The Marine Mammal Protection Act provides only general guidance on assessment methods and on the content of marine mammal stock assessment reports. As a result, NOAA Fisheries and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service have held a series of workshops since 1994 to develop guidelines that may be consistently applied nationally to marine mammal stock assessments.
2023 Revisions to Guidelines
The guidelines for assessing marine mammal stocks were revised in 2023:
2023 Revision to the Guidelines
Guidelines for Preparing Stock Assessment Reports Pursuant to the 1994 Amendments to the MMPA (PDF, 43 pages)
2016 Revisions to Guidelines
The guidelines for assessing marine mammal stocks were revised in 2016:
2016 Revision to the Guidelines
Guidelines for Preparing Stock Assessment Reports Pursuant to the 1994 Amendments to the MMPA (PDF, 24 pages)
Previous Workshop Reports and Guidelines
2011 Guidelines for Assessing Marine Mammal Stocks Workshop Report
Guidelines for Assessing Marine Mammals Stocks: Report of the 2011 GAMMS III Workshop (PDF, 107 pages)
2005 Revisions to Guidelines
Revisions to Guidelines for Assessing Marine Mammal Stocks (GAMMS II) (PDF, 25 pages)
1996 Guidelines for Assessing Marine Mammal Stocks Workshop Report and Revisions to Guidelines
Report of the Guidelines for Assessing Marine Mammal Stocks Workshop (PDF, 97 pages)
1995 Workshop Report and Revisions to Guidelines
U.S. Marine Mammal Stock Assessments: Guidelines for Preparation, Background, and a Summary of the 1995 Assessments (PDF, 80 pages)
More Information
Humpback whales swimming underwater. Credit: Kogia.org
A Rice’s whale just under the surface of the water in the Gulf of Mexico. This endangered whale was recognized as a separate species from the Bryde’s whale in 2021. Credit: NOAA Fisheries under NOAA Permit No. 21938.
Pair of bottlenose dolphins. Credit: NOAA Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center/Lisa Morse.
A humpback mother and calf swimming off the West Coast. Credit: NOAA Fisheries/Ed Lyman. NOAA Fisheries Permit #14682.