



NOAA Fisheries annually prepares marine mammal stock assessment reports. Below are the draft 2022 Marine Mammal Stock Assessment Reports.
NOAA Fisheries prepares marine mammal stock assessment reports annually, as directed by the Marine Mammal Protection Act. The reports are prepared in consultation with one or more of three regional Scientific Review Groups.
NOAA Fisheries currently tracks 259 stocks of marine mammals and have an associated Stock Assessment Report for each species. We are accepting public comments on the draft 2022 reports through April 24, 2023.
In the 2022 reports, 10 stocks changed in status from ‘strategic’ to ‘non-strategic.' Common bottlenose dolphin: Northern Gulf of Mexico Bay, Sound, and Estuary Stocks. NOAA Fisheries also proposes to revise the stock structure of North Pacific humpback whales and Southeast Alaska harbor porpoise based on the new scientific information available.
Strategic Stock is defined by the MMPA as a marine mammal stock: