Technical Reports of the Institute of Cetacean Research (2017)

pp. 1–14

Technical Report (not peer reviewed)

An overview of the research programs on large whales conducted by
the Institute of Cetacean Research
Tsutomu Tamura*, Koji Matsuoka and Luis A. Pastene
Institute of Cetacean Research, 4–5 Toyomi-cho, Chuo-ku, Tokyo 104–0055, Japan*Contact e-mail: tamura@cetacean.jp

ABSTRACTThis paper summarizes the research programs and related activities conducted by scientists of the Instituteof Cetacean Research (ICR). ICR conducts biological and ecological research of whales and their ecosystemthrough diﬀerent research programs: special permit scientiﬁc programs involving lethal and non-lethal techniques; dedicated sighting survey programs; DNA register for large whales and market molecular monitoring
programs; and cetacean stranding record programs. This paper summarizes those research programs, including their objectives and methodologies. Outputs of speciﬁc studies based on data collected will be publishedin the annual series of the Technical Reports of ICR (TEREP-ICR).

INTRODUCTION
The Institute of Cetacean Research (ICR) was founded in
1987 as a foundational juridical person whose legal statusis authorized by the Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and
Fisheries of the Government of Japan. ICR has the purpose of contributing to the appropriate management andutilization of marine resources by conducting research on
marine mammals centered on whales, and investigationsof the international situation concerning large whales.
The Survey and Research Division of ICR is in charge ofthe biological and ecological research of whales and theirecosystem. The division has well-equipped laboratories
to study whale biology, environmental pollutants andmolecular ecology, and includes a number of national
and international scientists, who conduct speciﬁc studies
in the context of the objectives of the research programs
conducted by the institute.
Outputs of the research are available in a substantial
number of peer-reviewed publications and scientiﬁcdocuments presented to national and international meetings, mainly to meetings of scientiﬁc committees ofinternational organizations in charge of the conservationand management of marine resources including large
whales, for example working groups of the Convention
for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources(CCAMLR) and the Scientiﬁc Committee (SC) of the International Whaling Commission (IWC).
The Technical Reports of the ICR (TEREP-ICR) will
publish outputs of speciﬁc studies conducted by ICR

scientists. As an introduction to such outputs, this paper
summarizes the research programs conducted by theinstitute, including their objectives and methodologies.

RESEARCH PROGRAMS
Special permit scientiﬁc research
ICR has been in charge of implementing some special
permit research programs under Article VIII of the International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling(ICRW). These research programs involve both lethal
and non-lethal components. Among the former component, a limited number of whales have been taken. The
research plans have been presented and commented onby the IWC SC, and data and results obtained have beenreviewed by workshops of specialists sponsored by the
IWC SC and by the IWC SC itself.
Antarctic
The ﬁrst program was the Japanese Whale Research Program under Special Permit in the Antarctic (JARPA), which
was conducted between the austral summer seasons of
1987/88 and 2004/05. The JARPA had four main objectives: a) estimation of biological parameters to improve
the stock management of the Southern Hemisphereminke whale; b) elucidation of the role of whales in the
Antarctic marine ecosystem; c) elucidation of the eﬀectof environmental changes on cetaceans; and d) elucidation of the stock structure of Southern Hemisphere minke
whales to improve stock management. The second phaseof JARPA, JARPAII, started with two feasibility surveys in1

Technical Reports of the Institute of Cetacean Research (2017)

the seasons 2005/06 and 2006/07. The ﬁrst full survey
started in the 2007/08 season. The objectives of the
JARPAII were the following: a) monitoring the Antarctic ecosystem (whale abundance trends and biologicalparameters; krill abundance and the feeding ecology ofwhales; eﬀects of contaminants on cetaceans; and cetacean habitat); b) modeling competition among whale
species and future management objectives (constructing
a model of competition among whale species; and new
management objectives including the restoration of thecetacean ecosystem); c) elucidation of temporal and spatial changes in stock structure; and d) improving the management procedure for Antarctic minke whale stocks. See
details of the objectives, methodology and outputs from
JARPAII in Pastene et al. (2014).
The current New Scientiﬁc Whale Research Programin the Antarctic Ocean (NEWREP-A), started in the austral summer season 2015/16 as a 12-year long research
program. NEWREP-A has two main objectives: a) improvement in the precision of biological and ecologicalinformation for the application of the Revised Management Procedure (RMP) to the Antarctic minke whales;
and b) investigation of the structure and dynamics of the
Antarctic marine ecosystem through building ecosystemmodels. In order to attain the ﬁrst objective, four subobjectives were set: (i) abundance estimates for Antarctic
minke whales taking into account of g(0) and additionalvariance; (ii) improvement of precision of biological andecological parameters; (iii) reﬁnement of stock structure
hypotheses of Antarctic minke whale in Areas III–VI for
the implementation of the RMP; and (iv) speciﬁcationof RMP Implementation Simulation Trials (ISTs) for the
Antarctic minke whales (GOJ, 2015). In order to attain thesecond objective, four sub-objectives were set: (i) ecological research (krill abundance estimate and oceanographic observation); (ii) abundance estimate of somecetacean species as input data for ecosystem modelling;(iii) estimation of prey consumption by the Antarctic

Figure 1.
2

minke whale and its nutritional condition; (iv) ecosystemmodelling (spatial interaction among baleen whales andconsideration of predators-prey system and allometricreasoning). See details of the objectives and methodology of NEWREP-A in GOJ (2015).
An outline of the research area, survey methodology
and data being obtained by NEWREP-A are given below.
Research area
The research area of NEWREP-A is shown in Figure 1. The
research area comprises the Indian and western South
Paciﬁc regions of the Antarctic, which involves IWC Management Areas III, IV, V and VI.
Research activities in the ﬁeld based on lethal techniques
The lethal part of NEWREP-A involves the sampling of alimited number of Antarctic minke whales (n=333 whales
annually).
Sampling methodology
Track-lines for sighting and sampling of Antarctic minke
whales are generally designed south of 60°S. Survey
courses are established in oﬀshore and ice edge watersof the research area by the line transect method. Twoor three sampling and sighting vessels advance along
parallel track-lines 7n. miles apart, at a standard speedof 11.5 knots. Basically, each of the sampling and sighting
vessels change the track-line order every day to avoid
possible sighting bias produced by ﬁxed positions. The
starting point each day is set at the most advanced position where one of the vessels ended the surveys on theprevious day. A maximum of two Antarctic minke whales
per school sighted is sampled randomly.
All whales are taken using explosive grenades to attaininstantaneous death in line with existing norms of whale
killing methods. If instantaneous death is not achieved by
the primary killing method, a suitable secondary method,such as a large caliber riﬂe or another grenade is chosen,

Research area of NEWREP-A.

An overview of the research programs on large whales conducted by the Institute of Cetacean Research

Figure 2.

Biological survey of Antarctic minke whale under the NEWREP-A.

depending on the condition of the whale.
Biological surveys
Sampled whales are immediately transported to theresearch base vessel, where biological measurements
and sampling are carried out in a systematic manner by
researchers (Figure 2). The following main data/samples
are obtained on board for each whale sampled (seealso Table 1). Samples and data collected are required
for the analyses related to the main objectives and subobjectives of NEWREP-A.
1. Morphometrics for studies on stock structure.
2. Body weight, blubber thickness and total fat
weight measurements for nutritional studies.
3. Reproductive organs (testis and ovaries) for determination of sexual maturity.
4. Earplugs for age determination.
5. Stomach contents (qualitative and quantitative)
for studies on feeding ecology.
6. Other biological samples such as ocular lenses forage determination and tissues for genetic studies
on stock structure.

Research activities in the ﬁeld based on non-lethal techniques
Dedicated sighting surveys
Data collected by these surveys are required for theabundance estimation of whales. Sighting surveys are
conducted by the Line Transect Method. Survey protocols
follow the IWC SCʼs Requirements and Guidelines for
Conducting Surveys and Analyzing Data within the Revised Management Scheme (IWC, 2012) and are conducted under the oversight of the IWC SC. Sighting protocols
are the same as those in the former International Decadefor Cetacean Research/Southern Ocean Whale and Ecosystem Research (IDCR/SOWER) (Matsuoka et al., 2003).
In general, the sighting surveys cover areas south of
60°S. Surveys are planned to cover one IWC Management
Area (one of the Areas III to VI) in a year. Cruise tracks aredesigned systematically in accordance with mathematicaland scientiﬁc calculation in the research area. The sighting survey is conducted using (1) Closing mode and (2)Passing with Independent Observer mode. Both survey
modes follow the protocol already endorsed for the
IDCR/SOWER surveys. Primary search eﬀort is conducted
only when weather conditions are acceptable (see details
in Matsuoka et al., 2003) (Figure 3).
3Technical Reports of the Institute of Cetacean Research (2017)

Biopsy and photo-ID (Figures 4 and 5)
Biopsy and photo-ID experiments are conducted routinely for large whales such as blue, ﬁn, humpback, southern
right and killer whales. Feasibility studies of biopsy sampling and telemetry for Antarctic minke whales are also
conducted. Photo-ID and DNA data obtained from biopsy
samples are useful for studies of distribution, movement
and stock structure of whales.

Krill survey (Figure 6)
The main objective of the krill surveys is to estimate therelative abundance of Antarctic krill acoustically, and toobtain the length frequency distribution and maturity
stage of Antarctic krill in the survey area. Information
on krill distribution and abundance is important as input
data for the development of ecosystem modelling. Acoustic data using quantitative echosounders EK80 and EK60
are recorded continuously. Net samplings using a small
ring net and an Isaacs-Kidd Midwater Trawl (IKMT) are
carried out to identify species and size compositions ofplankton echo signs. See details in GOJ (2015).
Oceanographic observations (Figure 7)
The conductivity-temperature-depth proﬁlers (CTD) areused to obtain water temperature and salinity data.
Oceanographic data are important to understand thephysical environment in which whales live. Changes inoceanographic conditions determine the distributionof krill, which is the main prey species of large baleen
whales.

Figure 3.

Figure 4.

Sighting activity by the dedicated sighting vessels.

Humpback whale biopsy sampling by the dedicatedsighting vessel.

Marine debris (Figure 8)
The observation and collection of debris, both in theenvironment and in the stomachs of the whales sampledprovide valuable information on the surrounding environment of whales. Such information is collected systematically during the sampling and sighting surveys.
Data and analyses
Table 1 shows the kinds of data and samples being collected by NEWREP-A. These data are analyzed in the context
of the objectives and sub-objectives of the program, withsome of the analyses of temporal trends incorporating
data from the previous research programs JARPA and JARPAII (see details of the data and samples collected by JARPA
and JARPAII in IWC, 2008 and IWC, 2015, respectively).

Figure 5. Morphological characteristics used for individual identiﬁcation in southern right (a) and humpback (b) whales.
4An overview of the research programs on large whales conducted by the Institute of Cetacean Research

Figure 6.

Figure 7.

Figure 8.

Small ring net (left) and an Isaacs-Kidd Midwater Trawl (IKMT) net (right).

Oceanographic survey by CTD.

Rope found in the stomach contents of an Antarctic
minke whale.

Research outputs
As in the cases of JARPA and JARPAII, the scientiﬁc outputs from NEWREP-A will be summarized as a) scientiﬁcreports to be presented to international meetings, mainly
to the IWC SC meetings; and b) as peer-reviewed publications. In the case of the previous JARPA, results were
presented to the IWC SC review workshops conducted
in 1997 (mid-term review) (IWC, 1998) and 2006 (ﬁnal
review) (IWC, 2008). The results of the JARPAII were presented to the IWC SC review workshops conducted in 2014
(IWC, 2015). Peer-reviewed publications based on JARPA
and JARPAII are presented in this issue of TEREP-ICR.

Western North Paciﬁc
The ﬁrst program was the Japanese Whale Research Program under Special Permit in the western North Paciﬁc(JARPN), which was conducted in the spring-autumn seasons between 1994 and 1999. The main objective was toelucidate the stock structure of common minke whales in
the Paciﬁc side of Japan. A second objective, ʻthe feasibility study on the feeding ecology of minke whales in the
research ground,ʼ was added in 1996. The second phaseof JARPN, JARPNII, started with two feasibility surveys in2000 and 2001. The ﬁrst full survey started in 2002. The
objectives of the JARPNII were the following: a) feeding
ecology and ecosystem studies; b) monitoring environmental pollutants in cetaceans and the marine ecosystem; and c) stock structure of large whales. See details of
the objectives, methodologies and outputs from JARPNII
in Tamura et al. (2016).
The current New Scientiﬁc Whale Research Program in
the western North Paciﬁc (NEWREP-NP) started in 2017as a 12-year long research program. NEWREP-NP has two
main objectives: a) contribution to optimizing the establishment of a sustainable catch limit for common minke
whales in the coastal waters of Japan; and b) contribution
to the RMP/IST for North Paciﬁc sei whales. In order toattain the ﬁrst objective, four secondary objectives are
set: (i) investigate the spatial and temporal occurrence ofJ stock common minke whales around Japan, by sex, age
and reproductive status; (ii) estimate the abundance of
the J and O stocks in coastal waters of Japan; (iii) verify
that there is no structure in the O stock common minke
whales in the Paciﬁc side of Japan; and (iv) improve RMP
trials by incorporating age data in their conditioning.
In order to attain the second objective, four secondary
objectives are set: (i) abundance estimates for North Paciﬁc sei whales taking account additional variance; (ii) estimation of biological and ecological parameters in North
Paciﬁc sei whales for RMP Implementation; (iii) study ofthe pattern of movement of whales of the ʻpelagic stockʼwithin the feeding grounds and between feeding and5Technical Reports of the Institute of Cetacean Research (2017)
Table 1
Data and samples collected under the NEWREP-A (from GOJ, 2015).
Data

SampleAbundance estimate*# Weather data*# Eﬀort data*# Sighting record of whales*# Angle and distance experiments*# Ice edge line
Environmental data
# Temp. Salin. (CTD)# Echo sound (krill distribution/abundance)
Marine debris (sea surface)
Antarctic minke whale*# Catching date and location
Photographic record of external character
Record of internal and external parasites*# Sex and body length* Body proportion for stock structure* Skull measurements (length and breadth) for stock structure* Satellite tracking for stock structure# Body weight for feeding ecology# Organ weight including fat weight for feeding ecology# Diatom ﬁlm record for feeding ecology# Blubber thickness for feeding ecology# Stomach content : freshness and weight for feeding ecology# Diving behaviour for feeding ecology*# Testis weight for reproductive study
Mammary grand : lactation status and measurement for
reproductive study
Fetal number, sex, length and weight for reproductive
study
Marine debris (stomach)
Gross pathological observation and sampling
Other large whales
Photo-ID

#
#
*#
*#
*#
*#
*#
*#
*#
#

Prey species in stomach for feeding ecology
Feces and colon contents for feeding ecology
Testis for reproductive study
Ovary for corpora counting and reproductive study
Mammary grand and endometrium for reproductive study
Earplug for age determination
Ocular lens for age determination
Baleen plates for age determination
Tissue samples for genetic study
Tissue and organ samples for chemical study
Tissue and plasma samples for physiological study
Vertebral epiphyses for physical maturity

Skin sample (biopsy)*: Data or samples to be used for Main Objective I; # : Data or samples to be used for Main Objective II (other items will be used
for other research purposes)

breeding grounds; and (iv) speciﬁcation of RMP ISTs forNorth Paciﬁc sei whales. See details of the objectives andmethodology of NEWREP-NP in GOJ (2017).
An outline of the research area, survey methodologies
and data being obtained by NEWREP-NP are given below.
Research area
The research area of NEWREP-NP is shown in Figures 9a
and 9b. The research area for lethal sampling comprises
the Paciﬁc side and the Okhotsk Sea side of Japan, which
involves IWC Management Sub-areas 7, 8, 9 and 11(Figure 10). The research area for the sighting surveys
6comprises the Paciﬁc side, the Sea of Japan side and the
Okhotsk Sea side of Japan, which involves IWC Management Sub-areas 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 and 11.
Research activities in the ﬁeld based on lethal techniques
The lethal part involves the sampling of a limited numberof common minke whales (n=80 whales annually in sub
areas 7CS and 7CN; n=47 whales annually in sub area 11;
and n=43 whales annually in sub areas 7WR, 7E, 8 and 9),
and of sei whales (n=134 whales annually in sub areas
7WR, 7E, 8 and 9).

An overview of the research programs on large whales conducted by the Institute of Cetacean Research

Sampling methodology (oﬀshore component)
Survey courses are established in the research area by
the Line Transect Method. Two sampling and sighting
vessels advance along parallel track-lines 7n. miles apart,at a standard speed of 10.5 knots. All common minke andsei whales sighted as primary and secondary sightings,
excluding cow and calf pairs, are targeted for sampling.
When a sighting consists of more than one animal, theﬁrst targeted animal is selected using tables of random
sampling numbers (TRS).
All whales are taken using explosive grenades to attaininstantaneous death in line with existing norms of whale
killing methods. If instantaneous death is not achieved by
the primary killing method, a suitable secondary method,such as a large caliber riﬂe or another grenade is chosen,
depending on the condition of the whale.
Sampling methodology (coastal component)
A land-based operation system which takes into accountoperational capacity, ability, and arrangements of thesmall boats is applied, and thus is diﬀerent from thesampling procedures adopted by the oﬀshore component. A predetermined course (direction from the port)
at an angle of regular intervals (usually 10–15 degreeintervals) is set up by the head oﬃce, and allocated to
the respective boats. The boats depart the port with theirrespective course, and start searching at a survey speedof 10–11 knots. All common minke whales sighted as
primary and secondary sightings, excluding cow and calf
pairs, are targeted for sampling. When a sighting consistsof more than one animal, the ﬁrst targeted animal is selected using tables of random sampling numbers (TRS).
All whales are taken using explosive grenades to attaininstantaneous death in line with existing norms of whale
killing methods. If instantaneous death is not achieved by
the primary killing method, another grenade is chosen asa suitable secondary method.
Biological surveys
Sampled whales are immediately transported to theresearch base vessel (oﬀshore component) or land base(coastal component), where biological measurements
and sampling are carried out in a systematic manner by
researchers (Figure 11). The kind of data and biologicalsampling is similar to those in NEWREP-A.

Figure 9a.

Research area of NEWREP-NP for lethal sampling(oﬀshore component).

Figure 9b.

Research activities in the ﬁeld based on non-lethal techniques
Dedicated sighting surveys
Sighting surveys are conducted by the Line Transect
Method and the survey protocols are the same as in the
Antarctic dedicated sighting surveys.

Research area of NEWREP-NP for lethal sampling (coastal component).
7

Technical Reports of the Institute of Cetacean Research (2017)

Figure 10.

Sub-areas to be covered by the dedicated sighting surveys under the NEWREP-NP (Sub-areas 6E, 10E, 11,
7CS, 7CN, 7WR, 7E, 8 and 9).

Figure 11.

Biological surveys of sei whales under the NEWREP-NP.

Provided that two dedicated sighting vessels are available, surveys are planned to cover sub-areas 7, 8 and 9
in summer once in three years. Sub-areas 6E, 10E and 11
would be surveyed once in the other three years (Figure 10).
Biopsy and photo-ID
Biopsy and photo-ID experiments are conducted routinely for large whales such as blue, ﬁn, humpback, North
8

Paciﬁc right, gray and killer whales. Feasibility studiesof biopsy sampling for common minke whales are also
conducted. As in the Antarctic, photo-ID and DNA dataobtained from biopsy samples are useful for studies of
distribution, movement and stock structure of thesewhales (Figure 12).

An overview of the research programs on large whales conducted by the Institute of Cetacean Research

Figure 12. Biopsy sampling of a sei whale under the NEWREP-NP.
Figure 14.

Figure 13.

Satellite tagging of sei whales under the
NEWREP-NP.

Satellite tagging
Satellite tagging experiments are conducted for common
minke and sei whales to elucidate movement within thefeeding grounds and the location of breeding grounds(Figure 13).
Oceanographic observations
In the oﬀshore component of NEWREP-NP, oceanographic conditions are investigated using data collectedby ocean circulation models such as FRA-ROMS (Okazaki et al., 2016). In the Sanriku region, the oceanographic surveys are conducted using a trawler-type R/V,
ʻMiyashioʼ (199 GT) by the Miyagi Prefecture Fisheries
Technology Institute. Vertical oceanographic observations are conducted using CTD. Subsurface (approximately 5 m water depth) temperature, salinity and chlorophylla index are recorded every minute along the track-lines.
Marine debris
As noted above, the observation and collection of debris,
both in the environment and in the stomachs of thewhales sampled, provide valuable information on thesurrounding environment of whales. Such information iscollected systematically during the sampling and sighting
surveys of NEWREP-NP (Figure 14).

Plastic bowl found in the stomach of a sei whale.

Data and analyses
Table 2 shows the kinds of data and samples being collected by NEWREP-NP. These data are analyzed in thecontext of the objectives and sub-objectives of the
program, with some of the analyses on temporal trends
incorporating data from the previous research programs
JARPN and JARPNII (see details of the data and samples
collected by JARPN and JARPNII in IWC, 2001 and IWC,
2016a, respectively).
Research outputs
As in the cases of JARPN and JARPNII, the scientiﬁc output
from NEWREP-NP is summarized as a) scientiﬁc reports
to be presented to international meetings, mainly to the
IWC SC meetings; and b) as peer-reviewed publications.
The results of the JARPN were presented to the IWC SC
review workshop conducted in 1999 (IWC, 2001). In thecase of the JARPNII, results were presented to the IWC SC
review workshops conducted in 2009 (mid-term review)(IWC, 2010) and 2016 (ﬁnal review) (IWC, 2016a). Peerreviewed publications based on JARPN and JARPNII arepresented in this issue of TEREP-ICR.
International dedicated sighting surveys
One example of international sighting surveys in which ICR
scientists participate is the IWC-Paciﬁc Ocean Whale andEcosystem Research (POWER) program. The IWC-POWER
program is an international eﬀort coordinated by the IWC
and designed by the IWC SC with special partnership of
the Japanese Government. The vessel is provided by theGovernment of Japan. The IWC-POWER surveys in the
North Paciﬁc follow the series of IWC IDCR/SOWER surveys that were conducted in the Antarctic since 1978. The
IWC POWER program has the following main objectives:(a) provide information for the proposed future in-depth
assessment of sei whales in terms of both abundance andstock structure; (b) provide information relevant to the9Technical Reports of the Institute of Cetacean Research (2017)
Table 2
Data and samples collected under NEWREP-NP, by research objective (from GOJ, 2017).
Data

SampleAbundance estimate
1,2,3
Weather data
1,2,3
Eﬀort data
1,2,3
Sighting record of whales
1,2,3
Angle and distance experiments
Common minke whale/sei whale
1,2,3,4Catching date and location
1
Photographic record of external character
1,2,3,4
Sex and body length
1,2,3Satellite tracking
3,4
Body weight
3,4
Blubber thickness and nutrition condition
3,4
Stomach content: freshness and weight
1,2,3,4
Testis weight
1,2
Fetal number, sex, length and weight4
Marine debris (in stomach)
Other large whales
5
Photo ID1

1,2,3,4
1,2,3,4
1,2,4
1,2,4
1,2,3,4
1,2,4
1,2,3,4
4
3,4

3,5

Testis
Ovary
Earplug
Ocular lens
Baleen plates
Tissue samples for genetic study (including fetus)
Tissue and organ samples for chemical study
Tissue and plasma samples for physiological study
Prey species in stomach

Skin sample (biopsy)

2: Data or samples to be used for Primary Objective I. : Data or samples to be used for Primary Objective II. 3: Data or samples to be used
for Ancillary Objective I. 4: Data or samples to be used for Ancillary Objective II. 5: Data or samples to be used for Ancillary Objective III

Implementation Reviews of whales in terms of both abundance and stock structure; (c) provide baseline information
on distribution and abundance for a poorly known area forseveral large whale species/populations (including thosethat were known to have been depleted in the past, butwhose status is unclear); (d) provide biopsy samples andphoto-identiﬁcation data to contribute to discussions ofstock structure for several large whale species/populationsand (e) provide essential information for the intersessional
workshop to plan for a medium to long term international
research programme in the North Paciﬁc (IWC, 2016b).
Research area
The research area was set north of 20°N, south of the
Aleutian Islands, between 170°E and 135°W in the period
2010–2016 (Figure 15). The research area for the 2017–19 period and agreed by the IWC SC is shown in Figure 16.

Figure 15.

Research area of the IWC POWER program in
2010–2016.

Figure 16.

Research area of the IWC POWER program in
2017–2019.

Research activities
Dedicated sighting surveys
Survey methodology is similar to that described above forthe dedicated sighting surveys in the Antarctic.
Other surveys
Photo-ID and biopsy experiments are conducted forNorth Paciﬁc right, blue, ﬁn, sei, Brydeʼs, gray, humpback,sperm and killer whales. Marine debris information is collected systematically. Acoustic studies using sonobuoys
10An overview of the research programs on large whales conducted by the Institute of Cetacean Research

Figure 17.

Flow chart of the DNA monitoring system for regulation of whale products in the market in Japan.

have also been conducted since 2017.
Data and analyses
The data and samples collected are analyzed in the context of the objectives of the program (see details of thedata and samples collected by IWC-POWER in Matsuoka
et al., 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2017).
Results of analyses are presented to the annual meetingsof the IWC SC and/or published in peer-reviewed journals(e.g. Kanda et al., 2013; 2015; Hakamada et al., 2017).
DNA register and market monitoring
BackgroundThe basic position of the Government of Japan is thatmatters related to regulation of the market for whale
products are outside the jurisdiction of the IWC. Therefore management and regulation of whale products inJapan is carried out by the Government.
As in the case of Norway and Iceland, Japan is usinga DNA-based system for tracking whale products in themarket, and this task has been assigned to the ICR. The
system involves two main components: establishment
and maintenance of a diagnostic DNA register for large
whales and molecular market monitoring through systematic surveys in the retail market (Figure 17).
Technical details of the DNA register for large whales
Source of tissue samples
In Japan there are two main sources of tissue samples oflarge whales: 1) special permit scientiﬁc whaling in the
North Paciﬁc (JARPN/JARPNII and NEWREP-NP) and theAntarctic (JARPA/JARPAII and NEWREP-A), and 2) coastal
by-catches in set nets.
In the case of special permit scientiﬁc whaling, samples
for genetic analysis are collected from each whale by researchers. These involve skin samples (two or three piec-

es of 5×5×5 mm kept in 99% ethanol). A large amountof information of each whale sampled is collected using
established protocols including species name, catch dateand location (longitude, latitude), body length and sex.
The Japanese regulation on by-catches (establishedfrom 1 July 2001) requires that all animals should be DNAregistered before whale meat can be sold in the market.
Details of the regulation and procedure can be found in
the following web page: http://www.icrwhale.org/pdf/
higekujira.pdf.
Skin or muscle samples (5×5×5 cm) are taken by theﬁsherman and sent to the laboratory at the ICR (as frozen
samples). Together with these samples, the ﬁshermen
should provide information following an established protocol including: species, date and location of the by-catch,
type of set net, body length and sex.
Genetic markers
The Japanese DNA register for large whales is composedof three parts: a) an approximately 500 bp fragmentof the 5ʼ-end of the mitochondrial DNA control region,
which is used for the purpose of species identiﬁcation of
unknown whale products, based on phylogenetic analyses; b) a set of nuclear DNA markers (microsatellites:
13–17 loci in each species), which is used for the purposeof individual identiﬁcation; and c) data from Y chromosome DNA, which is used for the purpose of sex identiﬁcation. See details in Pastene and Goto (2006).
Technical details of the market monitoring
Sampling procedure
One or two technicians, who are familiar with market operations, are appointed to carry out the sampling of whale
products in the retail market. In each year, a total of 350
samples have been collected between September and December, involving around 19 cities or towns. Table 3 shows11Technical Reports of the Institute of Cetacean Research (2017)
Table 3The number of whale products by sampling localities and tissue
type purchased in the 2016 survey.
City/Town

Meat

Blubber

Ventralgrooves

Total

SapporoSendai
Niigata
Kanazawa
NotoAnamizu
Nanao
ToyamaHimi
Nagoya
Kochi
Kobe
Osaka
Taiji
Nachikatsuura
Hiroshima
Shimonoseki
Fukuoka
Nagasaki

15
25
4
4
4
1
1
4
2
13
8
13
14
3
4
18
15
13
12

2
3
12
2
5
0
1
0
6
0
9
5
7
6
4
0
8
6
7

13
7
4
1
1
0
0
2
1
4
8
6
7
1
3
3
9
11
13

30
35
20
7
10
1
2
6
9
17
25
24
28
10
11
21
32
30
32

Total

173

83

94

350

an example of cities and whales products sampled in the2016 survey. The sampling attempts to cover the entire
Japanese archipelago but the method of sampling is not a
random procedure. The following information is collected
for each whale product sample: kind of whale product, sampling locality, date, and price. Once sampled, the products
are sent to the laboratory at the ICR for genetic analysis.
Genetic markers
The laboratory work for the whale product samples involves the same genetic markers used for the DNA register, which were explained above.
Outputs
Results of the comparisons between ʻtestʼ (sequencesand genotype of whaleʼs products) and ʻtypeʼ (sequencesand genotype in the register) samples are summarizedin an annual report to the Fishery Agency of the Government of Japan. An example of analyses is available inGoto and Pastene (2000).
Stranding record
Background
The ICR has been recording strandings of marine mam12

mals on the Japanese coast since 1986, with the purposeof obtaining information on their migration and distribution through the record and analysis of samples collectedfrom the stranded animal.
Record procedure
The ICR compiles information on stranding received fromresearchers, government oﬃcials or the general public who
send the information following a protocol and record sheet
developed and distributed by the ICR among Japanese
coastal prefectures, or from other sources such as newspapers. See details on the protocol and data sheet in the following link: (http://www.icrwhale.org/pdf/stranding.pdf).
Together with the stranding record sheet, people arerequested to send skin or muscle samples for genetic analysis in pieces of 5×5×5 mm kept frozen or in 99% ethanol.
The ICR corroborates species identity by DNA analysis.
Outputs
Information on stranding of large cetacean has beenreported to the IWC SC annual meetings on a voluntarybase as Progress Reports on Cetacean Research. Stranding records since 1996 are available in the following link:(http://www.icrwhale.org/zasho2.html).
Data and samples from strandings are available tointerested scientists under the data access protocol of
the ICR.

RESEARCH COLLABORATION
Several aspects of the research programs describedabove are conducted as research collaboration between
the ICR scientists and several Japanese and international
research organizations. Within Japan in particular the
ICR conducts research collaboration with the National
Research Institute of Far Seas Fisheries and with theTokyo University of Marine Science and Technology. A listof peer-reviewed publications derived from research collaborations is included in the relevant section of this issueof the TEREP-ICR. Protocols for data access and research
proposals are available at the ICR Home Page.

FINAL REMARKSThe ICR has been heavily involved in the design andimplementation of several research programs on large
whales and the ecosystem. The ICR will maintain thiseﬀort by continuing the ongoing surveys. A unique andvaluable data base of whale biology and whaleʼs environment has become available. Analyses of these data
have contributed and will continue contributing to theunderstanding of whale biology and ecology, and to theAn overview of the research programs on large whales conducted by the Institute of Cetacean Research

management of whaling on a sustainable basis.

REFERENCES
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analyses of whale products collected from the Japanese retailmarkets in 1996 and 1999/2000 surveys. Paper SC/52/SD7
presented to the IWC Scientiﬁc Committee, May 2000 (unpublished). 32 pp.
Government of Japan. 2015. Research Plan for New Scientiﬁc
Whale Research Program in the Antarctic Ocean (NEWREP-A).
IWC.ALL.238, November 2015 (unpublished). 110 pp.
Government of Japan. 2017. Research Plan for New Scientiﬁc
Whale Research Program in the western North Paciﬁc(NEWREP-NP). IWC.ALL.295, June 2017 (unpublished). 190
pp.
Hakamada, T., Matsuoka, K., Murase, H. and Kitakado, T. 2017.
Estimation of the abundance of the sei whale Balaenoptera
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Kanda, N., Matsuoka, K., Yoshida, H. and Pastene, L. A. 2013.
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13

Technical Reports of the Institute of Cetacean Research (2017)

Committee. Annex N. Report of the working group on stockdeﬁnition. Appendix 3. Status of the Japanese DNA register for large whales. J. Cetacean Res. Manage. (Suppl.) 8:
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14

Research Programme, February 2014 (unpublished). 76 pp.
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Kitakado, T. and L. A Pastene. 2016. The Japanese Whale
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Paciﬁc Phase-II (JARPNII): results and conclusions in thecontext of the three main objectives, and scientiﬁc considerations for future research. Paper SC/F16/JR1 presented to
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