Seventy-five large whale entanglement cases in 2019 and 53 cases in 2020 were confirmed nationally, fewer than in 2018. NOAA Fisheries has released two National Reports on Large Whale Entanglements Confirmed in the United States, for 2019 and 2020. In 2019, there were 75 confirmed entanglements nationally, which was a decrease from 2018 but remains near the historical […]
New information may help with recovery efforts for endangered Cook Inlet belugas. When listening to beluga whales, the sound of a crunch or a clapped jaw may be a reliable indication that a beluga whale just successfully captured or missed a fish. In a new published paper on beluga whales in Alaska, scientists analyzed sound data, collected […]
The amendment will affect the Cook Inlet commercial salmon fishing season. This action does not close any salmon fishing in state waters. NOAA Fisheries issued a final rule to implement Amendment 14 to the Fishery Management Plan for the Salmon Fisheries in the Exclusive Economic Zone off Alaska (Salmon FMP). The Final Rule, which filed in the Federal […]
Alaska Fisheries Science Center’s Marine Mammal Laboratory conducts research to manage and recover this critically endangered population. The North Pacific right whale is the rarest of the large whales. Only about 30 individuals are estimated to remain of the Eastern stock that lives in Alaskan waters. Scientists at the Alaska Fisheries Science Center’s Marine Mammal Laboratory […]