Marine protected areas for whales, dolphins, and porpoises: a world ...

INTRODUCTION
There are three main driving forces behind this work. First, the habitat needs of
cetaceans – the 84 species of whales, dolphins and porpoises – have been
neglected. Marine habitat conservation has lagged behind land conservation.
Within marine habitat conservation, cetaceans may be featured in certain
reserves, but are their needs being adequately met? In most cases the answer is
‘no’. We need to look carefully at identifying and protecting critical habitat for
cetaceans (see Box I.1). The habitat of these wide-ranging animals is best
protected through ecosystem-based management approaches (see Box I.2),
using a carefully selected network of marine protected areas (MPAs), modelled
along the lines of biosphere reserves, or zoned protected areas, which include
both highly protected marine reserves as well as zones to allow human uses
such as well-managed marine tourism and fishing. MPA regimes can address
some or even most cetacean habitat protection needs, but it is useful to maintain
a broad approach to conservation efforts on behalf of cetaceans to include
other ecosystem-based protection and management strategies, international
conventions and treaties, and other pragmatic approaches.
Second, there is more research and information on cetaceans than ever
before – although large portions of it are difficult to access. The past three
decades have seen the success of photographic identification (photo-ID) and
other benign methods of studying cetaceans, including radio and satellite
tagging and biopsy of skin and blubber for genetics and to measure
contaminant loads and, most recently, diet. This has been the era of studying
whales from live animals rather than carcasses, and with these studies, whales
and dolphins have revealed certain details of their habitat needs, in many cases
for the first time. There remain large gaps with most cetacean species, especially
those that spend their lives in deep waters on the high seas, but the growing
body of work is exciting, substantial and ready to be acted upon. Yet much
cetacean habitat literature remains buried in unpublished reports, conference
abstracts and proceedings, sighting databases, conservation organization
newsletters, and papers in little-known journals that are not easily accessible or
known to protected area managers and conservationists who focus on habitat
issues. Research-compiling tools such as SEAMAP are starting to address this