphin, in China has been declared ‘functionally extinct’. This means that, while scientists can’t be 100% certain there aren’t still a few individuals alive, there are so few that they would be unable to recover. Once known as the “Goddess of the Yangtze” by the local people, the Baiji population, which numbered about 6000 animals in the 1950s, plunged to extinction in just 50 years. The main reason for the decline of the Baiji was bycatch in local fisheries. China placed bans on harmful fishing gear but the laws were difficult to enforce. Other threats included pollution, development, and construction of the largest hydroelectric dam in the world. Conservationists tried to create a protected reserve for the Baiji but the one individual they moved into the reserve died a few months later. In 2006, a survey of the Yangtze River failed to find a single animal. Unfortunately, it is too late to prevent the extinction of the Baiji but our hope is that we can learn from this sad loss and protect other species of cetaceans from a similar fate. To learn more about the Baiji: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gIBtHtF9JlU https://www.edgeofexistence.org/blog/requiem-for-the-baiji/ https://us.whales.org/whales-dolphins/species-guide/baiji/.