MMAC and WesPac

February 2, 2007 at 5:21 pm · Filed under Protected Species and Longlines, Notices and Updates, Native Hawaiian Perspectives, Spam

Yesterday morning we saw fishery management in action.  Before we had the fun of seeing breaching humpback whales, we were regaled to the sights, sounds, and tastes of fishery management.  WesPac (The Western Pacific Fishery Management Council) was holding a Marine Mammal Advisory Committee meeting.  It was here where we met again some familiar friendly faces from the week and listened to the issues regarding the interactions between false killer whales (Pseudorca crassidens) and pelagic longline fisheries.

The meeting didn't begin until the usual informal re-introductions were made.  At the same time, all the participants found themselves muffins and coffee.  The coffee seemed to be Kona coffee and in keeping with Hawaii standards was quite good.  Unfortunately, Hawaiian steak (aka SPAM) was not present.  I, like Justin before me, recognize the validity of SPAM and was a bit disappointed by the absence of rice and SPAM.

The first topic on the docket was to review the recommendations made from their previous meeting in May. The second was a short summary by Chris Yates regarding the Pacific Scientific Review Group (SRG).  Next, Lisa Van Atta  discussed some of the various mitigation measures.  Our very own Andy Read then talked about the situation in the Atlantic between pilot whales and pelagic longline fisheries.  Lastly before lunch, Dave Johnston discussed some findings based on an experimental longline vessel research trip.

The major realization from the Committee meeting was the efficiency of the moderator, Paul Dalzell, and the degree of questions asked by the Committee.  At the end of each presentation, the moderator quickly maneuvered with alacrity between the many questioners.

The issue with false killer whales are that they are smart animals who have figured out that free lunches are obtainable from following longline vessels and either eating the bait or the fish (that ate the bait) off the hooks.  This behavior (depredation of hooks) impacts both the whales and the fishery.  The whales potentially can be mortally hooked or entangled by line and fishers loose (among other things) the money associated with the lost catch.

It was great to see some of the people we had met earlier in the week.  Of the people we heard and saw again, these are a few of my observations from the meeting.  Sean Martin identified the ways in which working with fishers could yield possible solutions to the issue.  Lisa Van Atta and Andy discussed some solutions and ideas from the Atlantic fisheries.  Lastly, Dave spoke about some of the possibilities of acoustics research and the limiting of bait discards.  Although we did not stay for the afternoon portion of the Committee meeting, it was clear that not enough definitive answers were available and some more on-the-boat research and experimentation will be needed next.  In the meantime, the Committee and WesPac are on a trajectory to find solutions to the false killer whale issues.

After the committee broke for lunch, we met for half an hour with Kitty Simonds.  Ms. Simonds is the executive director of WesPac.  Given the importance of WesPac on marine issues and conservation in the Pacific it was great to meet up with her.  She was very friendly and was very enthusiastic about the shift to ecosystem-based management of ocean ecosystems.  Further, she spoke about the positives of working with native Hawaiians and the benefits of an Ahupua'a management system of marine resources. (See Jen's post on the 29th to revisit our meeting with the DaMates.) Although WesPac has in the past been a lightning rod for criticism, they are clearly attempting to do proactive work on many issues.

The next stop for us was Hawaiian plate lunches, quality coffee, and (for some) SPAM… ~Michael

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Whales!

February 2, 2007 at 2:17 am · Filed under Ship strikes and Whales, Protected Species and Longlines, Spam

While there were no sightings of Justin eating SPAM today, we had an exciting afternoon filled with sightings of a different sort.  After lunch we piled into our favorite van and headed to the Makapu'u Lighthouse Trail with hopes of seeing humpback whales.  Not only did we want to see whales, but we had our hopes set on seeing a whale breach (jump out of the water).  Hiking up the winding trail, we were treated to gorgeous views of the steep mountains plunging into the vast Pacific Ocean.   

Just a few minutes into our hike, two whales revealed themselves with their white puffs of breath that hovered momentarily above the calm water far below.  We watched them for several minutes waiting to see if they would breach, but they didn't.  So we continued hiking up the trail, periodically scanning the horizon for signs of whales.  The trail ended at a fenced concrete platform perched on top of the mountain that gave us a spectacular, nearly 360-degree view of the neighboring mountains, bays, and islands.  We also had a great view of the large rain cloud that was headed right toward us.

Ignoring the looming cloud, we spotted 3 or 4 whales nearby, including a mother and calf pair.  We followed their movements carefully, hoping they would give us the performance we came to see.  The rain came, but we stood undeterred on our perch and let the rain soak through our not-so-waterproof jackets.  

Finally, the rain let up, and we saw one of the whales coming to the surface.  But, instead of the white puff of its breath, the whale launched its bulky body almost entirely out of the water.  It was an incredible and very exciting sight to see.  I've wanted to see a whale breach for a long time, and I was really hoping I'd have the chance to see it on this trip.  I think we were all very excited to see such an amazing event.  The excitement didn't stop there; all of the whales we had been watching began to breach, some of them multiple times.  Later, after we'd hiked back down to the van and driven to a nearby beach to swim, we watched from the beach as the whales gave us another spectacular show. 

The whale said to me

Hello world, here's my body.

Mahalo, I said

-Kelly 

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Whales, albatrosses, and seals… what a day.

January 31, 2007 at 1:58 am · Filed under Monk Seals, Ship strikes and Whales, Protected Species and Longlines, Spam

Before I start I'd like to say a few words about Spam:  It is a delicious tender meat that is under-appreciated and often overlooked.  Known as "Hawaiian steak" it is near and dear to my diet as it is for many locals living in these islands.  Please, give this sweet cube of succulence a tasteful chance. 

Going back to our trip: After we toured the fish auction we ate breakfast.  This time my cravings did not call for Spam, however, I had a very tasty or "ono" plate of loco moco - another local treat.  Our bellies full, we ventured towards Ka'ena point on the Northwest coast of Oahu (close to where Lost is filmed) in search of monk seals and albatrosses.  However, before we even began our 2 mile hike to the point, I was priviliged to see an amazing event.  As soon as we had parked the van at the trailhead I looked out the window and in the far distance beyond the 20 foot waves I witnessed a humpback whale breaching.  I called out, "Whale!"  which instantly caused a flurry of activity amongst my fellow adventurers.  Everyone cast their gaze towards the Pacific in hopes to catch a glimpse of the animal.  However, it had already submerged and only a foamy white patch on a rolling blue ocean spoke of its presence.  Everyone rushed out of the van to see if it would breach again and indeed it did once more.  After watching for a few more minutes we did not see anymore whales and started off in earnest towards Ka'ena point.  Two NOAA empolyees active in Monk seal conservation, Charles and Tracy, led the way down a very muddy path - a result from the previous night's precipitation.  We zigzagged our way through the mud, hoping to find dry spots to plant our steps.  To our left sharp jagged cliffs set a scene of terrifying beauty.  On our right huge 20-25 foot goliath waves fiercely proclaimed their presence with thunderours roars.  I think I could have enjoyed the experience more had I not been concentrating so intently on the 5 lbs of mud sticking to my shoes. 

Three quarters into the hike the trail became kinder and we were able to walk on solid ground.  Shortly thereafter, another creature was spotted… a Laysan Albatross abiding in its nest.  The great bird looked at us unconcerned while we took pictures of it from many different angles.  It was the first time I had ever seen an Albatross and the sight of it made me smile.

Not far from the the Albatross we saw what we had primarily come to see, the Hawaiian monk seal.  Located safely out of reach from the violent sea that surrounded them, two monk seals (a female and male) were laying out approximately thirty feet away from us.  Despite being known as being very inactive and lazy while on shore these two seals shifted their bodies, looked up at us and snorted a few times.  True, not a whole lot of action, however, more than what I was expecting.  This was also another first for me.  Both seals looked so peaceful laying there on the warm sand while the sea stirred angrily around them and I felt a calm in my own spirit while I watched.  However, this calm was soon replaced by urgency to return to the van as a rainstorm quickly approached us. 

Back we went through the field of mud.  And as it rained I had to laugh, because even though I was soaked and had instantly grown 3 inches with the help of some mud, I was having fun.  When I finally reached the van I exchanged a nod with Andy and could tell he was enjoying himself as well.  We all left muddy and wet, but happy and satisified with what we saw.

aloha,

Justin  

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Day 3: AM Auction adventures

January 31, 2007 at 12:05 am · Filed under Protected Species and Longlines

There's nothing quite like the smell of fish to wake you up in the morning, but let me tell you, it is quite an experience. Our third day began bright and early this morning (although it was most definitely dark out) at a brisk 5am, and somehow I think it managed to be the first time we all showed up at exactly the right time. After loading up the big white bus and picking up Dave we made our way over to the Honolulu Fish Auction. As soon as we stepped out onto the dock there was a definite smell of fish wafting through the air. Although the city was still asleep, we could already see some sign of life, with men in boots pushing around large bins of ice. Sean Martin, who generously agreed to guide us through the auction, met us outside to lead us into the action. I, for one, had really no idea what to expect so stepping into the warehouse what quite a scene to see. The room was filled with rows of fish lined up on small carts topped with ice.

All of the fish were tagged and had chunks or cores cut out and placed on top of the fish. Sean explained to us that as the boats came in each morning, the fish were all weighed, tagged, and lined up (grouped by kind)  in the order that each boat arrived. The cut pieces of fish were used to determine the quality of the fish, by color and texture, and we would see many of the buyers picking up the pieces to carefully examine them. Only three boats came in this morning, totaling 28,000 pounds of fish. Apparently this was a very slow day. The actual auction was pretty interesting. Every fish is bid on separately, which seems like it would take forever but they usually go through 15-20,000 lbs per hour! There is an auctioneer that calls out prices until someone is interested, and then the bidding rises from there. There was a small crowd of bidders that slowly drifted down the lines of fish. We learned that some of the bidders were even people from the mainland- New York, California, really anywhere- and we could see representatives on cell phones with these clients filling them in and bidding for them. One of the fish we watched auctioned was a 198 lb Bigeye. It ended up going for $8.60/lb, which means that one fish was worth over $1700! 

 While the catch was coming from long-line boats targeting tuna there was a wide variety of fish, such as bigeye, yellowfin, swordfish, moonfish, mahi, and wahoo. We were also lucky to witness a bottom fishing boat unloading catch from the Northwest Hawaiian Islands.

The auction itself was exciting and fascinating, but our objectives for coming were definitely not overlooked. We have studied the serious detrimental effects pelagic long-lines can have on endangered sea turtles, sea birds, and marine mammals, but by talking to Sean Martin and the men at the auction we were able to get a first hand view of the human and economic side of fishing, regulation, and management.  Mr. Takenaka of the United Fishing Agency patiently explained to us the steps the fishery has taken to reduce by-catch of certain species, such as using circle hooks, dyed bait, or fish bait instead of squid to reduce sea turtle by-catch. There are also still strict take quotas for sea turtles (16 leatherbacks, 17 loggerheads per year) which ended up closing the tuna long-line fishery in March of last year. However, regulations such as the closing of an entire fishery bring up certain sticky problems. For one, the United States is one of the few countries to put forth a substantial effort to reduce by-catch and to protect threatened species. The methods mentioned before, such as using circle hooks etc. have been shown to reduce by-catch of sea turtles, and methods for reducing seabird by-catch have virtually eliminated incidents with birds. However, once the turtle take is exceeded and the fishery is closed, this prevents the US fishermen from setting hooks, but does nothing to prevent other countries, whose fishing practices are not as regulated and may be much harder on turtle populations or even target turtle catch, from coming in to fish these open waters. Furthermore, without the US fish on the market, the US is forced to import more fish, giving power to other countries to raise prices and withdrawing money from the US economy. The list of repercussions of fisheries closures is even longer, including increased pressure on other open fisheries (if tuna is closed fishermen may switch to targeting swordfish) and loss of jobs and income for fishermen and their families, which shows that some other measure may have to be taken to manage fisheries effectively. Every side of the problem has valid goals and yet at the moment every side seems to be pointing fingers to try to solve a problem. Conservationists point at the fishermen who are interacting with endangered species, fishermen point at the average American throwing garbage into the river that will poison the water that sustain their fisheries, and the average American probably has no idea where their fish is coming from. The point, basically, is that everything is a mess at the moment and instead of passing the blame we need to be able to integrate and work together to solve the problem. The revision and integration of many sides for effective management seems to be a common theme from our trip thus far, from the switch from species-based to ecosystem-based management to the integration of traditional and western science to find the best fit to preserve Hawaii's present and future. The reality for us, or for me at least, is that it seems the right questions are finally being asked but it will be our responsibility in the future to sort out the answers.

 With all of these conflicting thoughts still buzzing in my head, we followed Sean to a long-line boat and were able to tour the inside to get a feel for the normal life of fishermen. He showed us the thousands of hooks that would be set each day (between two and three thousand per day) and pointed out that they used circle hooks to mitigate turtle by-catch. We were able to wander the tiny cabins and he described the average day of a fishermen, which included grueling 18 hour days, being out at sea for 16-18 days and spending as much as 300 days off the dock; enough to make anyone appreciate the fish they were eating. Our final journey of the morning took us to Sean's office where we saw how he could track all of his boats by computer. He also showed us log books of previous auctions, where every fish and its price is listed, and then how the pay is distributed to the crew after everything is sold and accounted for. It was another interesting reality to see exactly how important each fish is to the livelihood of these men and the effort that must go in to bringing back a profitable catch.

By this point, the sun was finally rising over Honolulu and we headed downstairs for a wonderful hot breakfast and cup of coffee at Nico's. As we discussed the fish we saw and the species we want to save, we were hit with torrential rains and huddled inside with our coffee, waiting to make a break for our afternoon adventures.                                                                            -amy

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Some pics from day three…

January 30, 2007 at 8:52 pm · Filed under Monk Seals, Protected Species and Longlines

We had a great day - fish auction, exploring a longliner, big waves on the North Shore, albatross and monk seals…more pics from where this came from - let's make sure to put together a "best of" CD for everyone! Thanks again to Tracy and Charles! Cheers, Dave

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