Figures from a count of whales by the Icelandic Marine Research Institute HAFRÓ released yesterday indicated that the number of minke whales in Icelandic waters had dropped significantly over the past few years. However, the head of whale research at HAFRÓ points out these figures are unreliable as the count was negatively affected by bad weather.
Read more: More fin and humpback whales, fewer minke whales by Iceland
Bad weather and climate change to blame
Gísli A. Víkingsson, the head of whale research at the Icelandic Marine Research Institute, told the local newspaper Fréttablaðið that the weather conditions during this year‘s whale count were worse than during any of the previous counts. The whale count, which is performed by Iceland, Norway, Greenland and the Faeroe Islands, and organized by NAMMCO, the North Atlantic Marine Mammal Commission, has been performed periodically since 1987.
According to the 2007 count the number of minke whales in Icelandic waters had dropped from 40,000 to 20,000. This year‘s count indicated a further drop in the population. Gísli tells Fréttablaðið that the reason for the drop in the minke whale population is due to climate change and changing conditions in the ocean around Iceland.
Changing feeding patterns
The raitt‘s sand eel population collapsed in 2005 with significant negative consequences for the minke whales. Gísli points out that sand eel was 80% of the feed of minke whales in 2003, but provided only a small fraction of the whale‘s catch in 2009. Instead the minke whales began feeding on other fish, including herring. It is also believed minke whales have moved to feeding off capelin off the coast of Greenland.
It was hoped that this year‘s count could help shed light on the changing behaviour of the minke whales around Iceland. However, Gísli points out that bad weather made it impossible to complete only a part of the count. Scientists could complete the count in only 38% of the area which they initially intended to cover. Whether or not the count is repeated and completed is unclear, as the Marine Research Institute must first secure further funding for the count.
Gísli adds that the whale hunting has no effect on the population size of the two whales which are hunted, minke whales and fin whales.
Figures from a count of whales by the Icelandic Marine Research Institute HAFRÓ released yesterday indicated that the number of minke whales in Icelandic waters had dropped significantly over the past few years. However, the head of whale research at HAFRÓ points out these figures are unreliable as the count was negatively affected by bad weather.
Read more: More fin and humpback whales, fewer minke whales by Iceland
Bad weather and climate change to blame
Gísli A. Víkingsson, the head of whale research at the Icelandic Marine Research Institute, told the local newspaper Fréttablaðið that the weather conditions during this year‘s whale count were worse than during any of the previous counts. The whale count, which is performed by Iceland, Norway, Greenland and the Faeroe Islands, and organized by NAMMCO, the North Atlantic Marine Mammal Commission, has been performed periodically since 1987.
According to the 2007 count the number of minke whales in Icelandic waters had dropped from 40,000 to 20,000. This year‘s count indicated a further drop in the population. Gísli tells Fréttablaðið that the reason for the drop in the minke whale population is due to climate change and changing conditions in the ocean around Iceland.
Changing feeding patterns
The raitt‘s sand eel population collapsed in 2005 with significant negative consequences for the minke whales. Gísli points out that sand eel was 80% of the feed of minke whales in 2003, but provided only a small fraction of the whale‘s catch in 2009. Instead the minke whales began feeding on other fish, including herring. It is also believed minke whales have moved to feeding off capelin off the coast of Greenland.
It was hoped that this year‘s count could help shed light on the changing behaviour of the minke whales around Iceland. However, Gísli points out that bad weather made it impossible to complete only a part of the count. Scientists could complete the count in only 38% of the area which they initially intended to cover. Whether or not the count is repeated and completed is unclear, as the Marine Research Institute must first secure further funding for the count.
Gísli adds that the whale hunting has no effect on the population size of the two whales which are hunted, minke whales and fin whales.
