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WHERE DO THE “FALSE KILLERS” GO?
Interactions between fish, fishermen, and false killer whales are
frequently contentious. The whales eat fish and don’t care whether
a fisherman has already caught it first.
So fishermen are often a
useful source of information about the whereabouts and behavior of
these intelligent adversaries.
Research biologist Robin
Baird has studied the false killer whales in the coastal waters
around the Big Island and has noticed an anomaly. The whales seem to
travel around much of the island but may be avoiding the Southeast
coast for a reason as yet unknown.
Robin would like to see
whether fishermen who frequent that area can help solve the mystery.
Robin’s research team has
deployed satiellite tags on whales in three different groups off the
north Kona Coast. The tags last an average of a month and show
regular movements along the windward side of the Big Island and as
far away as Kauai.
“But there is a conspicuous
lack of movements along the entire southeast coast from South
Point,” Robin wrote me recently.
Perhaps the problem is a
lack of fish in those areas.
“I'm interested in finding out
from anyone who may fish out of Hilo or Milolii or launch at any of
the sites along the SE coast of the island how fishing there may
compare to other areas around the Big Island,” Robin wrote. “The
tagged false killer whales spent a lot of time off the Hamakua Coast
and the north Kona area, so it would be particularly interesting to
compare fishing to those areas. False killer whales are feeding on a
wide variety of game fish - mahimahi, ono, yellowfin tuna, skipjack
tuna, albacore tuna, and swordfish, so comparisons with sports or
commercial catches should be a pretty good indicator of how the
feeding is for them.”
If you have information and would like to comment,
respond directly to Robin Baird at RWBaird@cascadiaresearch.org. For
a report on the false killer whales of the Big Island – along with
some really remarkable images – visit
http://www.cascadiaresearch.org/robin/falsekillerwhale.htm
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