Cook inlet beluga whale and the management of anadromous systems

Background/Question/Methods

The beluga whale (Delphinapterus leucas) is a small, toothed whale in the family Monodontidae, a family it shares with only the narwhal (Monodon monoceros). Belugas are also known as ‘‘white whales’’ because of the coloration of adults. The beluga whale is a northern hemisphere species, ranging primarily over the Arctic Ocean and some adjoining seas where they inhabit fjords, estuaries, and shallow water.

Five distinct population segments of beluga whales are currently recognized in Alaska, with the Cook Inlet population numerically the smallest. The Cook Inlet beluga whale (CIBW) was listed by the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) as endangered in 2008 and critical habitat was designated under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) in 2011. Cook Inlet belugas are seasonally abundant in Knik Arm, adjacent to JBER, and have been detected up to 1.3 river miles upstream in Eagle River within the JBER boundary.

When the CIBW became listed as endangered, salmon were identified among the primary constituent elements deemed essential to the conservation of these whales. All five Pacific salmon species found in North America return to JBER streams to spawn.  All five species run and spawn in Eagle River and four of the five species spawn within the Sixmile Lake System.

Results/Conclusions

JBER is a major partner on multi-agency passive acoustic monitoring projects, coupling acoustic and visual behavior studies to develop seasonal presence data in waters adjacent to the installation.  In 2012 this collaborative effort led to the implementation of an innovative monitoring system capable of autonomously and remotely detecting beluga presence in real-time and broadcasting detections to a home base.

Additionally, JBER biologists designed and executed a multi-year fish tissue sampling effort to monitor for the presence of munitions constituents in fish populations within and near the Eagle River Flats Impact Area. A total of 112 samples from 102 different fish representing 15 species were screened for munitions constituents; no analytes of interest were found to be above the reporting limit in any of the samples.

JBER fisheries biologists installed and operated a new fish wheel and sonar to measure salmon run timing/strength in Eagle River, critical data for CIBW range usage.  In 2011, salmon spawning bed enhancements were conducted in several high-priority habitats on the installation.  Salmon smolt out-migration from this system is monitored by trained volunteers; in 2012 the highest number in seven years was tallied at over 23,500 fish.