Washington, Jan 25 (IANS) More and more marine mammals, including dolphin and porpoise species, are being killed relentlessly for human consumption worldwide.
The hunted species include the pygmy beaked whale, South Asian river dolphin, narwhal, Chilean dolphin, long-finned pilot whale, and Burmeister’s porpoise, says a report released by the World Conservation Society.
Seals and sea lions are on the list as well, including species such as the California sea lion and lesser known species such as the Baikal seal. The polar bear (a marine mammal) also makes the list.
Three species of manatee and its close relative the dugong, considered a delicacy in some parts of the world, are also widespread targets of human consumption.
Martin D. Robards and Randall R. Reeves from the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and Okapi Wildlife Associates have conducted an exhaustive global study of human consumption of marine mammals using approximately 900 sources of information.
The main finding: since 1990, people in at least 114 countries have consumed one or more of at least 87 marine mammal species, the journal journal Biological Conservation reports.
“These species, however, represent only a fraction of the world’s diversity of marine mammals, many of which are being accidentally netted, trapped, and-in some instances-directly hunted without any means of tracking as to whether these off-takes are sustainable,” said Robards, who led the study.
In order to build a statistically sound picture of human consumption rates of marine mammals, Robards and Reeves started with records on small fisheries focused on small whales (i.e. pilot whales), dolphins, and porpoises from 1975 and records of global marine mammal catches between 1966 and 1975.
From there, the authors consulted some 900 other sources and consulted with numerous researchers and environmental managers, an exhaustive investigation that took three years to complete.
The team only counted information with actual evidence of human consumption of marine mammals, omitting instances where marine mammals were caught (either intentionally or not) for fishing bait, feed for other animals, medicines, and other uses.
“Obviously, there is a need for improved monitoring of species such as Atlantic and Indo-Pacific humpback dolphins and other species,” said Howard Rosenbaum, director of WCS’s Ocean Giants Program.
