Land of the Long White Cloud 2 - the Wildlife of Akaroa Bay

 What can you see in Akaroa Bay on one sunny morning? (This is the first day of Summer here by the way.)
Well....

White-fronted tern

Spotted Shag

Spotted shags on the roost with young

Mid-Bay

Young spotted shags paying careful attention

Entrance to the Bay (a southerly blowing)

A New Zealand furseal

Hector's dolphins

Blue Penguins

Pied Shag

Young Pieds

Land of the Long White Cloud 1

As you probably know the blog is entitled Somewhere Far Away. Sometimes I think this is a philosophical statement (as in somewhere far away from the norms of society) but mainly it is because I often find myself far from home. Today I am about as far away as I could possibly be: South Island, New Zealand.

Here are a few images from around Bank's Peninsula.

View from the Scenic Drive along the edge of the old volcano looking towards Akaroa (the Long Bay)

Large adjacent bird of prey: Marsh or Australasian Harrier (an endemic species)

White-faced heron

Here be an old 'Tri Pot' (used for boiling whale blubber to recover the oil therein) because we are again on the trail of the whalers here in Bank's Peninsula.

Plate on tripot reads: Whaling Tripot used by Capt. Hempleman Peake 1835

The whalers came here in the 1800s looking for the liquid gold that the whales contained and they also found a green and pleasant land where many aspired to live. 

In 1838, Jean Langlois, the captain of the French whaling ship Cachalot attempted to buy Bank's Peninsula from the local Maori Chief. He returned to France and arranged for a group of colonists to be shipped across the world. But by the time that they arrived in 1840, accompanied by a French naval vessel, the treaty of Waitangi had been signed and New Zealand was already a British Colony. 

Today people flock to Akaroa to interact with cetaceans rather differently - plate on side of boat reads Swimming with Dolphins'

Congratulations Dr de Boer

My old friend, co-author and long-term collaborator, Marijke de Boer, survived her PhD viva last week at the University of Wageningen and emerged as Dr de Boer.

The whole event is online; so if you want to see how a formal viva at a Dutch University is conducted, including many interesting question of a variety of degrees of relevance click HERE

Marijke presents her work flanked by her paranymphs

The review panel including the University's Rector Magnificus process from the room

Marijke's thesis consists of 8 published papers. 4 come from her work with WDC over the years and 2 of these concern studies made on Bardsey Island. It is entitled: 'Elusive Marine Mammals Explored - Charting under-recorded areas to study the abundance and distribution of cetaceans using Multi-Method approaches and Platforms of Opportunity'.

Well done Marijke and thanks in particular for taking the Bardsey work to fruition. .

The Cat Graffiti of Tangier

There are many rangy cats (and quite a few equally rangy and large-eared dogs) roaming the back streets of the Kazbar. They seem mainly well cared for and curiously - they have been recognised in some small artistic wall decorations.

And here is the real thing - enjoying some November sunshine

Dateline Tangier 6

ACCOBAMS Meeting of Parties - Close

So the draft report of the Meeting of Parties (MoP) arrives late in the afternoon and is carefully reviewed paragraph by paragraph..

Eventually it is all agreed and all the resolutions are formally approved and passed, including the two tricky noise-focused ones (albeit it in forms significantly different from the original drafts and the beaked whale resolution lacks the map developed by the scientific committee).

No one offers to host the next Meeting of Parties (although Morocco indicates that we would be welcome to return) and we move finally to the adoption of the report.

Before we close, the new Executive Secretary, Florence, is called to the microphone and she refers to the difficulty in taking over from her predecessor (although she says that she will keep Marie Christine on speed-dial), and that she knows that she will be supported by the 'dream-team' of Secretariat staff.

Then Malta and Portugal hijack the meeting to present 'resolution 6', which is entitled 'The Future that we Want'... and a power point follows showing many somewhat unusual images of delegates. Reference is made to the  the 'noisy groupies', ACCOFUNS and the 'Extinguished Delegates'. There is much laughter and the now infamous map even features among the images.

Marina of Portugal says this has been the best MoP because we have been so well looked after and applause follows.

And so with grateful thanks to Morocco for hosting and with some delegates disappointed about the noise resolutions (see for example this discussed in a blog here), the meeting closes.

ACCOFUNS

Dateline Tangier 5

On Friday the delegates to the ACCOBAMS MoP are treated to a tour whilst the secretariat prepares the minutes of the meeting for the review and this includes the texts of the resolutions which enshrine the formal decisions.

A view of Spain from North Africa

We visit the Grotto of Hercules; take a look across the Strait at Spain and visit the Kasbar and throughout this trip the sun shines brightly. Here are a few images of this.

A Common Bulbul in the Kasbar

A large tortoise of the Kasbar

One of the wonderful ancient doors in the Kasbar

A small tortoise of the Kasbar

Ancient and modern

Dateline Tangier 4

ACCOBAMS Day 3 part two: Tomato ketchup is discussed.

Just after lunch, one of the two noise resolution arrives but the other (focused on beaked whales) is missing…. Other resolutions are passed expeditiously under the guidance of the acting chair who today is His Excellency Ambassador Patrick van Klaveren of Monaco. There is a little hesitation over the resolution that deals with the composition of the Scientific Committee but after some small (but meaningful) modifications it is passed – subject to the names of committee members being added after the various relevant bodies have established them. In due course this leads to some little huddles of delegates representing different regions.

Eventually, even though the relevant resolution has still not arrived, the distinguished cetologist Giuseppe Notabartolo di Sciara is brought to the microphone to explain the work on Cuvier’s beaked whales done by the ACCOBAMS scientific committee that underpins this resolution. (The background to this is that this species has been shown to be particularly sensitive to loud noise and a number of stranding events have been linked to loud noise sources.) He shows a map where sensitive areas for this species of beaked whale have been charted through a comprehensive modelling process.

The map in question

[Whilst he is speaking, copies of the relevant resolution finally reach the room…. At least in English.]

The Chair of the late night drafting group explains that the resolutions have been modified from their original texts for various scientific and political reasons.

The Chair of the Meeting then tries to open the discussion but some delegates still do not have the resolution and the French version is not available. Morocco says that he would like to wait for the French version and notes that there have been some strandings of this species on his coast-line that are not shown.

The Tethys Institute explains that the strandings shown on the map are only ‘atypical ones’ featuring more than one species. This will probably explain why the Moroccan strandings have not been shown.

Cyprus noted that the working group discussed the map extensively last night and notes that it is not included in the resolution and urges that we should not reopen this matter.

Croatia finds the map very useful however. It will help those working in nature conservation agencies and she notes that she has new data that can be added to future modelling.

France has comments on the map. He notes that these kinds of maps can be useful and they commend that such work should be carried out but the work done to generate them needs to be well described. France would never accept that such maps would forbid sonar use.  They must be management and planning tools.

NRDC and OceanCare speaking with one voice commend the work of the Scientific Committee on beaked whale protection and recalls that the Scientific Committee was specifically asked to do this work. He understands the problems that parties might have with this but we should remind ourselves there is an urgent need to act and protect the species. He also strongly supports the Spanish government’s move to sponsor the including of this species in the annex of the Convention for Migratory Species.

The OceanCare observer continues: We have an obligation to act to protect this species. [The Chair asks him to slow down.] It’s the passion, he replies! Nature will not wait.

Giuseppe agrees that this [controversial] map was asked for. It was not produced to stop navies or any elements of sovereignty. I see with regret that the map will not be adopted – I understand the mechanisms for this – but I insist that this is high in the recommendations that the scientific committee now reacts to. In the resolution that now speaks to this we are encouraging a workshop for space-based conservation of beaked whales involving all stakeholders. We must act to conserve this species.

Greece noted that he worked in the drafting group and he also recalls the stakeholder collaboration but he is concerned that the previous relevant resolution [resolution 4.17 passed at the last meeting of parties] has not been tested. As soon as it is clear that 4.17 has not worked, then it may be possible to bring further actions.

A few further comments follow and some small editorial changes are made.

Then France comments that there is a joint noise task-force between ACCOBAMS and CMS and urges that this task force needs to be involved more before the meetings.

Finally the generic noise resolution [5.15] is adopted. The French version of the other noise-focused resolution about beaked whales is still not in the room in sufficiency and so we move on to other matters and, by the time a group-photograph and coffee have come and gone, we are back in the room with adequate copies.

France has comments: Cuvier’s beaked whales are important to him and further discussions should continue. He adds some recommended changes including that some definition of protected areas should be added. An NGO suggests some ways of allowing such points to be incorporated and adds that there are many definitions of marine protected area and here this matter has clearly been left open for the interpretation of parties.

The resolution is almost adopted when a debate about whether or not the map of sensitive areas presented by Giuseppe earlier and derived from the work of the Scientific Committee should be included. Some oppose this – others would like to see it included because it would be helpful in terms of explaining what was discussed. This continues for about 30 minutes. In the end the Chair proposes a hyper-link from the minutes to a text where the map can be found… and it is done.

We move on to another resolution…. But no, we come back to the previous one, France says that there are some issues with the French translation which he will pass to the Secretariat…

Father Entrup takes confession.

We move on. A resolution on whale watching arises… an NGO challenges the use of the term whale watching ‘label’ (noting that a label is something that is put on a bottle of tomato sauce). The chair says that if it is a good quality bottle of tomato sauce this is OK, and after some discussion it is agreed that ‘certificate’ may be a better word.

A resolution ‘in homage to ACCOBAMS’s first Executive Secretary follows. After 13 years, the first executive secretary of the Agreement, Madame Marie-Christine Grillo is retiring. She is presented with gifts and a standing ovation.   

The meeting closes but will resume on Friday afternoon to agree the minutes.

The Chair and Executive Secretary

The Executive Secretary tries to hide

A gift is revealed

Saying goodbye.

I have known Marie-Christine, since we first meet in the earliest days of the agreement, at least thirteen years ago and it has been my privilege to have worked with her on many things in support of cetacean conservation in the ACCOBAMS region. , 

She has been the 'backbone of the agreement and it is difficult to think of ACCOBAMS without her. A resolution was passed by the parties that was an accolade to her outstanding contribution and the standing ovation that she received was very well deserved.

Dateline Tangier 3

ACCOBAMS Meeting of Parties: day three.

Alongside other delegates, the bleary-eyed members of the noise working group assemble at 8am at the meeting hotel after a late-night debate over the noise resolutions.

The day opens with another presentation on noise, this time from the Oil and Gas Producers organisation focused on the propagation of noise and then we enter into a discussion on whale-watching with a contribution from the secretary of the Pelagos Sanctuary, Fanny Dubois.

The Humane Society International makes a cautious intervention on whale watching further to presentations on feasibility studies in Tunisia and Morocco. Their representative says:

HSI welcomes the studies and notes that, over the years that ACCOBAMS has worked on whale watching, the scientific evidence from around the world of a negative impact of whale watching has accrued. Hence, in those bodies where the technical development of whale watching is being discussed – such as the Scientific Committee of the International Whaling Committee – we increasingly speak of ‘Responsible Whale Watching’, which is what the Whale Watching ‘label’ of ACCOBAMS is also trying to address. In practice, this means the careful balancing of the commercial and educational benefits of whale watching against an approach that ensures that the animals concerned are not negatively impacted. Further advice on how this may be achieved can be obtained from specialist bodies including Whale and Dolphin Conservation and the IWC’s long-standing whale watching subcommittee.

Meanwhile, draft resolutions are piling up on the desks of the delegates and the busy members of the secretariat are working the photo-copier hard.

The drafts cover population studies (and the urgent need to conduct them across the region); the implications of Rio +20 for ACCOBAMS and texts covering the rules of procedure for the various bodies of the agreement (including the heated potato of who sits in the Scientific Committee), the working of the supplementary conservation fund and so on.

As lunch approaches the noise resolutions have not yet managed to enter the meeting room. Will they make it…. ?

Dateline Tangier 2

ACCOBAMS Meeting of Parties: day two.

Many delegates meet early in the morning and are huddled over various texts. The discussion about the scientific committee composition has emerged as of potato of some heat and parties (only) meet to discuss how to resolve this.

Later, Dr Lindy Weilgart of Dalhousie University makes a presentation on the effects of noise on beaked whales to the meeting.  She is rewarded with applause.

Lindy Weilgart

Early in the meeting the Chair asks how the noise resolutions are progressing and is promised texts by tomorrow.

The meeting plows through its documents approving and amending as necessary and, come the afternoon, the Parties and Partners hold their first vote for membership of the ‘follow-up committee’ (a body tasked with advising the parties).

Ballot papers are collected and inspected. Delegates from France, Spain and Tunisia are appointed. For the partner organisations, three organisations dramatically tie for two places and, one of them, OceanCare kindly withdraws its candidature.

This is all unprecedented.

Outside, the palm trees along the seafront move gently in the breeze under a blue sky. They are largely unmoved by the proceedings.

The discussion about who sits in the Scientific Committee continues. Similarly the noise scribes were still working and debating late into the night….

One of Dr Weilgart's slides - a PDF of the full presentation can be seen here on the Ocean Care site.

Giuseppe Notobartolo di Sciara of the Tethys Institute

Sigi Luber and Nicolas Entrup of OceanCare/NRDC