U.S. Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico marine mammal stock assessments, 2009

The MMPA requires NMFS and USFWS to review stock assessment reports on marine mammal species annually for strategic stocks of marine mammals and at least every three years for stocks of marine mammals determined to be non-strategic. in consultation with regional Scientific Review Groups (SRGs). The SRGs are a broad representation of marine mammal and fishery scientists and members of the commercial fishing industry mandated to review the marine mammal stock assessments and provide advice to the NOAA Assistant Administrator for fisheries. The reports are then made available on the Federal Register for public review and comment before final publication.

Following enactment of the 1994 amendments, the NMFS and USFWS held a series of workshops to develop guidelines for preparing the SARs. The first set of stock assessments for the Atlantic Coast (including the Gulf of Mexico) were published in July 1995 in the NOAA Technical Memorandum series (Blaylock et al. 1995). In April 1996, NMFS held a workshop to review proposed additions and revisions to the guidelines for preparing SARs (Wade and Angliss 1997). Guidelines developed at these and subsequent workshops were followed in preparing the SARs.

In 1997 and 2004 SARs were not produced.

To comply with the MMPA by providing stock assessments of marine mammals at an appropriate time period .

Each report includes:

Description of the stock's geographic range.

Minimum population estimate.

Current population trends.

Current and maximum net productivity rates.

Potential Biological Removal levels.

Status of the stock.

Estimates of annual human-caused mortality and serious injury by source.

Descriptions of other factors that may be causing a decline or impeding the recovery of strategic stocks.

How the Marine Mammal Stock Assessment Reports Are Developed

Data collection, analysis, and interpretation are conducted through marine mammal research programs at each of our Fisheries Science Centers and by other researchers.

The MMPA provides broad narrative descriptions of what has to be included in stock assessment reports. For example, the reports require a "minimum population estimate" which means we have "reasonable" assurance there are at least the estimated number in the population

TY -

A2 - Northeast Fisheries Science Center (U.S.)

AB - "Under the 1994 amendments of the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) and the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) were required to generate stock assessment reports (SAR) for all marine mammal stocks in waters within the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). The first reports for the Atlantic (includes the Gulf of Mexico) were published in July 1995 (Blaylock et al. 1995). The MMPA requires NMFS and USFWS to review these reports annually for strategic stocks of marine mammals and at least every 3 years for stocks determined to be non-strategic. The second edition of the SARs (1996 assessments) was published in October 1997 and contained all the previous reports, but major revisions and updating were only completed for strategic stocks (Waring et al. 1997). In subsequent annual reports, including this current 2009 edition, updated reports are indicated by the corresponding year date-stamp at the top right corner of the report and are included in the main body of the document. Stock assessments not updated in the current year are included, in full, in an appendix. Also included in this report as appendices are; 1) a summary of serious injury/mortality estimates of marine mammals in observed U.S. fisheries (Appendix I), 2) a summary of NMFS records of large whale/human interactions examined for this assessment (Appendix II), 3) detailed fisheries information (Appendix III), 4) summary tables of abundance estimates generated over recent years and the surveys from which they are derived (Appendix IV), and 5) the first revision of the USFWS West Indian manatee assessments since 1995 (Appendix VI). This report was prepared by staff of the Northeast Fisheries Science Center (NEFSC) and Southeast Fisheries Science Center (SEFSC). NMFS staff presented the reports at the January 2009 meeting of the Atlantic Scientific Review Group (ASRG), and subsequent revisions were based on their contributions and constructive criticism. This is a working document and individual stock assessment reports will be updated as new information becomes available and as changes to marine mammal stocks and fisheries occur. The authors solicit any new information or comments which would improve future stock assessment reports"--Executive summary.

AB - Gordon T. Waring, Elizabeth Josephson, Katherine Maze-Foley, and Patricia E. Rosel, editors.

AB - Title from title screen (viewed on Mar. 12, 2010).

AB - "December 2009."

AB - "Print publication date December 2009 ; web version posted March 10, 2010"--Publication's home page http://www.nefsc.noaa.gov/publications/tm/tm213/index.html.

AB - Mode of access: World Wide Web.

AB - System requirements: Internet browser; Adobe Acrobat Reader.

AB - Includes bibliographical references.

AU - Waring, Gordon T.

AU - Josephson, Elizabeth

AU - Maze-Foley, Katherine

AU - Rosel, Patricia E.

AN - noaa:3716

KW - Estimates

KW - Fish stock assessment

KW - Marine mammal populations

KW - Marine mammals

KW - Marine mammals

KW - Marine mammal populations

KW - Estimates

KW - Fish stock assessment

PY - 2009

T3 - NOAA technical memorandum NMFS-NE ; 213

TI - US Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico marine mammal stock assessments 2009

M3 - Technical Memorandum

UR - https://repository.library.noaa.gov/view/noaa/3716

ER -

Table 1 contains a summary, by species, of the information included in the stock assessments, and also indicates those that have been revised since the 2008 publication. A total of 39 of the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico stock assessment reports were revised for 2009. In addition to this, the Mesoplodon beaked whales report was re-divided by species into four reports, and nine new bottlenose dolphin Atlantic bay, sound, and estuary stocks reports were added this year, bringing the total to 71 reports. Most of the proposed changes incorporate new information into sections on population size and/or mortality estimates. The revised and new SARs include 16 strategic and 36 non-strategic stocks.