Regarding the recent killing (oh, sorry I mean harvesting) of the 600 narwhals in Pond Inlet, I emailed many MPs and the Prime Minister to send an icebreaker in to help these animals. Only the PM's office had the courtesy to respond, albeit they did spin their reply. The statement about the icebreakers is interesting, as the icebreakers are used to escort those slayers of seal pups that trail their knuckles on the ground to the killing fields off Newfoundland. Couldn't get there to save the whales though so 600 of these lovely animals were shot. I attach the email for your interest.

Dear Sandra Raftery:

Thank you for your correspondence addressed to the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans Canada, regarding the ice entrapment of narwhals in Eclipse Sound, Nunavut. I have been asked to respond on behalf of the Minister.

I want to assure you that staff from Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) are taking this issue very seriously and share your concern about the number of narwhal involved.

DFO staff were in daily contact with Nunavut co-management partners, the Nunavut Wildlife Management Board, and the Pond Inlet Hunters and Trappers Organization (HTO) and conducted aerial reconnaissance of the site. The ice was solid for at least 50 km (30 miles) east of the entrapment site, consistent with information from available radar imagery, and there were no indications of additional trapped narwhal in the area.

The decision to conduct a humane harvest of these narwhals instead of sending an icebreaker to Eclipse Sound or engaging in other rescue scenarios was not taken lightly. The commercial shipping season in Nunavut had ended and Canada's heavy icebreakers were already south, in preparation for critical winter icebreaking operations in support of search and rescue, shipping, flood control and ice management. Given the ice conditions in Baffin Bay and the considerable distance to Pond Inlet, icebreakers would not have reached the entrapped whales in time to make a difference.

Other rescue scenarios had been suggested, such as keeping the breathing holes open for these animals, or creating additional breathing holes. Unfortunately, the location of the entrapment, as well as climate conditions, made this an impractical solution. There were originally about 20 small breathing holes scattered around the entrapment site, which were soon closed over. As narwhals surfaced to breathe, their warm exhalations contributed to the speed at which the holes ice over.

Let me assure you that the Pond Inlet HTO conducted a systematic harvest that involved only the most experienced hunters. A departmental Fishery Officer was onsite monitoring this harvest, and DFO biologists worked with the Pond Inlet HTO to collect scientific samples from landed narwhals. This humane harvest of narwhal by residents of Pond Inlet ensured that these animals were not left to slowly suffocate as their breathing holes iced over, and it also contributed an important community food resource.

Finally, the Eclipse Sound narwhal stock is treated as a single management unit which was last estimated at about 20,000 animals. The Eclipse Sound narwhal stock is one of four separate stocks that form the much larger Baffin Bay population. Normally, narwhal from the Eclipse Sound stock have arrived at their wintering grounds in southern Baffin Bay by this time of year. It is not known why this group of animals delayed their fall migration and became entrapped. Although the impact of such a large natural mortality on the Eclipse Sound stock is currently unknown, this will be assessed in the coming months.

Although ice-entrapments of narwhal and beluga are a natural occurrence, there are few written accounts of previous narwhal entrapments in Nunavut. This could be because narwhal are rarely trapped by ice, but it is more likely that narwhal entrapments occur in areas where humans do not see them. There is only one previously documented narwhal entrapment of the size reported from Eclipse Sound. This entrapment occurred in 1924 in Admiralty Inlet, when about 600 narwhals became entrapped by ice and were harvested by local Inuit.

I am confident that together, co-management partners and resource users will find the appropriate balance to ensure that the Eclipse Sound narwhal stock remains healthy and able to support sustainable use by future generations of Inuit.

Thank you for your interest in the management of narwhal in the Arctic.

Sincerely,

Original Signed By

Barry Rashotte
Director General
Fisheries and Oceans Canada
____________________________________________
Ministerial Correspondence Control Unit
Unité de contrôle de la correspondance ministérielle
Fisheries and Oceans Canada | Pêches et Océans Canada

Right and IF you believe that, I have a prime minister for sale; going cheap. I shall write a thank you letter to this vile department for making me ashamed to be a canadian. Now, we lurch on to another catastrophe of the "harvesting" of the seal pups in newfoundland and stephen harper has the audacity to tout this totally unnecessary hunt as "humane" as does the inefficient dfo minister who also trails her knuckles on the ground as she walks. I am totally ashamed to be a canadian and ashamed at the government for allowing this carnage to continue. Just thought I would share my outrage and disgust.