https://septentrio.uit.no/index.php/NAMMCOSP/issue/feed NAMMCO Scientific Publications 2024-11-21T12:49:36+01:00 Naima El bani Altuna naima@nammco.org Open Journal Systems <p>The NAMMCO Scientific Publications series makes available in published, peer-reviewed form, scientific knowledge that is important for decision-making on the conservation and management of marine mammals.</p> https://septentrio.uit.no/index.php/NAMMCOSP/article/view/7413 Application of the Precautionary Approach to the Management of Marine Mammals in northern Canada 2024-05-21T19:48:10+02:00 Mike O. Hammill cystophora.cristata@gmail.com Garry B. Stenson garrybstenson@gmail.com Thomas Doniol-Valcroze thomas.doniol-valcroze@dfo-mpo.gc.ca Shelley L. C. Lang shelley.lang@dfo-mpo.gc.ca <p>Canada is committed to managing its resources using a Precautionary Approach (PA). However, when applying this approach to Arctic marine mammals, the Government of Canada must also respect the land claims agreements it has signed with Canada’s Inuit. Under these agreements the co-management boards are responsible for wildlife management within the land claim area. In addition to protecting the rights of hunters to harvest, the land claims agreements also call for the development of management systems that respect the principles of conservation and ensure sustainability of the resource, potentially resulting in a management paradox. We present criteria by which the status of a population can be assessed, and an appropriate PA framework applied. If sufficient data are available to understand the population dynamics of a given stock (i.e., a Data Rich situation), management decisions can be based upon an appropriate population model with quantitatively estimated reference levels. In cases where the population dynamics are poorly understood (i.e., Data Poor), a more conservative approach, referred to as the Potential Biological Removal (PBR) should be used to provide advice on sustainable harvest levels. Generally, only the most recent estimate of abundance is used in the PBR calculation which may ignore other data. We propose that if sufficient data are available to fit a population model, while still not sufficient to be considered Data Rich, the modelled estimate of current abundance can be used for a more robust PBR estimate. We also review guidelines for the choice of the recovery factor which is part of the PBR calculation. The apparent management paradox can be addressed within the context of a Management Procedure or Management Strategy Evaluation where Indigenous Knowledge and Western Science can contribute to setting management objectives, decision rules and appropriate time-frames that can be evaluated within a simulation environment. </p> 2024-07-24T00:00:00+02:00 Copyright (c) 2024 Mike O. Hammill, Garry B. Stenson, Thomas Doniol-Valcroze, Shelley L. C. Lang https://septentrio.uit.no/index.php/NAMMCOSP/article/view/7426 Previous, current and future monitoring and management of common minke whales in Norway 2024-11-21T12:49:36+01:00 Nils Øien nils.oien@hi.no Martin Biuw martin.biuw@hi.no Arne Bjørge arne.bjoerge@hi.no Tore Haug tore.haug@hi.no Kjell Tormod Nilssen kjell.tormod.nilssen@hi.no Hans Julius Skaug hans.skaug@uib.no Hiroko Kato Solvang hiroko.solvang@hi.no <p>An account of the historical, current and possible future management of common minke whales in Norway is presented. The current management is based on an approach very similar to the International Whaling Commission’s Revised Management Procedure (RMP) and requires historical and current catch statistics, together with new abundance estimates with associated variance estimates every six years. The abundance estimates are based on visual sampling online-transect sighting surveys with two independent observer platforms. These surveys are no longer economically viable with the current limited commercial harvest. Alternative methods for obtaining abundance estimates are discussed, including a simpler sighting survey design and genetic mark-recapture methods. The RMP requires Implementation Reviews desirably every six years, which take into account all new information available. The associated simulation trials are very technical and complex, and few experts have the insight to run these simulation tests. Simpler alternatives to the current Implementation Reviews are discussed. The objective is to develop more economically viable methods for abundance estimation and a simpler procedure for catch limit calculation without compromising the sustainability of the harvest. Any new procedure for abundance estimation and catch limit calculations will be submitted to the International Whaling Commission Scientific Committee for discussion.</p> 2024-11-21T00:00:00+01:00 Copyright (c) 2024 Nils Øien, Martin Biuw, Arne Bjørge, Tore Haug, Kjell Tormod Nilssen, Hans Julius Skaug, Hiroko Kato Solvang https://septentrio.uit.no/index.php/NAMMCOSP/article/view/7371 Addressing epistemic injustices in species at risk assessments through improved credibility and legitimacy: case study of narwhal management in Ittoqqortoormiit 2024-06-13T10:37:37+02:00 Tanguy Sandré tanguy.sandre@uvsq.fr Jean-Paul Vanderlinden jean-paul.vanderlinden@uvsq.fr Jeanne-Marie Gherardi jeanne.gherardi@ipsl.lsce.fr Zhiwei Zhu zhiwei.zhu@uvsq.fr Fern Wickson fern.wickson@uit.no <p>The regulation of seal and whale hunting in Kalaallit Nunaat (Greenland) belongs to the <em>Naalakkersuisut</em> (National Government), which is notably informed by the work of the Scientific Committee (SC) of the North Atlantic Marine Mammal Commission (NAMMCO). Since 2004, quotas were set in Kalaallit Nunaat to regulate hunting practices and promote ecologically sustainable harvesting. In South East Greenland, the SC's recommendations for the closure of the narwhal (<em>Monodon monoceros</em> or <em>qialuar</em>) hunt since 2019 has met both national disagreement and local resistance due to a desire to preserve the long-standing relation with narwhals organised around hunting, which is strongly intertwined within place-based communities’ experiences. The situation requires further attention to deploy an informed dialogue in the light of both available literature and local narratives capturing knowledge and values which are underrepresented within scientific discussions, as are social sciences. Grounded in repetitive and long-standing research fieldwork in Ittoqqortoormiit, and extensive qualitative data collection from 2019 to 2023, the article shows that community members express strong attachment and concern towards narwhal hunting together with the social, economic and cultural importance of <em>mattak</em> (narwhal skin). Local narratives also suggest that the resistance against limitations on narwhal hunting is not to be understood only as a conservatism that aims to preserve traditional hunting practices or about sustaining economic incomes for hunters, but in a significant way as protest against epistemic injustices, resulting from a feeling of being systematically unheard, distrusted and uninvolved in decision-making processes. Together with the expression of concern and attachment for narwhal hunting, the tensions between scientific knowledge and local value and knowledge were reiterated while shared concern for the preservation of the species is affirmed. We show that legitimacy and credibility of the scientific evidence and species management are contested. Ultimately, we ascertain the situation of epistemic injustices and raise the need to shift towards decolonial practices to open the possibility for the emergence of a fair and respectful dialogue that would support narwhal preservation, through securing hunters' material living conditions, community food security, and ensuring consideration and respect is given to individual and collective immaterial dimensions associated with narwhal.</p> 2024-06-13T00:00:00+02:00 Copyright (c) 2024 Tanguy Sandré, Jean-Paul Vanderlinden, Jeanne-Marie Gherardi, Zhiwei Zhu, Fern Wickson