A new study has shown that the impact of whaling over a century ago can still be seen in bowhead whale populations today.
The research was led by the University of Adelaide and found that bowhead whale recovery today is linked to where hazardous sea ice once shielded populations from intensive hunting.
The team examined logbooks from more than 700 whaling voyages to reconstruct daily positions and catches. The data showed how commercial whaling spread rapidly across the Arctic from the late 1700s. Sadly, it reached nearly all accessible bowhead habitats within a century.
According to the study author Professor Damien Fordham from Adelaide University’s Environment Institute:
“We found that whaling in the late 1700s spread rapidly across the Arctic, with whalers reaching all but the most isolated bowhead whale habitats within a century. Our analysis discovered that bowhead whale populations with ancestors who found refuge in these protective zones, hidden behind hazardous sea ice barriers, are recovering more quickly today.”
Discussing the importance of the study, Fordham added:
“It underscores the need to consider historical threats dating back centuries when designing recovery plans for species that were pushed to the brink of extinction and remain vulnerable today.”
While the study’s lead author Dr. Nicholas Freymueller added:
“When British and American whalers joined the hunt in the 1700s, bowhead whaling surged and became widespread across the Arctic. Oil rendered from whale blubber was critical for lubricating machines and illuminating industrial factories. However, the profits accrued by whaling came at an expense to population numbers of bowhead whales, which plummeted in response to increases of commercial exploitation.”
Describing the impact of historical whaling on today’s population, he added:
“Today, only two of the four stocks of bowhead whales are recovering – populations off the coast of Alaska and West Greenland.”
You can read the original research in PNAS.
