Cetaceans, basking sharks and seals Scottish Natural Heritage Out - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Cetaceans, basking sharks and seals Scottish Natural Heritage Out of sight, out of mind? Fiona Manson Scottish Natural Heritage Sharing Good Practice, 30 August 2018

What I’ll cover today Scottish Natural Heritage 1. Species & relevant legislation • Cetaceans • Basking shark • Seals 2. Pressures / “crimes” 3. Challenges (& solutions…)

Cetaceans Scottish Natural Heritage • Whales, dolphins and porpoises • 23 species recorded • Common / regular / resident • Occasional / rare • Long-lived, slow breeding mammals • Sensitive to noise

Cetaceans – legislation Scottish Natural Heritage EU Habitats Directive Conservation (Natural Habitats &c) Regulations 1994: • Offence to deliberately or recklessly kill, capture, injure, harass or disturb a European Protected Species ( cetaceans, otters, turtles) • 39(2) – Offence to deliberately or recklessly disturb any cetacean • Offence to possess, transport, sell or exchange, any live or dead EPS (or any part of…) • Licence can grant exemption for certain activities

Cetaceans – protected sites Scottish Natural Heritage Special Areas of Conservation (SAC) • Bottlenose dolphin – Moray Firth • Harbour porpoise – Inner Hebrides & the Minches Nature Conservation Marine Protected Areas proposals Risso’s dolphin Minke whale

Basking shark Scottish Natural Heritage • Second largest fish • Filter feeder • Migrate large distances • In Scotland, mainly seen in summer months • Populations still recovering from fishery

Scottish Natural Heritage Basking shark – the legislation Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981: • Offence to deliberately or recklessly kill, capture, injure, harass or disturb a basking shark • Licence can grant exemption for certain activities Nature Conservation Marine Protected Area proposal Sea of the Hebrides

Seals Scottish Natural Heritage • Two species: harbour seal and grey seal • Distinct breeding seasons • Large declines in harbour seals in some regions

Seals – the legislation Scottish Natural Heritage Marine (Scotland) Act 2010: Offence to: • Deliberately or recklessly kill, injure or take a seal • Intentionally or recklessly harass seals at significant haul-out sites  Supersedes Conservation of Seals Act 1970  Removes “netsmen’s defence” and closed/open seasons  Licence can grant exemption for certain activities Habitats Regulations 1994: Special Areas of Conservation (SAC) • Harbour seals – 9 sites • Grey seals – 6 sites

Concerns / Pressures Scottish Natural Heritage Potential Impacts Activities Collision Fishing Entanglement Aquaculture Loss of prey Coastal developments Pollution Energy Underwater noise Shipping • Auditory injury MoD • Disturbance & displacement Marine wildlife watching • Commercial • Recreational Management • Processes in place for assessing and managing impacts e.g. EIA, licensing • Dolphin and Porpoise Conservation Strategy – under development

Scottish Natural Heritage Recreational activities Wildlife tourism

Value of marine wildlife watching Scottish Natural Heritage Scottish Natural Heritage Globally – Whale watching tours are run in 119 countries with an estimated 13 million participants generating in excess of $2.1 billion (£1.1 bn) annually In Scotland “ Visitors who are primarily motivated by wildlife” Marine and coastal • Visitor spend – £163 million • Net economic impact – £40 million • 1,600 jobs • Mainly in rural areas • Growing … Data: Economic Impact of Wildlife Tourism in Scotland report, 2010

Potential impacts Scottish Natural Heritage Short-term impacts • Disturbance – noise, presence of vessels or people • Displacement – from foraging areas, breeding sites • Separating calves and mothers • Injury – collision, propeller damage, stranding Cumulative impacts Long-term impacts • Reduced survival • Reduced fertility • Population-level effects – abundance and distribution

Challenges (& solutions ….?) Scottish Natural Heritage • Understanding of animal behaviour – what is disturbance?

What is disturbance? Scottish Natural Heritage Deliberately or recklessly kill, capture, injure, harass, or disturb The result of interaction with people that changes the behaviour of an animal which affects the well-being or survival of an animal in the short, medium or long-term .

Challenges (& solutions ….?) Scottish Natural Heritage • Understanding of animal behaviour – what is disturbance? • Perceptions of disturbance

Challenges (& solutions ….?) Scottish Natural Heritage • Understanding of animal behaviour – what is disturbance? • Perceptions of disturbance • Lack of awareness of consequences for animals • Lack of awareness of offences • Most disturbance is unintentional • Need for awareness raising and education

Awareness raising and education Scottish Natural Heritage Scottish Marine Wildlife Watching Code • Provide guidance, advice and information • Minimise disturbance to wildlife • Help you enjoy watching marine wildlife • Provide a standard for the industry • Help you stay within the law WiSe scheme Accreditation for wildlife tour operators Public training courses www.wisescheme.org

Challenges (& solutions ….?) Scottish Natural Heritage • Understanding of animal behaviour – what is disturbance? • Perceptions of disturbance • Lack of awareness of consequences for animals • Lack of awareness of offences • Most disturbance is unintentional • Need for awareness raising and education • Uncertainty about who to report to • Difficulties of enforcement

Scottish Natural Heritage Concluding slide?? Happy pictures