Review of the Effectiveness of Recovery Measures for St. Lawrence Estuary Beluga
Appendix 1
Table of Contents
- Complete Text
- 1. Context/Background
- 2. Objective of this review
- 3. Sources of information
- 4. Methods for assessing effectiveness of recovery measures
- 5. Review of Recovery Measures
- 6. Effectiveness of recovery measures and recommended changes or additions
- 6.1 Overall Assessment of the Effectiveness of Recovery Measures
- 6.2 Effectiveness of threat-based recovery measures, and recommended improvements
- 6.2.1 Recovery measures associated with objective 1. Reduce contaminants in beluga, their prey, and their habitat
- 6.2.2 Recovery measures associated with objective 2. Reduce anthropogenic disturbances
- 6.2.3 Recovery measures associated with objective 3. Ensure adequate and accessible food supplies
- 6.2.4 Recovery measures associated with objective 4. Mitigate the effects of other threats to population recovery
- 6.2.5 Recovery measures associated with objective 5. Protect the beluga's habitat in its entire distribution range
- 6.2.6 Recovery objective 6. Ensure regular monitoring of the St. Lawrence Estuary beluga population
- 7. Conclusions
- 8. Acknowledgements
- 9. Literature Cited
- Appendix 1
Appendix 1. Time series available to document the evolution of threat, and effects on SLE beluga or other components of the ecosystem.
| Threat | Data type | Start date | End date | Lead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Contaminants | ||||
| Contaminant levels in beluga | 1983 | On-Going | Academia, DFO | |
| Insufficient information available at the time of the review for contaminant levels in biological or physical components other than beluga | ECCC, DFO | |||
| Insufficient information available at the time of the review from existing monitoring programs under the responsibility of ECCC (e.g., water quality, sediment) | ECCC | |||
| Noise/Disturbance | ||||
| Noise levels in the beluga habitat (various stations) | 2003 | On-going | DFO | |
| Volume of merchant ship traffic (AIS) | 2012 | On-going | TC, DFO, Academia | |
| volume of merchant ship traffic (other data sources, e.g., number of trips assigned to pilots) | 2003 | On-going | TC, DFO | |
| Whale-watching trips in the SSLMP | 1993 | On-going | PC | |
| Whale-watching trips outside of the SSLMP | On-going | DFO | ||
| Percentage of whale-watching excursions targeting beluga | 2003 | On-going | ||
| Infractions to SSLMP regulations | 2003 | On-going | PC | |
| Recreation boating activities in the SSLMP and outside its limits | 2003 | On-going | PC, municipalities | |
| Co-occurrence of beluga at the Saguenay Fjord mouth and at Baie-Ste-Marguerite | 2003 | On-going | PC | |
| Compliance with voluntary measures to reduce ship speed and avoid certain areas within the SSLMP | 2012 | On-going | Academia, PC, G2T3M | |
| SLE beluga | ||||
| Abundance estimates (photographic aerial surveys) | 1988 | On-going | DFO | |
| Abundance estimates (visual aerial surveys) | 2001 | On-going | DFO | |
| Extent of summer distribution, and habitat use | 1988 | On-going | DFO | |
| Number of deaths (and age-, sex- structure) | 1983 | On-going | DFO, RQUMM, and various other institutions (e.g., academia, aquaria and federal departments and agencies) | |
| Causes of death (intoxication, cancers, infections, etc.) | 1983 | On-going | DFO, FMV | |
| Diet (digestive tracts) | 1983 | On-going | DFO | |
| Diet and trophic role (chemical tracers FA, SI) | 1988 | On-going | DFO | |
| Ecosystem structure and functioning (isotopes in key invertebrate and fish species) | 1994 | On-going | DFO | |
| Index of recruitment (photographic surveys) | 1988 | On-going | DFO | |
| Index of recruitment (beluga herd follows) | 1989 | On-going | ENGOs (GREMM) | |
| Harmful algal bloom | ||||
| Harmful algal blooms in the Lower SLE (4-5 stations, including Tadoussac) | 1995 | On-going | DFO | |
| Collision risk and entanglements | ||||
| via necropsy program | 1983 | On-going | PC, RQUMM | |
| via reports to Parks Canada | 1994 | On-going | PC | |
| Environmental data | ||||
| Sea-ice extent and duration | at least 1971 | On-going | DFO | |
| Physical oceanographic parameters | at least 1971 | On-going | DFO | |
| Commercial species landings, index of abundance, distribution, condition, but mostly for the Gulf of St. Lawrence, not the SLE | varies according to species | On-going | DFO |
- Date modified: