Narwhal (Monodon monoceros) COSEWIC assessment and status report: chapter 10

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Existing Protection or Other Status

Protection for narwhal in Canada is limited to measures that manage the hunt, live capture, and movement of narwhal products. As yet there are no Arctic marine parks or protected areas that protect narwhals in Canadian waters from hunting or other activities (F. Mercier, pers. comm. 2002). However, there are protected marine areas within the Nunavut National Parks, although they are not National Marine Conservation Areas. No protection exists outside of the parks, and no protected area (terrestrial or marine) prevents harvest by Inuit in the Nunavut Settlement area -- where restrictions and quotas are established the Nunavut Wildlife Management Board under the Nunavut Land Claims Act. Visitor use of the National Parks is minimal, and there is no evidence that they are a threat to narwhal populations.

International trade in narwhal products is regulated by a number of laws and conventions. These include the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), which is embodied in Canadian legislation (Bill C-42, the Wild Animal and Plant Protection and Regulation of International and Interprovincial Trade Act -- WAPPRITA); the Marine Mammal Protection Act in the United States; and Council Regulation EC 338/97 in the European Union.

International organizations have been unable to determine the status of the narwhal using the data available.

Canadian harvest quotas and protection

Narwhal hunting in Canada is managed by the Nunavut Wildlife Management Board (NWMB), which is charged under Bill C-133 with making all decisions about wildlife management in Nunavut. The board consists of four Inuit and four Government representatives, plus a Chairperson. Canada’s Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO), and the Hunters and Trappers organizations and the Regional Wildlife organizations are co-management partners. DFO advises the NWMB and hunting communities on sustainable hunting levels, who in turn use this information to manage community hunts (Richard and Pike 1993; DFO 1998a, 1998b).

Hunting regulations are implemented under the Fisheries Act and the Marine Mammal Protection Regulations by DFO. Under these regulations, only Inuit can hunt narwhals and there is a quota on the number of animals that can be harvested by each community. These quotas were originally set through negotiation with the communities and based on historic harvesting levels (Strong 1988). Tags were allocated to hunters from the settlement quota to be attached to harvested animals. For many years, the hunters have requested changes to the management system for narwhals, with the result that community-based management of the hunt is now being tried at Repulse Bay, Pond Inlet, Qikiqtarjuaq (formerly Broughton Island), Arctic Bay and Kugaaruk (formerly Pelly Bay) (Table 2) (DFO1998a, 1998b; Gonzalez 2001).

Under the community-based management system, the quota has been lifted and the local Hunters and Trappers Organizations (HTOs) manage the hunt and have placed harvest limits in communities using a set of rules or by-laws (Gonzalez 2001). These rules are developed by the local HTO and address the conservation and management of the narwhal population, the reduction of waste, hunter education, and safety. The HTOs have also agreed to collect information on the number of narwhals wounded, killed, and not landed. In 1999, an unusually large harvest of 158 narwhals by Repulse Bay raised concerns about the effectiveness of community-based management. In 2002, the NWMB reduced the annual community harvest limit by Repulse Bay from 100 to 72 narwhals. While this limit is not likely to be taken every year, the potential remains for Repulse Bay to significantly increase its harvest from an average of 17.3 (range 3-35; SD 9.1) narwhals per year in the 20 years (1979-98) prior to the community-based management program (Table 1). This 3-year pilot program was reviewed in 2003 and and found to have not been long enough for assessment. It has been extended with a revised approach for a further 5 years, and an integrated management plan is being developed (M. Wheatley, pers. comm. 2003).

Protection for live-captured narwhals is afforded on largely moral rather than legal grounds unlike narwhal hunts and the trade in narwhal products, which are controlled by laws and conventions (Lien 1999). Notwithstanding the Marine Mammal Protection Regulations, the Nunavut Wildlife Management Board has the authority to approve or not approve live captures. Under the Marine Mammal Protection Regulations of the Fisheries Act, DFO has the authority to issue live capture permits. In practice, the department has not issued such a permit since 1987 (P. Hall, pers. comm. 2002). DFO can attach conditions to live-capture permits but it does not have enforcement authority for animals maintained in captivity (Lien 1999). Animal welfare is governed in Canada under Section 446 of the Criminal Code, which forbids imposing unnecessary suffering for animals and provides penalties for abuses. It does not provide for routine inspections of animal care or enforcement of maintenance standards. To fill these regulatory gaps, additions have been proposed to the Marine Mammal Regulations (Lien 1999). They include authorizations for clinical interventions and would require a holding permit for captive maintenance to be issued on an annual basis.

International trade and cooperation

Regulation of international trade in narwhal products began in 1972, when the US Marine Mammal Protection Act banned the importation of marine mammal products, including narwhal ivory, into the United States (Reeves 1992a, 1992b). In 1979, the narwhal was listed in Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). This designation is reserved for species that could be threatened with extinction if trade is not controlled and monitored. It means that a CITES export permit is required for narwhal products that cross international boundaries. In Canada, these permits are administered by DFO, which manages narwhal under the Fisheries Act. CITES is embodied in Canadian legislation in Bill C-42 (1992), the Wild Animal and Plant Protection and Regulation of International and Interprovincial Trade Act (WAPPRITA) (Lien 1999).

In 1985, a proposal to list the narwhal in CITES Appendix I was defeated (Kingsley 1989; Yaremchuk and Wong 1989; Reeves 1992a, 1992b). Had it passed, the narwhal would have been designated as a species threatened with extinction and special permits would have been required from both the importing and exporting country.  In 1984, the European Economic Community (EEC; Regulation 3626/82) required member countries to control commerce as if all cetaceans, including the narwhal, were on CITES Appendix I - despite the fact that they are not. This regulation, which effectively bans the importation of narwhal ivory, does not apply to products originating in Greenland (Reeves and Heide-Jørgensen 1994). In 1997, the European Union replaced it with Council Regulation EC 338/97, which maintains this stricter control of Canadian narwhal exports.

The narwhal is also listed under Appendix II of the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS or Bonn Convention), which promotes international cooperation in the management of migratory species. Appendix II lists migratory species that require or would benefit significantly from international cooperative agreements under CMS. Canada cooperates with Greenland in the conservation of shared narwhal populations through participation in the Canada/Greenland Joint Commission on Conservation and Management of Narwhal and Beluga (JCNB).

Status designations

In 1996, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) assessed the population status of the narwhal (Hilton-Taylor 2000). It concluded that the threat of extinction could not be adequately assessed with the data available and listed narwhal in the data deficient (DD) category in The 2000 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.

In 2001, a joint meeting of scientific working groups from the JCNB and NAMMCO also concluded that existing information was insufficient to assess the status of narwhals in the Baffin Bay area (JCNB/NAMMCO 2001). While the overall population was not believed to face an immediate threat from unsustainable hunting, concern was expressed that some population units may be over-hunted. Focussed and intensive research efforts were recommended to improve knowledge of narwhals and thereby strengthen the basis for advice on the conservation and management of the species.