AR-News: 9US WA0 Washington state recommends endangered status for Puget Sound orcas

[Animalara2003 at aol.com]

By ELIZABETH M. GILLESPIE
ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER
SEATTLE -- The Washington state Department of Fish and Wildlife proposed 
Monday that Puget Sound's orcas be added to the state list of endangered species 
"because the marine mammals are at critically low levels and are vulnerable to 
several continuing threats."
The department made the recommendation based on a recent status report 
indicating that the population of "southern resident" killer whales in Puget Sound 
and nearby waters has declined 18 percent since 1995.
"The solid scientific work reflected in this report gives us an excellent 
base on which to assess the health of our resident orca population and determine 
what the next steps should be to protect one of the most enduring symbols of 
Puget Sound and the Pacific Northwest," said Jeff Koenings, the department's 
director.
The "southern residents" that swim in waters off Washington state and British 
Columbia include 84 orcas - down from a historical high of more than 120 in 
the 1960s, before the whales were captured in large numbers for display at 
marine parks.
The L pod, one of three groups of southern residents, has seen both higher 
mortality rates and lower birth rates, particularly in the past decade, 
according to the department's status report.
Scientists point to a decline in salmon, the orcas' main source of food, as 
well as accumulations of PCBs and other toxic chemicals in the water and stress 
from whale-watching boats and other vessels.
The Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission, a nine-member citizens panel 
that sets policy for the Department of Fish and Wildlife, is expected to take 
action on Monday's proposal at its April 1-3 meeting in Spokane.
A state listing would trigger a recovery plan that would guide efforts to 
protect the killer whales. Southern resident orcas are listed as "depleted" under 
the U.S. Marine Mammal Protection Act, which also requires a recovery plan 
for the species.
"The state's roles and responsibilities would complement, not replace, those 
of the federal agencies," Koenings said. "We want to operate from a clear 
understanding of the science so as to not duplicate the federal recovery plan."





full story:

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/aplocal_story.asp?category=6420&slug=WST%2
0Orca%20Status 
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://lists.envirolink.org/pipermail/ar-news/attachments/20040301/6e3f08f7/attachment.html