For the first time in Russia, a catalog of bowhead whales from the Sea of Okhotsk population has been published. This publication, supported by the Nature and People Foundation, is the result of a unique six-year study by the A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution of the Russian Academy of Sciences. The data collected in the catalog will serve as the foundation for the development and implementation of practical measures to protect one of the rarest and most vulnerable marine mammals.
Bowhead whales of the Sea of Okhotsk are a small group of endangered whales that spend their entire life cycle in Russian waters. The population numbers no more than 400 individuals. The project to conserve bowhead whales in the Sea of Okhotsk is being implemented by the Nature and People Foundation and the Institute of Ecology and Evolution of the Russian Academy of Sciences in partnership with the Siberian Wellness Foundation "World Around You," JSC "UTLC ERA," and Ilya Trukhanov's KIT Clinic.
Since 2020, scientists have been conducting research in key feeding areas of the Okhotsk Sea population of bowhead whales. In the summer and fall, expeditions travel to the Shantar Islands and Shelikhov Bay. Photographs are taken using drones, as identifying the animals from boat photographs is difficult: bowhead whales lack a dorsal fin, rarely expose their tails, and have a predominantly monotone black dorsal coloration.
Photo-identification allowed for over 300 bowhead whales to be added to the calalog. For each individual, where available, it includes their number in the catalog, sex, name, year and area of first sighting, as well as full-body images, individual tail images, and identifying features. The catalog allows users to identify each whale by a set of distinctive external features and track their migrations in the waters of the Sea of Okhotsk. This publication will also facilitate the collection of data on the status of the population and the challenges whales face, such as entanglement in fishing gear.
"The catalog can become a publically accessible tool for comparing data collected from travelers, volunteers, and tour company employees. There are several of us on the team, and the tourist flow is several hundred. It might not be easy to identify a specific whale without experience, but we hope that the release of this catalog will spur interest in our work. And with our help, people will begin to get to know whales better – in every sense of the word," notes project manager Milena Morozova.
"The project to study and preserve the Okhotsk Sea whales is a key one for the Nature and People Foundation," says Irina Onufrenya, head of the Foundation's wildlife conservation program. "We see how, thanks to the support and participation of many organizations and our supporters, it is developing and producing concrete, tangible results. This catalog is another step toward preserving these unique marine giants."
The publication also contains comprehensive information on the project's history, the species' current status, and the main threats to its existence. Particular attention is given to recommendations for data collection by volunteers, emphasizing the open nature of the project and its focus on engaging the general public in conservation.
The catalog can be accessed via this link.
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