A brief introduction to these species appeared necessary to better understand the
role they play for humans and which legal responses have been taken to either
regulate their hunts or to protect them. Upon reading the subsequent chapters, the
reader is encouraged to either go back to these pages to recall which species we are
dealing with, or to visit the website of the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species,
available at www.iucnredlist.org, which holds a wealth of information on the status
of the species in question, the history of human interaction with the species, and the
current threats to the species. Probably the most authoritative source on marine
mammals is the Encyclopedia of Marine Mammals
36 which is the most comprehensive volume on marine mammals so far.
Indeed, marine mammal biology is highly complex—both in regard to understanding the species and in regard to assessing the population statuses. For a better
understanding of the benefits and pitfalls of different study techniques, I recommend
the book Marine Mammals. Biology and Conservation, edited by Peter G.H. Evans
and Juan Antonio Raga.
37 Also the website of the North Atlantic Marine Mammal
Commission (NAMMCO) holds interesting information on both the conservation
statuses of North Atlantic marine mammals as well as different survey techniques.
The website is available at www.nammco.no.
Having obtained some knowledge on marine mammals, we now turn to the
history of the interaction between humans and marine mammals.
References
Aguilar A (2008) Fin whale. In: Perrin W, Würsig B, Thewissen JGM (eds) Encyclopedia of marine
mammals, 2nd edn. Academic Press, Burlington, pp 433–437
Ballance LT (2008) Cetacean ecology. In: Perrin W, Würsig B, Thewissen JGM (eds) Encyclopedia
of marine mammals, 2nd edn. Academic Press, Burlington, pp 196–201
Berta A (2008) Pinniped evolution. In: Perrin W, Würsig B, Thewissen JGM (eds) Encyclopedia of
marine mammals, 2nd edn. Academic Press, Burlington, pp 861–868
Clapham PJ (2008) Humpback whale. In: Perrin W, Würsig B, Thewissen JGM (eds) Encyclopedia
of marine mammals, 2nd edn. Academic Press, Burlington, pp 582–585
Cooke JG (2018a) Balaenoptera musculus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2018. https://
doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T2477A50226195.en. Accessed 16 May 2019
Cooke JG (2018b) Balaenoptera physalus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2018. https://
doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T2478A50349982.en. Accessed 17 May 2019
Cooke JG (2018c) Megaptera novaeangliae. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2018.
https://doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T13006A50362794.en. Accessed 16 May
2019
Cooke JG (2018d) Eschrichtius robustus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2018. https://
doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T8097A50353881.en. Accessed 20 May 2019
Cooke JG, Reeves R (2018) Balaena mysticetus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2018.
https://doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-1.RLTS.T2467A50347659.en. Accessed 17 May 2019
36 Perrin et al. (2008).
37 Evans and Raga (2001).
32
2 Marine Mammals: Some Basics
role they play for humans and which legal responses have been taken to either
regulate their hunts or to protect them. Upon reading the subsequent chapters, the
reader is encouraged to either go back to these pages to recall which species we are
dealing with, or to visit the website of the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species,
available at www.iucnredlist.org, which holds a wealth of information on the status
of the species in question, the history of human interaction with the species, and the
current threats to the species. Probably the most authoritative source on marine
mammals is the Encyclopedia of Marine Mammals
36 which is the most comprehensive volume on marine mammals so far.
Indeed, marine mammal biology is highly complex—both in regard to understanding the species and in regard to assessing the population statuses. For a better
understanding of the benefits and pitfalls of different study techniques, I recommend
the book Marine Mammals. Biology and Conservation, edited by Peter G.H. Evans
and Juan Antonio Raga.
37 Also the website of the North Atlantic Marine Mammal
Commission (NAMMCO) holds interesting information on both the conservation
statuses of North Atlantic marine mammals as well as different survey techniques.
The website is available at www.nammco.no.
Having obtained some knowledge on marine mammals, we now turn to the
history of the interaction between humans and marine mammals.
References
Aguilar A (2008) Fin whale. In: Perrin W, Würsig B, Thewissen JGM (eds) Encyclopedia of marine
mammals, 2nd edn. Academic Press, Burlington, pp 433–437
Ballance LT (2008) Cetacean ecology. In: Perrin W, Würsig B, Thewissen JGM (eds) Encyclopedia
of marine mammals, 2nd edn. Academic Press, Burlington, pp 196–201
Berta A (2008) Pinniped evolution. In: Perrin W, Würsig B, Thewissen JGM (eds) Encyclopedia of
marine mammals, 2nd edn. Academic Press, Burlington, pp 861–868
Clapham PJ (2008) Humpback whale. In: Perrin W, Würsig B, Thewissen JGM (eds) Encyclopedia
of marine mammals, 2nd edn. Academic Press, Burlington, pp 582–585
Cooke JG (2018a) Balaenoptera musculus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2018. https://
doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T2477A50226195.en. Accessed 16 May 2019
Cooke JG (2018b) Balaenoptera physalus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2018. https://
doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T2478A50349982.en. Accessed 17 May 2019
Cooke JG (2018c) Megaptera novaeangliae. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2018.
https://doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T13006A50362794.en. Accessed 16 May
2019
Cooke JG (2018d) Eschrichtius robustus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2018. https://
doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T8097A50353881.en. Accessed 20 May 2019
Cooke JG, Reeves R (2018) Balaena mysticetus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2018.
https://doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-1.RLTS.T2467A50347659.en. Accessed 17 May 2019
36 Perrin et al. (2008).
37 Evans and Raga (2001).
32
2 Marine Mammals: Some Basics