Iceland 2013

In this, the second part of the Elding blog, María Björk Gunnarsdóttir looks at the challenges faced by a whale watching operator working in the same bay as the whalers. In fact, the whale watch boats are moored alongside the fin whaling fleet in the Old Harbour in Reykjavik. I think one of the facts I was most disgusted by is that the minke whalers take just 11-20% of the whale meat and discard most of the carcass while still at sea. There are hundreds of rotting minke whale carcasses on the seabed in Faxafloi Bay - what this must sound and 'feel' like to the intelligent, sentient whales that survived the harpoon must be unbearable.

Maria takes up the whaling vs. whale watch story here.

It comes as no surprise that Iceland is considered one of the top whale watching destinations in Europe. The rich feeding grounds surrounding Iceland have attracted whales for centuries and the conditions for viewing them are excellent. Thinking back in time it makes perfect sense as to why foreign, and later Icelandic whalers, sought out the resources in these waters. What does come as a surprise, however is that still today, in the 21st century, whaling continues to take place in these waters, and, what is more, in the same area that tens of thousands of tourists go whale watching every year.

In 2003 our hopes that whale watching would eventually replace all urges for whaling in the Icelandic community were dashed. The Icelandic government introduced a four-year scientific whaling scheme resulting in the deaths of 200 minke whales. The scientific whaling lead to the resumption of commercial whaling in 2006 and from then on well over 300 Minke Whales and close to 300 fin whales have been killed.

During this time tourism in Iceland has grown exponentially and so too has whale watching alongside. Last year alone, over 170,000 passengers went whale watching, that’s around one third of all visitors to Iceland. What is surprising though, is these tourists are keeping the whaling industry afloat due to the amount of whale meat bought in restaurants and supermarkets. A poll conducted by IFAW in 2010 concluded that only 5% of Icelandic’s eat whale meat regularly.



It is fascinating to see these two contrasting industries rising together. However, by digging deeper the whale watching operators have voiced their concerns as their statistics indicate declining sightings and poorer quality of the tours, which naturally can have dramatic long-term effects on whale watching in Iceland if it continues.

Even though whaling has very limited support internationally, Icelanders have proven supportive of this industry over the years. The most likely explanation for this support is to be found in a political discourse. The Icelandic government emphasises its sovereign right to determine the exploitation of all resources within Icelandic territorial waters, usually referred to as “their resources”. Catching whales has therefore been seen more or less the same as catching fish.

Following the resumption of whaling the whalers also embraced the idea of increased exports, revenue and employment for the Icelanders while ignoring CITES regulations on the ban of trading in whale products. This emphasis on economic benefits proved an effective way to garner the public’s support during the economic recession in Iceland following the bank crisis in 2008. The opponents of whaling doubted the real economic benefits of the industry from the start. Their emphasis has been on presenting whale watching as the only sustainable use of these resources.

With the passing years more and more Icelanders are seeing the big picture and slowly the attitudes are changing. Icelanders are now seeing that whaling is not only morally wrong, it is damaging for whale watching industry and also messy, unsustainable and bad for the image of Iceland.

What can you do to help:

Come to Iceland and go whale watching. By going out on a boat you are helping us demonstrate that whale watching is more beneficial than whaling.

Don’t eat whale meat!

Voice your concern!
- Let restaurant owners know that you don’t like the fact that they serve whale meat or better yet let them know that you are not eating there because they serve whale meat.
- Send a letter / e-mail to the Icelandic government
- Send a letter / e-mail to the Icelandic Tourist Board

Avoid Icelandic fish products from HB Grandi (fish supplied by Icelandic whalers)

Support anti-whaling campaigns

This blog entry will be a two-parter and is written by our good friends and colleagues at Elding Whale Watching in Reykjavik. (www.elding.is).

Here, María Björk Gunnarsdóttir, introduces us to Iceland's winter whale watching opportunities.

Nowadays a lot of emphasis is being put on promoting Iceland as a whole year destination. Marketing the winters is now the main focus due to the summer months already attracting more than enough tourists each year. The winter weather however can be troublesome due to its unpredictability which is ever more interchangeable during this season. This has given a perplexed feeling to Icelanders about increasing tourism during this time of year.

A few years ago whale watching was one activity that no one could even imagine being run in winter, come to think of it, in the mid 90s whale watching in general sounded like an absurd idea to most Icelanders. The most vocal claims were simply that there weren’t any whales around in winter and comments about weather often followed. The team at Elding Whale Watching Reykjavik, with a crazy idea in their mind, proved them wrong already in 2008. Their winter tours have provided both an exciting and adventurous experience for their guests and now winter whale watching is one of the best examples of winter tourism in Iceland.

This is how the Elding team looks at the difference between whale watching in summer and winter.

The first point we would like to make is quite obvious - the weather! In general it is much colder and windier and we have unfortunately more cancellations in wintertime. Of course we do our best to make tours as comfortable and enjoyable for our guests as possible. In wintertime most of our guests stay in the heated indoor saloon on the way out to the whale watching grounds and on the way back to port. They also make good use of our warm overalls when outside watching the whales. Despite the cold, most of the tours we do are absolutely amazing and the low-lying winter sun and snow-capped mountains truly make it special.



It is not only the weather that makes these winter tours different but the cetacean species differ as well. Iceland being mainly feeding grounds there comes a time each autumn when the migrating whales leave us for the warmer waters in the south. The species that are most common in the wintertime are those feeding on the herring, which is more abundant at this time as the Norwegian stocks come together with the Icelandic stocks. Thus, the main species we see from largest to smallest are; the humpback whale, orca, white-beaked dolphins and harbour porpoises. Occasionally, other species are sighted as well such as; minke, blue, and fin whales which are either staying behind or on their way south.

Running the winter tours we soon discovered that being resourceful was more important than ever before. This means that we needed to keep all options open and if the weather wasn’t favourable from Reykjavík we had another boat located in a harbour on the Reykjanes peninsula. We have therefore come to good terms with the harbour masters in Hafnarfjörður, Keflavík, Sandgerði and Grindavík. Operating from these optional areas we’ve also made good contact amongst the local fishermen who know the area better than anyone. Reykjavík Old harbour is still the heart of our business, but in winter we often transport our passengers to and from these other harbours via bus at no extra cost. As a result we spend less time sailing, more time with the whales and in better conditions.



Tips for enjoying the winter whale watching tours:

Dress warmly, dress warmly, dress warmly... Hats, gloves and scarves are essential along with a warm sweater. Non-skid shoes and warm socks are also advisable and don’t be shy to put on the warm overalls provided on board. This may not be the most fashionable outfit but keeping in mind that the weather conditions along the coast are often windy with slightly colder temperatures out on the water you’ll soon discover why we encourage guests to wear them.

Do your research, the whales move freely and some days are definitely better than others. Elding writes a blog “Whale Diary” with daily updates on sightings.

Check out the weather forecast, be flexible and take the crews advice on when is the best day to go whale watching.

Bring a camera along with a plastic bag to cover it in case it rains and a pair of binoculars.

Sunglasses come in handy on bright sunny winter days as the sun is quite low on the horizon

Be open and make the most out this interesting adventure, even if you don’t manage to experience on first attempt what you had hoped for. On non-sighting and poor sighting tours Elding offers complimentary tickets for guests to come again.


Elding's winter whale watching video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qGSSV9GKTok&feature=share&list=UURK1u1Z4OlJuuyIeCpqDOIw

With all the talk of whales these past few weeks and the excitement of people seeing these amazing animals just metres from shore, it could be easy to forget the much darker side of man’s interest in these sentient, intelligent mammals.

When I arrived in Iceland in January, preparations were underway to celebrate the mid-winter festival of Þorrablót or Thorrablot. This is a tradition dating back to the Vikings and, as it takes place during the coldest and darkest days of the year, the fare is usually smoked or pickled produce from previous seasons. The ‘treats’ typically include Hákarl - putrefied shark, Hrútspungur - ram’s testicles (yes, really!) and Blóðmör or filled sausage/black pudding. A recent addition, apparently, to the Thorrablot menu is Sur Hvalur/Langreydur or pickled fin whale.
During my first week here I paid a visit to the local supermarket and found twenty packs of Sur Hvalur/ Langreydur. When I checked again two weeks later all but one had gone. No fin whales have been killed in Iceland since 2011 so this particular Thorrablot menu item is at least three years old.

Most meat of the endangered fin whale is for the export market, mainly to Japan; it is usually only minke whale to be found in Iceland’s hotels and restaurants. An alarmingly high percentage (40% in 2010) of this minke whale meat is consumed by international tourists in the mistaken belief that eating whale meat is a part of Icelandic tradition and culture. Put plainly and simply, it’s not!

Foreign whalers had tried to operate throughout Iceland in the 19th century but it was not until 1948 that the Icelandic commercial whaling really recommenced with the establishment of the Hvalur H/F company and continued until the whaling moratorium in 1986 and some abortive attempts at scientific whaling for a few years after. There has been a limited minke whale hunt for the domestic market, but in a 2010 poll, less than 5% of Icelanders said they ate whale meat regularly.

Furthermore according to the paper by Icelandic scientists Thorvauldur Gunnlaugsson and Gisli Vikingsson and Canadian researcher Daniel Pike, sightings surveys from 2007 indicated that the abundance estimate for the minke whale population in Icelandic waters is now estimated to be between 10,000 – 15,000 animals, only 24% of the estimate published in 2001.

As the number of people visiting Iceland is likely to reach 1 million by 2016 there is huge potential for the ethical, responsible traveller to make a real stand and ask their tour operator searching questions as to their policy on whale meat. Travel companies and local guides are key to winning this battle as it is they who ‘introduce’ their clients to establishments that still drive this barbaric practice.

One easy way to register your concerns about the trade in whale meat once in Iceland is to visit the local restaurants and hotels and even make a reservation. Once at the table, peruse the menu and, if you see whale meat on the menu, call over the manager and say you have decided against eating there as you can’t support any business that serves whale meat. Then just get up and leave. Just please remember to always be courteous.



But it’s not just the whale meat that’s an issue here. On a rare day off in Reykjavik this past weekend I took a stroll down the main shopping street, Laugavegur. There’s a shop called Kulusuk Art selling fur and ‘gifts’ from Iceland’s nearest neighbour, Greenland. For a small shop it was incredible how much merchandise they actually stocked and I saw seal skin coats, reindeer hide covers and arctic fox stoles. Most of the high ticket items were kept under glass and on closer inspection, in a display cabinet next to the till, the store was offering sperm whale teeth for sale at £400 (€460, $600) and what looked to me like an orca tooth made in to the handle of a dagger for £800. I’m not quite sure who the audience is for these goods as bringing whale products into the USA, for example, is banned and for the EU, depending on species is either banned or needs strict CITES permits.



So as we revel in our sightings of these beautiful creatures or click “like” on another stunning Facebook photograph of whales in their natural environment we must remember that the fight to conserve them must go on in others ways too.

For this instalment, Anja Reckendorf, a research assistant at WDC North America, gives her personal reflection on an amazing week.



Anja.

An outstanding week just came to an end and I am not sure if I can successfully describe all the amazing experiences that we had, but I will give it a try.
In a nutshell, the first ever WhaleFest in Iceland, was a combination of whale watching trips with programme lectures from many top whale experts as well as time to explore the beautiful Icelandic countryside.

For the past three years, herring have chosen the fjord outside the small fishing village of Grundarfjörður as their safe winter port and with them came the orcas to feed on them. This phenomenon provides a golden opportunity to see the large number of orcas swimming extremely close to shore in the fjord. WhaleFest included three whale watches with Laki Tours in Grundarfjörður and for me, a fairly experienced whale watcher, it was amazing to see these magnificent animals in such large numbers and close proximity to the boat and shore. They didn’t seem to be bothered by us watching them at all and a calf even chose to check us out and swim by the boat only two metres away! We were thrilled! I don’t know how to put my euphoria into words. We got so spoiled on these trips, it was unbelievable!



The evenings were filled with great talks from world renowned specialists in their fields. We were very lucky to hear awe-inspiring lectures from Erich Hoyt (orca expert and marine conservation champion, WDC), Rob Lott (WDC), Vassili Papastavrou (IFAW), Sigursteinn Másson (IFAW Iceland) and Dr Filipa Samarra (Marine Research Institute, Iceland). Being able to meet with these well-known cetacean researchers and conservationists, to hear about their amazing work and go out on the boat with them to see orcas - tons of orcas - was an absolute once in a lifetime experience!
We also had the opportunity to learn from local “heroes” and specialists such as Ragnar Sigurdsson (world-renowned Icelandic photographer), Gisli Olafsson (founder of Laki Tours), Ásbjörn Bjorgvinsson, (Chairman & founder of Húsavík Whale Museum) and Maria Bjork Gunnarsdottir (Elding Whale Watching, Reykjavík).

Being educated about orca research, acoustic and behavioural studies, whale watching tourism in contrast to whaling, threats that cetaceans face around the world and possible solutions to various problems, was a very valuable bonus for all participating guests. We all learned a lot and were very honoured to meet these wonderful people!



It was a fantastic week with lots of fun, interesting facts, beautiful nature and a bunch of great people that came together to share their love of whales.
Thanks again to all the amazing lecturers, especially to Erich Hoyt for being part of this extraordinary experience; to Laki Tours for being so conscious around the orcas and for providing very responsible yet astonishing whale watches to us and finally to Alexa and Cathy from Discover the World for making this amazing event happen! It was a blast!



Erich Hoyt and Rob Lott

We are often asked by people how we got to work in cetacean conservation and what advice we could offer to anyone starting out in the field today. For this blog, I have asked two researchers, Julie Bessau from France and Sara Tavares from Portugal, how they first became involved with cetaceans and how they ended up in Grundarfjordur in Iceland studying the wild orcas.



Julie Bessau

My name is Julie and I have been fascinated by the ocean for as long as I can remember. I obtained a Master’s degree in Marine Biology in Brest, France, in 2010.

Over the years I have been involved in several different marine biology projects from studying coral growth under different types of aquarium light to hydrothermal vent ecosystems.

However I have always been attracted to working with marine mammals and after I completed my Masters I worked as a volunteer for six months in Normandy studying the large population of bottlenose dolphins found there. This work was used to estimate the distribution and demography of this population present in the English Channel.

I then moved to Scotland and worked for two months as an intern at the University of St Andrews studying the sounds of the orca, Morgan who was found in shallow seas off the coast of the Netherlands in 2010.

I am currently in Iceland for two months (February- March) working as a volunteer and investigating the population of herring-eating orcas. My task is to take pictures of encounters with orcas during the boat trips and to make underwater recordings. The pictures we take are used to identify each individual and will contribute to a photo-ID catalogue for the orcas seen in Grundarfjordur during the winter.

As to the future, I would like to continue working with marine mammal acoustic research with possibly a PhD or a research assistant job.



Sara Tavares

I’m Sara, I’m 24 years and I’m Portuguese. Since my childhood I’ve been drawn to nature and wildlife but with a special enchantment for the sea. Although my fondness for mathematics, the sea and the animals were what really filled my heart and I went to Porto University, in Portugal, to do my bachelor in Aquatic Sciences.

I became interested in ethology (animal behaviour) but due to some changes in the format of the course I was not able to continue with this subject. So, I decided that the best thing for me would be to continue my studies in the same University and do a Master's degree in Marine Sciences/Marine Resources, with a specialisation in Marine Biology and Ecology. My Master’s dissertation was in animal behaviour, with the title “Behavioural study of Labrador Retriever in aquatic environment”. Through this I became even more attracted to animal behaviour and keen to pursue a career in this area of study. A month after finishing my Masters, I decided to continue studying towards a PhD. I found a post-graduate research opportunity at the University of St Andrews in Scotland looking at the social, acoustic, foraging behaviour and ecophysiology of orcas in the North Atlantic. I wrote a research proposal to the University to study the social associations and group level sound production of orcas in Iceland which was accepted and some months later I was able to obtain a PhD grant from FCT (Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia). I feel that I have so much to learn but I don’t regret the hard work I had to embrace to get where I am, nor the one that I know is yet to come. I’m just starting the fieldwork in Iceland this season and I feel so privileged to have the opportunity to be here, to work in the natural environment and to be close to these magnificent whales. The funniest thing is that, although I can’t remember, my parents say that when I was little I used to say that when I grew up I wanted to go in a boat, onto the sea, play the guitar and listen to the whales “singing”. And the sound of the orcas is the most beautiful sound in the world to me...