INJFU03Marine mammalsThe web

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INJFU03 Marine mammals The web

• Lectures on the Icelandic marine environment

Marine mammals in Iceland
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INJFU03 Marine mammals The web

• Higher vertebrates

• Seabirds and whales are very abundant around
  Iceland
• Seals are common but the abundance is much
  greater in the high Arctic
• Reptiles are almost non-existent, marine reptiles
  mostly found in the tropics

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INJFU03 Marine mammals The web

• Seabirds

The puffin is the most abundant seabird in
Iceland with 2 to 3 million breeding pairs, the
fulmar is next with 1 to 2 million pairs Feeding
habits are diverse, eiders live on benthic
invertebrates, cormorants and auks are active
hunters, and gulls are scavengers Many other
species that are not included here feed in the
ocean during winter. Still others, feed on the
seashore
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INJFU03 Marine mammals The web

• Seals

The only species that breed in Icelandic waters
are the common (15.000) and the grey seals
(6.000) The Greenland or harp seal and the
bearded seal are vagrants, but frequently seen
The other species are rare, especially the walrus
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INJFU03 Marine mammals The web

• Seals in Eyjafjörður

Hooded seal
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INJFU03 Marine mammals The web

• Seals in Eyjafjörður

Bearded seal
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INJFU03 Marine mammals The web

• Seals in Eyjafjörður

Harbour seal
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INJFU03 Marine mammals The web

• Seals in Eyjafjörður

Ringed seal
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INJFU03 Marine mammals The web

• Seals in Eyjafjörður

Harp seal Walrus
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INJFU03 Marine mammals The web

• Icelandic whales

• Whales very common around Iceland
• Important players in the ecosystem
• The species are (northern N. Atlantic)
• 5 species baleen whales that are reglarily seen
• 2 species baleeen whales that are rare guests now
• 1 species that is extinct
• 7 species toothed whales that are reglarily seen
• 8 species toothed whales that are rare guests

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INJFU03 Marine mammals The web

• Blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus)

• The largest animal now and probably ever, 30 m
  and 180 t
• In all oceans, but few animals left due to
  overexploitation in the past, recovering very
  slowly
• In cold waters in summer and warmer waters in
  winter
• Feeds mainly on planktonic crustaceans
• About 5500 hunted Icelandic grounds between 1883
  to 1915, 66 animals hunted in Iceland from 1952
  to 1959 whan they were banned
• Numbers around Iceland estimated at around 1.000
  animals now, 6.000 to 14.000 in the whole world.

• Estimated numbers before hunting around 300.000
  animals

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INJFU03 Marine mammals The web

• Fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus)

• The second largest animal on earth, 27 m and 100
  t
• In all oceans, overexploited in the past,
  recovering very slowly in the southern hemisphere
  but more rapidly in the North Atlantic
• In cold waters in summer and warmer waters in
  winter
• Feeds mainly on planktonic crustaceans, pelagic
  fish in some areas
• About 5500 hunted Icelandic grounds between 1883
  to 1915
• 8400 animals hunted in Iceland from 1952 to 1989
  when they were banned, 7 animals hunted this year

• Numbers around Iceland estimated at around 24.000
  animals now, 120.000 to 150.000 in the whole
  world.
• Common enough in the N. Atlantic to sustain
  annual catches of 200 animals (MRI)

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INJFU03 Marine mammals The web

• Sei whale (Balaenoptera borealis)

• A big animal, 19 m and 30 t, Similar in many
  respects as the fin whale
• About 137 hunted Icelandic grounds between 1883
  to 1915
• 2500 animals hunted in Iceland from 1952 to 1989
  whan they were banned
• Numbers around Iceland estimated at around 10.500
  animals now, 50.000 to 70.000 in the whole world.
  
• Common enought in the N. Atlantic to sustain
  annual catches of 100 animals (MRI)

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INJFU03 Marine mammals The web

• Minke whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata)

• A somewhat large animal, 10 m and 10 t
• Global distribution, quite common, often in more
  shallow waters than the larger baleen whales
• 4000 animals hunted in Iceland from 1945 to 1989
  whan they were banned, nmbers before that
  unknown. Hunted from small boats but not the
  large spesialized boats used to hunt the larger
  whales. About 20 animals hunted this year for
  scientific purposes

• Numbers around Iceland estimated at around 44.000
  animals now, 1.000.000 in the whole world. The
  stock could be larger now than ever (less
  competition from the larger cousins)
• Common enought in Icelandic waters to sustain
  annual catches of 400 animals (MRI)

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INJFU03 Marine mammals The web

• Minke whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata)

• Much more opportunistic, feed on plankton as well
  as fish

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INJFU03 Marine mammals The web

• Food of Icelandic whales species groups

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INJFU03 Marine mammals The web

• Humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae)

• Big and heavy, 16 m and 50 t
• Chubbier than the other baleen whales, more
  playful, a good singer
• Global distribution, but rare in most parts of
  the world due to overexploitation inn the past
• Has not been hunted in Icelandic grounds since
  1910
• Has been very slow to recover until lately that
  it has become quite common around Iceland, both
  inshore (to the pleasure of the whale watching
  companies) and offshore (to the horror of the
  pelagic fishermen)

• Opportunistic, feed on plankton as well as fish
• Numbers around Iceland estimated at around 14.000
  animals, increasing rapidly

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INJFU03 Marine mammals The web

• Humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae)

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INJFU03 Marine mammals The web

• Rare baleen whales

Bowhead whale rare guest from the north,
Northern right whale rare guest from the
south Both species are still at risk of
extinction and have not recovered after intensive
hunting in the past Grey whale used to be in the
North Atlantic, including Iceland until it went
extinct in the 17th or 18th century,
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INJFU03 Marine mammals The web

• Toothed whales

Sperm whale (Physeter macrocephalus) By far the
largest of the toothed whales, 18 m and 34 t.
Found in all the worlds oceans. Juvenile males
common around Iceland. Around 100 animals hunted
annually between 1948 to 1985. Stock size unknown
but not very rare
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INJFU03 Marine mammals The web

• Toothed whales

Northern bootlenose whale (Hyperoodon
ampullatus) Average large, common in the N.
Atlantic, not hunted by Icelanders but large
numbers hunted by Norwegians in the past.
Estimated numbers no around 40.000 animals
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INJFU03 Marine mammals The web

• Toothed whales

Long fined pilot whale (Globicephala melas)
Medium size, common in the N. Atlantic. The whale
that the Faeroese hunt. Some small scale hunting
in Iceland in Iceland in the past
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INJFU03 Marine mammals The web

• Toothed whales

Harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) Wery small
coastal species. Common around Iceland, or about
30.000 animals. No direct hunting often gets
entangled in nets
Rare toothed whales Belugas and narwhals are
rare guests from the north. Three species of
beaked whales are also known. They are however
deep sea whales and very little is known about
them
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INJFU03 Marine mammals The web

• Toothed whales - Dolphins

Killer whales (Orcinus orca) Average size, the
largest dolphin. Found all around the world. Top
predator of the ocean, very clever hunter. Common
in Icelandic waters, feeds largely on herring.
Estimated numbers around Iceland about 5.000
animals. Hunted alive for aquariums (Free Willy)
White beaked dolphin (Lagenorhynchus
albirostris) The most common dolphin species
around Iceland. Probably around 40.000 animals.
No hunting
White sided dolphin (Lagenorhynchus acutus) Very
similar to the former, might be as common but
rarely seen since it is almost exclusively
offshore
Other dolphins Three other dolphin species rare
guests from warmer waters
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INJFU03 Marine mammals The web

• Icelandic whales

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INJFU03 Marine mammals The web

• Whaling in Iceland

• Whale strandings were always important in
  Iceland, the word whale stranding is indeed
  used for good luck. The whales were often
  helped to strand similar as the Faeroese do
  with the pilot whales
• Large scale industrial whaling has been conducted
  around Iceland since the middle ages, however not
  by Icelanders but by Basques and other Europeans
• The main target species then were bowhead and
  right whales since they are easy to catch with
  primitive gear, therefore RIGHT whales
• Late in the 19th century the explosive harpoon
  and motor boats were invented and large scale
  hunting of blue and fin whales began, initially
  by Norwegians.
• They were overexploited in most parts of the
  world
• International whaling banned temporarily in 1989
  until further research on how much hunting the
  whales stocks could take

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INJFU03 Marine mammals The web

• Whaling in Iceland - results

• Extinct stocks
• Grey whales in the Atlantic Right whale stocks
  ??
• Stocks that have not recovered
• Blue whale, Right whale
• Stock that have or are recovering, some slowy
• Fin, sei, humpback, grey (in the pacific), sperm
  whales
• Stocks that were never harvested to low numbers
• Minke, brydes whales

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INJFU03 Marine mammals The web

• Whaling in Iceland - numbers

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INJFU03 Marine mammals The web

• Whaling in N. Atlantic - numbers

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INJFU03 Marine mammals The web

• Whaling in Iceland current situation

• Whaling is now conducted by many nations, the
  biggest are USA, Russia, Japan, Norway and
  Greenland.
• No international laws on total moratorium on
  whaling Common misunderstanding there is
• Nations that have signed the CITES act
  (Convention on International Trade in Endangered
  Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) cannot trade in
  whale products as all large whales are listed
  there as endangered (wich many of them are not).
  Iceland signed with reservations for whales
• Most scientis agree that many whale stocks are in
  good conditions or have recovered from previous
  whaling
• International Whaling Comission not funcional any
  more some nations want to ban whaling no matter
  what

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INJFU03 Marine mammals The web

• Whaling in Iceland current situation

• Iceland began whaling
• minke whales again in 2003, about 161 animals
• fin whales 2008, 7 animals
• Pro whaling arguments
• Whales however eat a lot of fish
• The numbers are increasing
• The knowledge about whale hunting is disapearing
• Most Icelanders are pro whaling and eat whale
  meat happily
• Anti whaling arguments
• Cannot manipulate ecosystems
• Will damage tourism and markets for other
  Icelandic products
• Not profitable, no markets for the products ???

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INJFU03 Marine mammals The web

• Web links

• More info on whales in Icelandic waters
• http//www.fisheries.is
• http//www.nat.is/Whales/whales.htm
• http//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whaling_in_Iceland
• http//www.icewhale.is/
• http//www.fauna.is/defaulte.asp - High quality
  drawing of almost all Icelandic animals
• More info on seabirds in Icelandic waters
• http//www.iceland-nh.net/birds/
• http//www.hi.is/yannk/index-eng.html
• More info on seals in Icelandic waters
• http//www.nat.is/Seals/selir.htm

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INJFU03 Marine mammals The web

• The end