50 Humpback whales identified in Niue

Updated August 28, 2008 16:24:38

A 10-day pilot survey of humpback whale migrations through the waters of Niue has identified almost 50 whales. The researchers involved say that's exciting for Niue and whale conservation efforts in the Pacific.

Presenter: Sean Dorney, ABC-Australia Network
speakers: Olive Andrews, South Pacific Whale Research Consortium; Fia Fia Rex, Niuan whale conservation NGO, Oma Tafua

Dorney: The South Pacific Whale Research Consortium has joined a local Niuean whale protection group to try to determine whether the whales being seen around Niue at this time of the year are pods passing through or just the same group resting on their migration route.

Andrews: From the last ten days of the survey, we actually know that we've seen forty-seven unique individuals.

Dorney: Olive Andrews says they can identify the whales from their dorsal fins or tail flukes.

Andrews: And what we're able to do with that information ismanage whale populations across their range. So rather than having them, which they are, protected in the national waters of the Cook Islands and Niue, if we know that they are the same populations due to the genetic research that we've done then we may be able to afford them further protection under the CMS which is the Convention of Migratory Species. More later, let's go find a whale.

Dorney: On this trip the whales were not in evidence. But there were plenty of spinner dolphins.

Andrews: The spinning's got a lot to do with whenever they're excited. We're now starting to get a handle on the individual animals by identifying them by their dorsal fins and cataloguing those so over the years we can build a data base of the individuals and know how many dolphins we have here.

Dorney: What have you learnt in the past ten days?

Andrews: We've learnt that there are a lot more whales in Niue than we thought. And that's really exciting. It's exciting for the Niuan Government in that we know that we've got an important place for the management and conservation of a species which has regionally been depleted down to, you know less than ten percent of its original population. So that's exciting. We're playing a part in the conservation of a regional and global resource. The other thing it that it's got great implications for tourism in Niue. Whale watching is the fastest growing marine tourism industry in the Pacific and is now worth US$21 million to Pacific economies and so it's unique that we can see here humpback whales and that's something that tourism will certainly benefit from - the conservation of whales in Niue.

Andrews: Fia, can you write 'milling and resting'.

Dorney: Fia Fia Rex is a Niuan who has started the local whale protection group, Oma Tafua.

Rex: We have an inate respect for marine mammals. They've always been protected by us because they're affiliated with our culture so I believe they're extremely important to us.

Dorney: Fia Fia Rex is studying law at Australia's Woollongong University so that she can become Niue's leading marine lawyer to better prepare herself for the whale conservation battles ahead.

Rex: Yes, that's what I want to do. So I'm hoping to come back in a few years. Yeah!