Abstract
Yankee whalers of the 19th century had major impacts on populations of large whales, but these leviathans were not the only taxa targeted. Here, we describe the “collateral damage,” the opportunistic or targeted taking of nongreat whale species by the American whaling industry. Using data from 5,064 records from 79 whaling logs occurring between 1840 and 1901, we show that Yankee whalers captured 5,255 animals across three large ocean basins from 32 different taxonomic categories, including a wide range of marine and terrestrial species. The taxa with the greatest number of individuals captured were walruses (Odobenus rosmarus), ducks (family Anatidae), and cod (Gadus sp.). By biomass, the most captured species were walruses, grampus (a poorly defined group within Odontoceti), and seals (family Otariidae). The whalers captured over 2.4 million kg of nongreat whale meat equaling approximately 34 kg of meat per ship per day at sea. The species and areas targeted shifted over time in response to overexploitation of whale populations, with likely intensive local impacts on terrestrial species associated with multiyear whaling camps. Our results show that the ecosystem impacts of whaling reverberated on both marine and coastal environments.
Highlights
During the 19th century, hundreds of vessels left from American ports in search of large whales, primarily sperm (Physeter macrocephalus), right (Eubalaena spp.), bowhead (Balaena mysticetus), humpback (Megaptera novaeangliae), gray (Eschrichtius robustus) (Smith et al, 2012), and to a lesser extent “blackfish” or Pilot whales (Globicephala spp. Best, 1987;)
These voyages were commercial ventures during which whalers sought out whales as sources of oil and whalebone, and they were immensely successful, with over 100,000 large whales killed by American whalers during the 1800s during the so-called American- style Pelagic’ era (Best, 1987; Reeves & Smith, 2006; Townsend, 1935)
We focused on the latter half of the 18th century as it was during this time that the American Whaling fleet moved almost exclusively offshore from New England and the industry shifted from baleen to oil
Summary
During the 19th century, hundreds of vessels left from American ports in search of large whales, primarily sperm (Physeter macrocephalus), right (Eubalaena spp.), bowhead (Balaena mysticetus), humpback (Megaptera novaeangliae), gray (Eschrichtius robustus) (Smith et al, 2012), and to a lesser extent “blackfish” or Pilot whales (Globicephala spp. Best, 1987;). Whaling voyages represent some of the earliest, and in some cases the only, sources of historical ecological knowledge about the pelagic habits of these highly migratory animals, and the details within whalers’ logbooks give insight into marine ecosystems in the 19th century (Clapham et al, 2004; Townsend, 1935) As whales became depleted, multiyear expeditions to more distant locales became necessary, requiring that overwintering whalers obtain provisions locally Some species, such as walruses, were captured to provide additional income, through rendering to produce oil and the collection of tusks (Fay, Kelly, & Sease, 1989). Because of localized resource exploitation and increases in technology over time, we will see shift toward targeting populations in increasingly remote areas or species that were inaccessible with technology readily available during the beginning of the study period
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