The Gray Whale: Eschrichtius Robustus

587 Pages·1984·14.079 MB·English

by  Mary Lou Jones, Steven L. Swartz and Stephen Leatherwood (Eds.)

The Gray Whale
Eschrichtius robustus
Edited by
Mary Lou Jones
Steven L Swartz
Cetacean Research Associates
San Diego, California
Stephen Leatherwood
Hubbs-Sea World Research Institute
San Diego, California
with illustrations by
Pieter Arend Folkens
Oceanic Society
San Francisco. California
1984
ACADEMIC PRESS, INC.
(Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, Publishers)
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COPYRIGHT © 1984, BY ACADEMIC PRESS, INC.
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PERMISSION IN WRITING FROM THE PUBLISHER.
ILLUSTRATIONS ON THE COVER, TITLE PAGE, AND PART TITLE PAGES
COPYRIGHT © 1984 BY PIETER AREND FOLKENS.
ACADEMIC PRESS, INC.
Orlando, Florida 32887
United Kingdom Edition published by
ACADEMIC PRESS, INC. (LONDON) LTD.
24/28 Oval Road, London NW1 7DX
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data
Main entry under title:
The Gray Whale.
Includes index.
1. Pacific gray whale. 2. Whaling--Pacific Coast
(North America) II. Jones, Mary Lou. II. Leatherwood,
J. Stephen. III. Swartz, Steven L.
QL737.C425G73 1984 599.5'1 84-3113
ISBN 0-12-389180-9 (alk. paper)
PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
84 85 86 87 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
This volume is dedicated to
Carl L Hubbs, Laura C. Hubbs (top), and Raymond M. Gilmore (bottom),
three pioneers of modern gray whale research.
Contributors
Numbers in parentheses indicate the pages on which the authors' contributions begin.
LAWRENCE G. BARNES (3), Section of Vertebrate Paleontology, Natural History
Museum of Los Angeles County, Los Angeles, California 90007
ALFRED ANTONOVICH BERZIN (409), Pacific Ocean Science Research Institute of
Fisheries and Oceanography, T.I.N.R.O., 690600 Vladivostok, U.S.S.R.
SERGEI ALEKSEEVICH BLOKHIN (487), Pacific Ocean Science Research Institute of
Fisheries and Oceanography, T.I.N.R.O., 690600 Vladivostok, U.S.S.R.
LUYDMILA S. BOGOSLOVSKAYA (465), A.N. Severtsoff Institute of Evolutionary Mor-
phology and Animal Ecology, Academy of Sciences of U.S.S.R., 117071 Moscow,
U.S.S.R.
HOWARD W. BRAHAM (249), National Marine Mammal Laboratory, Northwest and
Alaska Fisheries Center, National Marine Fisheries Service, N.O.A.A., Seattle,
Washington 98115
PETER J. BRYANT (375), School of Biological Sciences, University of California, Irvine,
Irvine, California 92717
MARILYN E. DAHLHEIM1 (511), Department of Zoology, University of British Columbia,
Vancouver, British Columbia V6T 2A9 Canada
JAMES D. DARLING2 (267), University of Victoria, Victoria, British Columbia V8W 2Y2,
Canada and Vancouver Public Aquarium, Vancouver, British Columbia V6B 3X8,
Canada
JEANNETTE DA SILVA CURIEL (451), College of Veterinary Medicine, University of
Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan S7N 0W0, Canada
H. DEAN FISHER (511), Department of Zoology, University of British Columbia, Van-
couver, British Columbia V6T 2A9, Canada
PIETER AREND FOLKENS, Oceanic Society, Suite E-225, Fort Mason, San Francisco,
California 94123
JAMES T. HARVEY (561, 577), Marine Science Center, Oregon State University, New-
port, Oregon 97365
DAVID A. HENDERSON (159), Whaling Museum, New Bedford, Massachusetts 02740
Present address: National Marine Mammal Laboratory, Northwest and Alaska Fisheries Center, National
Marine Fisheries Service, N.O.AA, Seattle Washington 98115.
2Present address: West Coast Whale Research Foundation, Vancouver, British Columbia V7X 1L3, Canada.
xv
CONTRIBUTORS
DENISE L HERZING (289), Marine Science Center, Oregon State University, Newport,
Oregon 97365
MARY LOU JONES3 (309), Moss Landing Marine Laboratory, Moss Landing, California
95035
IGOR I. KRUPNICK (103), Institute of Ethnography, Academy of Sciences of the
U.S.S.R., 117036 Moscow, U.S.S.R.
CHRISTOPHER M. L7\FFERTY4 (375), School of Biological Sciences, University of
California, Irvine, Irvine, California 92717
SUSAN K. U\FFERTY5 (375), School of Biological Sciences, University of California,
Irvine, Irvine, California 92717
DONALD K. LJUNGBL^D (543), Naval Ocean Systems Center, San Diego, California
92109
BRUCE R. MATE (289, 561, 577), Marine Science Center, Oregon State University,
Newport, Oregon 97365
SAMUEL A. MCLEOD (3), Section of Vertebrate Paleontology, Natural History Museum
of Los Angeles County, Los Angeles, California 90007
JAMES G. MEAD (33), Division of Mammals, National Museum of Natural History,
Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. 20560
EDWARD D. MITCHELL (33), Arctic Biological Station, Ste. Anne de Bellevue, Quebec
H9X 3R4, Canada
SUE E. MOORE (543), SEACO, Inc., San Diego, California 92106
KAREN R. MORIN (451), Department of Zoology, University of British Columbia, Van-
couver, British Columbia V6T 2A9, Canada
DEBRA J. MURIE (451), Department of Zoology, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario
NIG 2Wl, Canada
L7MJRIE D. MURISON (451), Department of Zoology, University of Guelph, Guelph,
Ontario N1G2W1, Canada
MARY NERINI (423), National Marine Mammal Laboratory, Northwest and Alaska
Fisheries Center, National Marine Fisheries Service, N.O.A.A., Seattle, Washington
98115
BETH UMJRA O'LEARY (79), Department of Anthropology, University of New Mexico,
Albuquerque, New Mexico 87107
HIDEO OMURA (57), Whales Research Institute, Tokyo 136, Japan
M. MICHAEL POOLE (389), Division of Biology, Sonoma State University, Rohnert
Park, California 94928
RANDALL R. REEVES6 (187), Division of Mammals, National Museum of Natural His-
tory, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. 20560
3Present address: Cetacean Research Associates, San Diego, California 92107.
4Present address: 2157 Pattiz, Long Beach, California 90815.
5Present address: 2157 Pattiz, Long Beach, California 90815.
6Present address: Arctic Biological Station, Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue, Quebec. H9X 3R4 Canada.
CONTRIBUTORS XV»
STEPHEN B. REILLY (203), Southwest Fisheries Center, National Marine Fisheries
Service, N.O.AA, La Jolla, California 92038
DAVID J. RUGH (225), National Marine Mammal Laboratory, Northwest and Alaska
Fisheries Center, National Marine Fisheries Service, N.O.A.A., Seattle, Washington
98115
HAZEL SAYERS (121), American Cetacean Society, San Diego, California 92122
JAMES D. SCHEMPP (511), Ship Silencing Support Division, Puget Sound Naval Ship-
yard, Bremerton, Washington 98314
STEVEN L SWARTZ7 (309), University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, California
95064
ALEXEY V. YABLOKOV (465), N. K. Kol'tsoff Institute of Developmental Biology,
Academy of Sciences of the U.S.S.R., 117334 Moscow, U.S.S.R.
7Present address: Cetacean Research Associates, San Diego, California 92107.
Preface
As student cetologists in the 1970s we learned that scholars had been at work for well
over a century trying to piece together the gray whale story. Like many others interested
in cetaceans, we often turned to this species to find a story with some sense of depth.
The available accounts of other baleen whales were simply less comprehensive. But for
the gray whale there existed an extensive body of "facts," mostly the offspring of a
marriage of early scientific literature with a recent and rapidly expanding popular litera-
ture. Much of what appeared in those earlier publications derived from observations of
an exploited whale population during its recovery from a depleted state, and presumed
gray whales were increasing in the absence of any density-dependent reduction of their
annual reproductive rate. During the 1970s, however, it was generally agreed that gray
whales in the eastern Pacific had returned to a stable near preexploitation stock size of
between 11,000 and 13,000 animals following their protection from commercial harvest.
This created a renewed interest in gray whale population dynamics and reproductive
biology as it was hoped that a better understanding of these whales in particular might
lead to greater insight into the life processes, reproduction, and growth of large ceta-
cean populations in general.
Much of what we knew or thought we knew about gray whales in the 1970s derived
from the writings of Charles M. Scammon, Roy C. Andrews, Carl L Hubbs, Gordon C.
Pike, Raymond M. Gilmore, David A. Henderson, Theodore J. Walker, and others. In
1971 Dale W. Rice and Alan A. Wolman of the National Marine Mammal Laboratory
published The Life History and Ecology of the Gray Whale, a book that contributed
substantially to the understanding of the species. In 1974 the Marine Fisheries Review
released a special issue devoted to the California gray whale, dealing largely with
research on a single gray whale yearling, "Gigi." This animal was collected as a calf in
Baja California in 1971, was accessible for study during its year in captivity, and was
finally radio tagged and released into the ocean in March 1972.
With the above as background, investigators in the 1970s and early 1980s studied the
accessible gray whale in all parts of its range, and research expanded rapidly. Due in
part to legal protection afforded this species in Canada, Mexico, and the United States
and in part to increased sensitivity to living whales, field researchers recently have
accelerated the development and use of "benign nonconsumptive" techniques of study.
The study of "live" long-lived mammals requires commitment to long-term programs to
provide the basis for population trend analysis and meaningful behavioral studies; such
long-term commitments have been beyond the scope of many cetacean field research
programs. Therefore, even though the results of some programs completed in the past
PREFACE
decades are exciting, most must be viewed as preliminary and not exhaustive treat-
ments. Results of most remain unpublished, and accounts of their progress are scattered
in technical and contract volumes difficult for even the most dedicated cetacean biolo-
gist to obtain.
Late in the 1970s, at numerous scientific meetings sponsored by the International
Whaling Commission, World Wildlife Fund, International Union for Conservation of
Nature, Sociedad Mexicana para el Estudio de Mamiferos Marinos, National Marine
Fisheries Service-National Marine Mammal Laboratory, Marine Mammal Commission,
and other agencies, this new information on gray whales was being discussed. It be-
came increasingly apparent to the participants that a publication featuring the results of
these recent programs was highly desirable. With this goal in mind, we announced our
intention to collect and edit a volume of research papers on gray whales, and issued a
call for contributions at the IV Biennial Conference on the Biology of Marine Mammals
in November of 1981 in San Francisco, California. The response was overwhelming and
far exceeded our greatest expectations. We and the colleagues who joined us believe
this volume will fill a need for better distribution of information. In this sense we see The
Gray Whale as a transitional vehicle, a summary of current information upon which to
build. Scientific research almost always raises as many questions as it answers; it is our
sincere hope that this volume will stimulate both more work and publication.
We are particularly pleased that The Gray Whale is not provincial. It contains contribu-
tions from researchers working in Canada, Japan, Mexico, the United States, and the
Soviet Union and information from throughout the gray whale's past and present ranges
both in the Atlantic and Pacific. Such diversity points up the fact that neither understand-
ing nor conservation of this species can be effected without truly sincere international
commitment and cooperation.
Finally, we wish to extend our thanks to all those individuals, organizations, agencies,
translators, and reviewers, anonymous and otherwise, who graciously contributed their
time, expertise, and energy to the production of The Gray Whale. Special thanks to
Pieter Folkens for his original art for the subject sections, cover, and title page and
Janice J. Sherer for her maps.
Introduction
The gray whale is clearly an important species from the standpoint of public educa-
tional and recreational value, aesthetic appeal, economic significance, and scientific
interest. Because of its coastal habits the gray whale is the only large whale that can be
regularly observed from shore. Its lengthy annual migration is one of the world's most
outstanding wildlife spectacles, viewed by more than two million people each year.
The gray whale is the sole member of the family Eschrichtiidae and is considered by
many to be the most primitive surviving baleen whale. There are two extant populations.
One, the western Pacific or Korean population, is critically depleted. The other, eastern
Pacific or California population, is a well-known conservation success. Whaling reduced
the latter population in the 1850s, following the discovery of the breeding lagoons, and
again after the turn of the century with the introduction of floating factories. Even so, this
population twice made remarkable recoveries. Since it was afforded protection from
commercial whaling in 1946 by the International Convention for the Regulation of
Whaling, the population has grown to its current estimated level of 16,000 or more
animals and continues to grow. Most whaling historians and biologists believe the
preexploitation stock size was between 15,000 and 24,000 animals. Presently, a non-
commercial quota is set each year. In the Arctic, Alaskan Eskimos from St. Lawrence
Island still take a few gray whales annually, and Soviet-government catcher boats take
about 140 to 200 gray whales each year for use by Siberian aborigines. In 1978 the
International Whaling Commission (IWC) reclassified the California stock, moving it
from protected to sustained-management status. Even with this reclassification and
continuing annual harvest, however, the Scientific Committee (IWC) has acknowledged
that coastal development and industrial activity pose very real threats to the survival of
gray whales.
Collectively the chapters in The Gray Whale reflect the intimate relationship between
gray whales and the coastal habitat in which they have evolved and now live. It is
precisely their coastal habits that place gray whales in direct conflict with humans. They
cannot avoid exposure to our pollution, vessel traffic, industrial noise, and activities
associated with the development of outer continental shelf resources over virtually their
entire range. Offshore oil and natural gas exploration and development by the U.S.S.R.,
the United States, Canada, and Mexico could negatively affect the gray whales on their
nothern feeding grounds, during migration, and in their wintering grounds by disturbing
these critical habitats. Industrial activities, fishing, commercial whale watching, and
private boating along the entire west coast of North America may obstruct the progress
of migrating gray whales. Finally, Mexico has jurisdiction over much of their winter range
xxii INTRODUCTION
where reproduction is accomplished, and potential disturbances there include local
industrial development and foreign recreational pursuits, mainly U.S. tourism.
The balance among aesthetics and scientific desires, local economic needs that
contribute to environmental disturbance, and whale well-being is both a complicated
and sensitive conservation issue. Gray whales can only be assured of survival if their
lives, habitats, and food resources are managed according to an admittedly difficult but
responsible ecosystem approach. Concern for the future of gray whales has provided an
incentive for private and government support of much recent research within many
disciplines, a trend we wish to see continue. Mexico's establishment of gray whale
sanctuaries in Laguna Guerrero Negro, Laguna Ojo de Liebre, and Laguna San Ignacio,
the first ever for cetaceans, is an encouraging step we hope will be matched by sensitive
treatment of gray whale needs in other parts of their range.
The diversity of interest in gray whales was exemplified by the diversity of manuscripts
we received. Contributions came from historians, anthropologists, paleontologists,
biologists, and naturalists alike. In addition to chapters presenting new findings on the
evolution, phylogeny, biology, demography, and behavior of gray whales, we received
excellent chapters dealing with the history of their exploitation by both aborigines and
industrialized nations. The papers we received fell into four more or less obvious
categories which have become the major sections of this volume.
Section I presents two essays dealing with gray whale evolution, fossils, and subfossil
remains, systematics, and range in historical times. Barnes and McLeod describe the
only known bonafide gray whale fossil and examine the phyletic relationship between
gray whales and other mysticetes. Mead and Mitchell provide a detailed review of the
gray whale subfossil remains that have been discovered on both sides of the Atlantic
Ocean and which confirm that the gray whale was, at sometime, common in the western
Atlantic American waters and was taken commercially as recently as American colonial
times.
Section II documents historical aspects of gray whale exploitation and the economic
importance of these whales to humans, beginning with aboriginal societies in Asia and
North America, and leading up to the most recent period of commercial exploitation at
the turn of the century. Omura describes two populations of gray whales that migrated to
the coastal waters of Japan prior to 1900 and suggests that the Seto Inland Sea of
southern Japan served as a calving area. Krupnik traces the origins of aboriginal hunting
along the Chukotka Peninsula and, based on excavations of ancient settlements, sug-
gests that the gray whale, particularly young animals, and not the bowhead whale, was
the primary object of much of the aboriginal hunting. O'Leary reviews the relevant
ethnographic, historical, and archaeological data on aboriginal whaling and challenges
previous assumptions about the importance of gray whale subsistence hunting by the
Indian groups of the Pacific Northwest. Sayers reconstructs the rise and fall of the
colorful and sometimes profitable shore whaling industry of the California coast, from its
beginnings in Monterey in 1854 until its final collapse in 1901. Henderson's detailed
account of the lagoon whaling period places this episode in the more general perspec-
tive of nineteenth century whaling throughout the Pacific. He describes how Yankee and
European whalers pursued gray whales during the summer in the Bering, Okhotsk, and