Last week, NOAA announced a positive 90-day finding on the endangered species petition filed for the insular population of Hawaiian false killer whales (Pseudorca crassidens). This finding indicates that “the petition presents substantial scientific or commercial information indicating that the petitioned action may be warranted,” and initiates a full status review of the stock.

NOAA is soliciting public comments on the status review of the insular population of Hawaiian false killer whales, and we encourage members of the MARMAM community to submit comments before the Feb 4 deadline. NOAA is specifically soliciting comments relevant to the following topics: “1) Taxonomy, abundance, reproductive success, age structure, distribution, habitat selection, food habits, population density and trends, and habitat trends; 2) Effects of other potential threat factors, including climate change, ocean acidification, acoustic impacts, and persistent organic pollutants; 3) Interactions with fisheries, including longline, unregulated nearshore, and shortline fisheries; 4) Unconfirmed interactions from local fishermen; 5) Effects of management on the insular population of Hawaiian false killer whales.”

A link to the Federal Register notice and more information about submitting comments can be found at: http://www.fpir.noaa.gov/PRD/prd_false_killer_whale.html

If you have any questions about the ESA petition, please contact Liz Alter (lalter@nrdc.org).

S. Elizabeth Alter, PhD

Science Center

Natural Resources Defense Council

40 West 20^th Street

New York, NY 10011