Biological Opinion on the Issuance of Annual Quotas Authorizing the Harvest of Bowhead Whales to the Alaska Eskimo Whaling Commission

NOAA Fisheries proposes to issue annual quotas to the Alaska Eskimo Whaling Commission (AEWC) to allow continuation of their subsistence hunt for bowhead whales from the Western Arctic population for the years 2013 through 2018 (NMFS 2012a). This action complies with section 101(b) of the Marine Mammal Protection Act, section 10(e) of the Endangered Species Act, the Whaling Convention Act, and responsibilities under the auspices of the International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling by granting the AEWC a quota set by the International Whaling Commission for taking bowhead whales for subsistence use.

Eskimos have hunted bowhead whales along the coastlines of the Bering, Chukchi, and Beaufort Seas for at least 2,000 years. Eleven Native villages in Alaska currently participate in subsistence whaling. Gambell, Savoonga, Little Diomede, and Wales are located in the Bering Sea; Kivalina, Pt. Hope, Wainwright, and Barrow are in the Chukchi Sea; and Nuiqsut and Kaktovik are in the Beaufort Sea.

Action Agency: NOAA Fisheries, Office of Protected Resources

NMFS Consultation Number: AKR-2013-9314