Marine Mammal 

Commission

Survey of Federally-Funded Marine 

Mammal Research and Conservation

June 16, 2017

An independent agency of the U.S. Government

Fiscal Year 2015
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission i

Published by the Marine Mammal Commission, an Independent Federal Agency, located at 4340 EastWest Highway, Room 700, Bethesda, Maryland, 20814, USA. 

Cite as: Marine Mammal Commission. June 2017. Survey of Federally-Funded Marine Mammal Research 

and Conservation. Marine Mammal Commission, Bethesda, MD. 105pp.
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission ii

Executive Summary

Title II of the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) created the Marine Mammal Commission and

directed it to undertake a continuing review of “research programs conducted or proposed to be conducted 

under the authority of the Act.” In 2010 the Commission initiated an online survey to assess funding for 

marine mammal research and conservation activities conducted or funded by federal agencies in fiscal year 

2009. In the summer of 2016, the Commission requested that federal agencies provide data on marine 

mammal activities from fiscal year 2015 using its online survey tool. The survey collected information on 

the agencies’ marine mammal-related programs, projects, and grants, including the nature of the research, 

the species and geographic areas studied, the threats and issues addressed, and the funding amounts 

obligated during that fiscal year. Agencies reported their fiscal data to the survey in two ways: 1) total 

funding for marine mammals, including direct expenditures for projects and miscellaneous marine mammal 

activities, as well as the indirect expenditures to support the projects and other activities; and 2) direct 

project expenditures.

Agencies within the Departments of Commerce, Interior, Defense, Homeland Security, Energy, and Health 

and Human Services, and four independent agencies reported a combined total of $144.2 million (M) 

(Figure 1). Those funds included $94.8 M in direct expenditures associated with 539 projects, and $49.4M 

associated with direct expenditures for other marine mammal non-project activities, and the indirect costs

associated with the direct expenditures. The Department of Commerce’s NOAA Fisheries, which has lead 

responsibility for research and management of cetaceans, seals, fur seals, and sea lions, accounted for 47

percent of all federal funding for marine mammals ($68.3M). The Department of the Interior’s U.S. Fish 

and Wildlife Service and U.S. Geological Survey, which have lead responsibility for research and 

management (respectively) of the West Indian manatee, polar bear, sea otter, and walrus, provided an 

additional five-six percent each ($8.5M and $7.5M, respectively). Together, these three agencies, which 

have lead regulatory, research and management responsibility to ensure the conservation of all marine 

mammals, accounted for 58 percent ($84.3M) of the total funding reported. The Department of Defense 

(Navy, Army and Air Force), Department of Energy, Department of Interior (Bureaus of Ocean Energy 

Management, and Safety and Environmental Enforcement), and Department of Homeland Security (U.S. 

Coast Guard), all of which are responsible for mitigating the impact of their activities and policies affecting 

marine mammals, accounted for 33 percent ($48.2M) for research and mitigation efforts. Other sources of 

funds included the Marine Mammal Commission (2 percent, $3.3M), NOAA’s National Ocean Service (2

percent, $2.3M), the National Science Foundation (1 percent, $1.7M), the National Park Service (1 percent, 

$1.5M), the Department of Defense’s ESTC and SERD Programs (1 percent, $1.5M), the National Institutes 

of Health (1 percent, $0.71M), the Smithsonian Institution (1 percent, $0.57M), and the National 

Aeronautics and Space Administration (<0.5 percent, $0.05M).

Funding differed substantially by region. NOAA Fisheries allocated 43 percent ($24.6M) of its regionspecific funding to the Alaska Region, 18 percent ($10.4M) to the West Coast Region, 15 percent ($8.8M) to 

the Greater Atlantic Region, 12 percent ($6.6M) to the Pacific Islands Region, and 11 percent ($6.5M) to the

Southeast Region. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the U.S. Geological Survey distributed their 

regional funds roughly in proportion to the marine mammal species they manage and study: 70 percent 

($9.5M) went to the Alaska Region for the polar bear, walrus, and northern sea otter; 22 percent ($3.0M) to 

the Southeast Region for the West Indian manatee; and seven percent ($0.97M) to the West Coast Region 
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission iii

for the southern sea otter. Although regional boundaries used by NOAA Fisheries and the U.S. Fish and 

Wildlife Service / U.S. Geological Survey differ somewhat, these agencies allocated approximately 46

percent ($28.9M) of their combined $63.2M in regional funding for work based in Alaska, 26 percent 

($16.5 M) in the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico, 18 percent ($11.1M) in the contiguous Pacific coast states (i.e., 

Washington, Oregon and California), and 10 percent ($6.6M) in the Pacific Islands Region (NOAA Fisheries 

only). The dispersal of funds by the Department of Defense and Bureau of Ocean Energy Management also 

varied by region, reflecting the distribution of their activities or leasing programs – Pacific and Atlantic for 

the Department of Defense and Alaska and Atlantic for the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management.

Figure 1. Fiscal year 2015 total funding reported by agencies.

Of the $94.8M in direct expenditures reported by all agencies combined for the 539 projects, 22 percent 

($21.2M) was focused on population dynamics and stock assessment, 21 percent ($20.2M) on studies of 

marine mammal biology and ecology, 19 percent ($18.0M) on conservation, management and policy, and 

14 percent ($13.6M) of the total direct project expenditures toward projects related to the impact of 

human activities such as sound, military activities, fishing, pollution, and tourism. Federal agencies also 

NOAA Fisheries 

($68.3M)

US Navy 

($35.9M)

US Fish & Wildlife 

Service ($8.5M)

US Geological Survey 

($7.5M)

Bureau of Ocean 

Energy Management 

($6.9M)

Marine Mammal 

Commission ($3.3M)

US Coast Guard 

($2.8M)

National Ocean Service 

($2.3M)

National Science 

Foundation ($1.7M)

National Park 

Service ($1.5M)

US Army ($1.5M)

ESTCP/SERDP ($1.5M)

Office of Energy 

Efficiency & 

Renewable Energy 

(DOE) ($0.9M)

National Institutes of 

Health ($0.7M) Smithsonian 

Institution ($0.6M)

US Air Force

($0.1M)

Bureau of Safety and 

Environmental 

Enforcement ($0.1M)

NASA ($0.1M)
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission iv

directed 10 percent ($9.5M) to technology development, 8 percent ($7.7M) to animal health, and 4 percent 

($3.9M) to communications, outreach and meetings.

Among the 539 projects ($94.8M in direct project expenditures), agencies directed approximately $91.4M 

in direct expenditures to projects focused on one or more of 130 individual marine mammal species 

reported in the survey. The remaining $3.4M in direct project expenditures were of general benefit to all 

marine mammals (e.g., technology development, or general conferences). The eighteen species (14 

percent of the 130 species reported) that received individually $1.0M or more in funding accounted for 74% 

of all funding. Forty-two percent of the $91.4M, ($38.5M) was spent on just ten species (humpback whale, 

Steller sea lion, Hawaiian monk seal, walrus, common bottlenose dolphin, North Atlantic right whale, fin 

whale, West Indian manatee, blue whale, and harbor seal), which received amounts varying from 

approximately $6.2M to $2.4 each.

When the projects are broken down according to broad taxonomic or ecological groups, seven species of 

pinnipeds 1 received $1.0M or more in direct expenditures (Steller sea lion, Hawaiian monk seal, walrus,

harbor seal, northern fur seal, California sea lion, and spotted seal) for a total of 21 percent ($19.1M) of the 

$91.4M. Using the same funding cut-off, eight species of large whales (humpback, North Atlantic right, fin, 

blue, bowhead, sperm, common minke, and gray) accounted for 27 percent ($24.3M) of the expenditures.

The only U.S. species of large whale that did not receive at least $1.0M in funding were the sei ($907K), 

Bryde’s ($845K) and Endangered North Pacific right whales ($336K). Direct expenditures for more than 11

species of toothed cetaceans 2 (common bottlenose dolphin; killer, sperm, Cuvier’s beaked, Blainville’s 

beaked, false killer, beluga, short-finned pilot, and Northern bottlenose whale; Risso’s and short-beaked 

common dolphins) exceeded the cut-off ($19.2M, 21 percent in total).

Of the direct project expenditures associated with particular species ($91.4M), agencies directed 61

percent ($55.6M) toward 32 species listed as endangered or threatened under the Endangered Species Act 

(ESA), or designated as depleted or categorized strategic under the MMPA. Of the $55.6M, agencies 

directed 70 percent ($38.8M) toward 21 endangered species, 13 percent ($7.1M) toward eight threatened 

species, nine percent ($8.1M) toward two strategic species, 3 and 2 percent ($1.6M) toward the single 

species designated as depleted.

4 Of the 28 species listed as endangered or threatened, expenditures 

averaged $1.6M (range: $336K to $6.2M) for the 19 species with the highest expenditures (>$300K), all of 

which occur in U.S. waters. Expenditures for the other 9 species averaged $102K (range: $1.6K - $232K).5

Survey respondents identified the geographic regions (coastal Large Marine Ecosystems (LMEs) and large 

open ocean areas) within which each project operated or was relevant to the project. Expenditures in the 

Pacific Ocean LMEs 6 made up 43 percent of the total direct project expenditures associated with one or 

more particular regions ($38.4M). The U.S. Arctic LMEs 7 and adjacent areas accounted for 21 percent

 1 Seals, sea lions, fur seals, and walrus are all pinnipeds

2 Toothed whales, dolphins and porpoises – the odontocetes 3 Designated strategic under the MMPA, but not listed under the ESA

4 Designated as depleted under the MMPA, but not listed under the ESA or designated as strategic under the MMPA 5 Only one of these species, Guadalupe fur seal, in found in U.S. waters

6 Northeast and northwest Pacific Ocean, California Current, Gulf of Alaska, and Insular Pacific – Hawaiian LMEs 7 Chukchi Sea, Beaufort Sea, East Bering Sea and West Bering Sea LMEs
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission v

($18.3M) of the total. The Southeast U.S. Continental Shelf, Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean LMEs combined 

accounted for 15 percent ($13.3M) of the direct project expenditures. Expenditures in the Northeast U.S. 

Continental Shelf LME and its adjacent open ocean area accounted for another 14 percent ($12.2M). The 

remaining 6.4M was expended elsewhere in the world.

Acknowledgements

The Marine Mammal Commission is grateful to the federal agencies that participated in the survey and for 

their efforts to provide accurate information on their marine mammal activities and funding. The 

Commission also gratefully acknowledges the time and effort contributed to the survey by the coordinators 

and respondents from those agencies. In addition, the Commission is thankful for agency comments on this 

and previous surveys, which have improved the survey and its usefulness substantially. Comments on this 

report and/or the survey are welcome and should be submitted to the Commission at surveyffr@mmc.gov

and/or rpo@mmc.org.
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission vi

Contents

Executive Summary ............................................................................................................................................ii

Acknowledgements............................................................................................................................................v

List of Tables....................................................................................................................................................viii

List of Figures...................................................................................................................................................viii

Introduction....................................................................................................................................................... 1

Methods ............................................................................................................................................................ 2

Results ............................................................................................................................................................... 5

Funding by Federal Departments, Agencies and Offices................................................................................... 5

Departments...............................................................................................................................................5

Agencies......................................................................................................................................................6

Department of Commerce ......................................................................................................................7

NOAA Fisheries...................................................................................................................................7

National Ocean Service.......................................................................................................................9

NOAA Research.................................................................................................................................10

Department of Defense ........................................................................................................................11

Department of the Navy...................................................................................................................11

Department of the Army ..................................................................................................................12

Environmental Research Programs..................................................................................................13

Department of the Air Force ............................................................................................................14

Department of the Interior...................................................................................................................14

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service............................................................................................................14

U.S. Geological Survey ......................................................................................................................17

Bureau of Ocean Energy Management and the Bureau of Safety & Environmental Enforcement.17

National Park Service........................................................................................................................18

Independent Agencies ..........................................................................................................................19

Marine Mammal Commission ..........................................................................................................19

National Science Foundation............................................................................................................19

The Smithsonian Institution .............................................................................................................20

National Aeronautics and Space Administration..............................................................................20
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission vii

Department of Homeland Security.......................................................................................................20

U.S. Coast Guard...............................................................................................................................20

Department of Energy...........................................................................................................................20

Office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy .............................................................................20

Department of Health and Human Services.........................................................................................20

National Institutes of Health ............................................................................................................20

Project Expenditures ....................................................................................................................................... 21

Project Objectives.....................................................................................................................................21

Species and Species Groupings.................................................................................................................27

Conservation Status..................................................................................................................................30

Geographic Region ...................................................................................................................................32

Discussion ........................................................................................................................................................ 32

Next Steps.................................................................................................................................................33

Appendix A....................................................................................................................................................... 35

Appendix B....................................................................................................................................................... 39

Appendix C....................................................................................................................................................... 41

Appendix D (numbering restarts internally).................................................................................... following 48
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission viii

List of Tables

Table 1. Project fields in the fiscal year 2015 online survey..............................................................................3

Table 2. The project objectives field in the fiscal year 2014 online survey.......................................................4

Table 3. Fiscal year 2015 total funding reported by federal departments........................................................5

Table 4. Fiscal year 2015 total funding reported by federal agencies. .............................................................6

Table 5. Fiscal year 2015 total funding reported by various headquarters programs, regional offices, 

and science centers, and by region, within NOAA Fisheries...............................................................8

Table 6. Fiscal year 2015 total funding reported by the Navy.........................................................................12

Table 7. Fiscal year 2015 total funding reported by agencies, centers, and offices, and by region, 

within the Department of the Interior. ..............................................................................................15

Table 8. Fiscal year 2015 direct expenditures reported by categories of project objectives..........................21

Table 9. Fiscal year 2015 direct project expenditures by reported objective (all agencies combined)..........23

List of Figures

Figure 1. Fiscal year 2015 total funding reported by agencies.........................................................................iii

Figure 2. Fiscal year 2015 total funding reported by NOAA Fisheries programs, regional offices, 

and science centers............................................................................................................................9

Figure 3. Fiscal year 2015 total funding reported by the Navy. ......................................................................13

Figure 4. Fiscal year 2015 project expenditures reported by project objective..............................................22

Figure 5. Species with more than $2.0M in direct project expenditures in fiscal year 2015..........................28

Figure 6. Fiscal year 2015 direct project expenditures reported by taxonomic or ecological grouping........29

Figure 7. Fiscal year 2015 direct project expenditures reported by species’ ESA and 

MMPA conservation status..............................................................................................................31

Figure 8. Fiscal year 2015 direct project expenditures reported by geographic location –

Large Marine Ecosystems and open-ocean areas............................................................................33
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 1

Introduction

Title II of the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 (MMPA) directs the Marine Mammal Commission to 

conduct a continuing review of “...research programs conducted or proposed to be conducted under the 

authority of the Act....” From 1974 to 2000, the Commission fulfilled that duty, in part, by conducting an 

annual “Survey of Federally Funded Marine Mammal Research and Studies.” 8

 The Commission 

discontinued the survey in 2000 because of uncertainties as to whether the results were being used. In 

2010 the Commission re-initiated the survey – now entitled the “Survey of Federally Funded Marine 

Mammal Research and Conservation” – to analyze data for fiscal year 2009.

9

 

Following the fiscal year 2009 survey the Commission undertook a large-scale revision of the survey and the 

web-based survey tool. 10 The redesign has enabled the collection of high quality data, and the new webbased survey tool has allowed participating agencies to enter their data quickly and efficiently. The 

Commission considers the survey an important source of information to inform decision-makers charged 

with evaluating and prioritizing resources needed to meet marine mammal research and conservation 

obligations.

The survey was designed to gather funding information from federal agencies 11 regarding their marine 

mammal research and conservation activities. Research may occur in the field, in a laboratory, or at a 

captive facility and may involve the surveying of wild populations, collection of biological samples, data 

analyses, computer simulations, or integration of traditional Native American knowledge. Topics may 

include anatomy, morphology, physiology, nutrition, metabolism, energetics, genetics, neurology, hearing, 

sound production, echolocation, dive physiology, cognition, parasitology, disease/health, and individual 

animal condition. Research may focus on species’ natural history traits such as breeding systems, foraging 

patterns and diet, diving patterns, movements and home range, or time budgets and seasonality of various 

behavioral activities. At the population level, it may focus on such things as distribution, stock structure 

and genetic exchange, abundance, trends, status, social structure, migration, demographics including vital 

rates (growth, birth, and death rates), life history traits, evolution, or taxonomy. At the ecosystem level, it 

may focus on such things as prey abundance, distribution, and availability; competition; predator 

avoidance, and habitat selection or use. For conservation purposes, it often focuses on marine 

mammal/human conflicts such as fishery interactions, ship strikes, disturbance, entanglement in marine 

debris, direct taking, and habitat degradation. Finally, research can involve the development, testing, and 

deployment of a wide range of scientific methods and technologies, such as line-transect, mark-recapture, 

 8 Scanned versions of those reports are available on the Commission web site (www.mmc.gov). 9 The report on the fiscal year 2009 survey also is available on the Commission web site. 10 Following the fiscal year 2009 survey the Commission revised the survey to capture more information, and in 2012 the 

Commission requested data from fiscal years 2010 and 2011. Following that survey the loss of the survey program manager and 

severe financial constraints associated with sequestration significantly delayed the processing and analysis of the data. At the 

same time, in response to strong feedback received from agencies on the FY2010-11 and FY2009 surveys, the Commission 

decided to redesign the survey and develop a new online survey app. The changes in the survey design mean that the FY2010-11 

data could not be compared with data collected with the new survey. Because of this limitation and because the FY2010-11 data 

were by then out of date, the Commission decided not to report on those data, but instead to focus on the new application and 

collection of higher quality data from this point forward. 11 In this report, the term “agency” refers generically to federal departments, administrations, bureaus, services, offices, programs, 

institutions, commissions, etc.
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 2

and photo-identification methods, the development and refinement of various types of tags, tracking 

devices, acoustic devices, tissue-sampling devices, analytical software, assessment models, and simulation 

software, and social science and economic studies of human interactions with marine mammals and their 

importance to society.

Conservation activities are primarily aimed at risks to marine mammals arising from human-related 

activities. They may involve the development of conservation regulations, policies, permits to mitigate

activities that may take 12 marine mammals incidentally, development of mitigation and monitoring 

measures, enforcement, education and outreach, status reviews and listing decisions, recovery planning, 

section-7 consultations under the Endangered Species Act (ESA), co-management of subsistence hunting, 

stranding and entanglement response, rehabilitation, the application of new technologies/equipment (e.g., 

fishing gear), and evaluation of management. Supporting activities such as administration, infrastructure 

development and maintenance, capital investment, information/database development and maintenance, 

and communications (e.g. workshops, conferences) also are essential for marine mammal conservation.

This report describes the results of a survey of such activities by federal agencies for fiscal year 2015. It 

does not include related marine mammal studies funded by state agencies or funds dispersed from the 

Deepwater Horizon settlement funds. The results include funding levels and associated information 

reported by agencies and basic analyses of that information, such as funding by agency, region, project 

objective, taxonomic family, and conservation status of the focal species. Information of marine mammal 

research and conservation activities, and their funding, not provided in this report can be requested from 

the Marine Mammal Commission.13

Methods

In the summer of 2016, the Commission made an online data-entry application available to federal agencies

to survey fiscal year 2015 data on their marine mammal activities. Federal agencies known to have funded, 

or that might have funded, research or conservation efforts for marine mammals in fiscal year 2015 were 

asked to participate.

The Commission identified all of the administrative ‘units’ within federal departments that were known to,

or thought to, conduct or fund marine mammal activities. These ‘units’ were part of agencies –

• with lead responsibility for marine mammal research and management (NOAA Fisheries, US Fish 

and Wildlife Service, and US Geological Survey);

• conducting or managing activities that affect marine mammals (e.g., the Department of Navy, and 

the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management); 

• with missions explicitly related to marine mammal conservation (e.g., NOAA Fisheries, NOAA’s 

National Ocean Service, and the US Fish and Wildlife Service); or 

• that conduct/fund research involving marine mammals (e.g., National Institutes of Health, the 

Smithsonian Institution and the National Science Foundation).

 12 “Take” means to harass, hunt, capture, or kill, or attempt to harass, hunt, capture, or kill any marine mammal (MMPA Sec. 3 

(13)). 13 Use e-mail addresses surveyffr@mmc.gov or rpo@mmc.gov
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 3

The Commission recognized three sources of expenditures toward marine mammals: 1) discrete projects, 2) 

miscellaneous activities, and 3) support (indirect costs). Information on projects with the associated direct 

expenditures were collected and linked to the ‘unit’ within which the project operated, or received support 

or funding. For each ‘unit’ that conducted or funded projects or miscellaneous activities, the survey asked 

for an estimate of the total marine mammal funding for that unit, which included the direct expenditures 

for projects and miscellaneous activities, and the associated support or indirect costs. 

Table 1. Project fields in the fiscal year 2015 online survey.

Project fields

• Title and description

• Fiscal year

• Principal investigator(s) name(s)

• Sponsoring agency

• Performing organization name/type

• Direct expenditures

• Objective(s) and allocation

• Species/stock(s) and allocation 

• Location(s) (LMEs) 14 and allocation

• Data disposition and products

For each project, the survey requested data that would indicate the effort and resources (i.e., number of 

projects and amount of funding) dedicated to marine mammal research and conservation relative to factors 

of interest (e.g., agency, objectives, region, species, and species conservation status; data fields are listed in 

Table 1). The survey asked respondents to specify 1) the objectives of each project (Table 2), 2) the species 

that were the focus of each project (for the full list of species that were reported on in the survey see 

Appendix B), and 3) locations in which the projects operated or where the work would be relevant. 

Locations were specified quite broadly as large marine ecosystems or open ocean areas (Appendix C). In 

addition, the survey asked that the respondent specify if the data/information generated by the project 

would be archived in a public database, and, if so, which types of data would be archived and which 

database(s) would be the recipient(s).

The Commission processed the survey data entered, and worked with respondents to resolve any 

discrepancies revealed during a quality assurance/control process. The Commission then completed a 

report that summarized the survey data, submitted the report in draft form to the agencies for their review, 

modified the draft as appropriate based on agency feedback, and finalized the report.

 14 Large marine ecosystems
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 4

Table 2. The project objectives field in the fiscal year 2014 online survey.

Project Objectives

1) Biology

a) Anatomy / Morphology

b) Behavior – social / 

reproductive

c) Behavior – diving / foraging / 

feeding

d) Behavior – kinematics / 

activity/energy budgets

e) Bioacoustics – sound 

production

f) Bioacoustics – sound 

reception

g) Genetics/taxonomy

h) Paleontological studies

i) Physiology /endocrinology / 

neurology / biochemistry

j) Reproduction / growth / 

aging

2) Ecology

a) Habitat characterization

b) Habitat use

c) Trophic interactions / diet / 

foraging ecology

d) Behavioral ecology

e) Population ecology

f) Ecosystem / environmental

studies

g) Traditional ecological 

knowledge

3) Population Dynamics

a) Vital rates

b) Age structure / sex ratio 

c) Size / abundance

d) Distribution / movements

e) Population dynamics

f) Population genetics / stock 

delineation

g) Stock assessment

4) Animal Health

a) Stranding response

b) Care / rehabilitation

c) Necropsy

d) Sample collection

e) Diagnostics

f) Monitoring / assessment

g) Contaminants

h) Biotoxins

i) Disease

j) Body condition

5) Fishery Interactions

a) Bycatch – gill net / pot gear 

entanglement

b) Bycatch – other gear

c) Bycatch – mitigation

d) Entanglement response

e) Depredation

f) Indirect / Competitive

interactions

6) Anthropogenic Sound Impacts

a) Characterization / analysis of 

sound budges / soundscapes

b) Military activities – sonar

c) Military activities -

explosions

d) Energy development –

seismic surveys

e) Energy development –

high-res geophysical surveys

f) Energy development –

drilling

g) Energy development –

platform removal

d) Industrial activities -

shipping

e) Industrial activities -

pile driving

7) Pollution Impacts

a) Hydrocarbon spills / leaks

b) Persistent toxins

c) Nutrient runoff / HABs

d) Marine debris - plastics

e) Marine debris – derelict 

fishing gear

8) Other Anthropogenic Impacts

a) Vessel strikes

b) Tourism - observing

c) Tourism – swim-with / 

feeding

d) Disturbance

e) Coastal development / 

dredging

9) Human Dimensions

a) Whaling / subsistence

harvesting

b) Marine mammals and 

coastal communities

c) Social science

d) Economics

10) Conservation, Management and 

Policy

a) Conservation

b) Population protection / 

recovery

c) Monitoring

d) Surveillance / enforcement

e) Regulatory compliance

11) Communication, Outreach, and 

Meetings

a) Publications

b) Outreach

c) Education

d) Meetings / workshops,

symposia / conferences

12) Technology development

a) Photo ID

b) Tag / telemetry devices

c) Acoustic devices

d) Biological sampling devices

e) Oceanographic sampling 

devices

f) Sampling platforms

g) Cameras

h) Imaging / image analysis

i) GIS

j) Acoustic detection, 

classification and 

localization algorithms / 

models / software

k) Acoustic density estimation 

models / software

l) Line transect methodology

m) Habitat mapping / modeling

n) Mathematical / statistical / 

simulation models

o) Database design / 

development / maintenance / 

archiving
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 5

Results

Funding by Federal Departments, Agencies and Offices

This section describes patterns in total funding by departments, agencies and offices, where total funding 

includes 1) direct project expenditures, 2) direct expenditures for miscellaneous marine mammal activities,

and 3) the indirect or support costs associated with the two categories of direct expenditures.

Departments

Respondents from five federal departments (Commerce, Defense, Interior, Energy, Homeland Security, and 

Health and Human Services), and four independent agencies (National Science Foundation, Marine 

Mammal Commission, the Smithsonian Institution, and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration) 

provided data through the survey. Just over $144M in total funding for marine mammal activities in fiscal 

year 2015 was reported across the federal government (Table 3). The bulk of that funding (93 percent) was 

accounted for by the Departments of Commerce, Defense and Interior.

Table 3. Fiscal year 2015 total funding reported by federal departments.

Department Funding

(millions)

Percent

of total

Commerce 70.7 49

Defense 39.0 27

Interior 24.4 17

Independent agencies 5.7 4

Homeland Security 2.8 2

Energy 0.90 1

Health and Human Services 0.71 <0.5

Total 144.2 100

Within each department, one or more agencies or offices responded to the survey; the number of projects 

and total funding they reported is provided in Appendix A. The National Ocean Service’s Office of Response 

& Restoration, the Department of Defense’s Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, and the U.S. 

Arctic Research Commission indicated that they did not conduct or fund any marine mammal activities in 

fiscal year 2014. The Bureau of Land Management reported that they would need more time to gather the 

requested information, but would participate in the survey in future years. NOAA Research (Office of 

Oceanic and Atmospheric Research) and the Department of State each indicated that they would 

participate in the Survey, but did not submit their data. The National Ocean Service’s Office of Coastal 

Management did not respond to the Commission’s request for data. 
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 6

Agencies

Responding agencies reported 539 marine mammal projects, miscellaneous activities and support costs

totaling $144.2M (Figure 1, Table 4).

15 The following is a summary of funding by agency, in order of each 

agency’s total funding for marine mammal research and conservation in fiscal year 2015. 

Table 4. Fiscal year 2015 total funding reported by federal agencies.

Agency Funding

(millions)

Percent

of total

NOAA Fisheries (Commerce) 68.3 47

Department of the Navy (Defense) 35.9 25

U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (Interior) 8.5 6

U.S. Geological Survey (Interior) 7.5 5

Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (Interior) 6.9 5

Marine Mammal Commission (Independent) 3.3 2

U.S. Coast Guard (Homeland Security) 2.8 2

National Ocean Service (Commerce) 2.3 2

National Science Foundation (Independent) 1.7 1

National Park Service (Interior) 1.5 1

Environmental Research Programs – ESTCP/SERDP (Defense) 1.5 1

U.S. Army (Defense) 1.5 1

Office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy (Energy) 0.90 1

National Institutes of Health (Health & Human Services) 0.71 <0.5

Smithsonian Institution (Independent) 0.57 <0.5

Department of the Air Force (Defense) 0.14 <0.5

Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (Interior) 0.09 <0.5

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (Independent) 0.05 <0.5

Total 144.2 100

 15 The project details are provided in a “Project Details” companion document. 
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 7

Department of Commerce

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), with its mission of “Science, Service, and 

Stewardship,” is responsible for researching, monitoring and managing our ocean. Marine mammal 

activities take place within three of its ‘line offices’ – NOAA Fisheries,16 the National Ocean Service and 

NOAA Research. 17

NOAA Fisheries

In U.S. waters, NOAA Fisheries, also known as the National Marine Fisheries Service, is the primary agency 

responsible for research and conservation of most marine living resources, including the majority of marine 

mammal species. NOAA Fisheries’ research and conservation efforts focus generally on stock identification 

and assessment, management of human interactions with marine mammals (e.g., fisheries), health and 

stranding, and planning and implementation of recovery measures for species listed as endangered or 

threatened under the ESA or designated as depleted or categorized as strategic under the MMPA. The 

research activities of each regional science center focus on the marine mammals in that region and are 

intended to support the management needs of the corresponding regional office. Within each regional 

office, the Protected Resources Division assumes primary responsibility for marine mammal management, 

protection, and conservation activities.

At NOAA Fisheries headquarters, the Office of Science and Technology and the Office of Protected 

Resources play important roles in marine mammal research and conservation. The Office of Science and 

Technology provides broad oversight of scientific activities, including many of those aimed at marine 

mammals and the ecosystems of which they are a part. The Office of Protected Resources develops policies 

and regulations to implement provisions of the MMPA and ESA. It issues permits and authorizations for 

activities that take marine mammals, and it manages the Marine Mammal Health and Stranding Response 

Program and the John H. Prescott Marine Mammal Rescue Assistance Grant Program. The Office also is 

responsible for, or oversees, listing decisions and recovery activities such as developing recovery plans, 

designating critical habitat, managing a grants program under section 6 of the ESA, and conducting 

consultations under section 7 of the ESA.

In fiscal year 2015, NOAA Fisheries reported that it allocated $68.3M (47 percent of the total federal 

funding reported; Table 5, Figure 2) to 130 marine mammal research and conservation projects, and other 

marine mammal activities. Within NOAA Fisheries funding was split between regional science centers 

($34.1M, 50 percent), regional offices ($22.8M, 33 percent of the $68.3M), and national programs ($11.4M, 

17 percent) (Figure 2, Table 5). On a regional basis, there were in effect three tiers of funding by NOAA 

Fisheries for marine mammal research and conservation (Table 5). The Alaska region reported 43 percent 

($24.6M) of the combined funding reported by all regional offices and science centers ($56.9M). In the 

next tier, the West Coast and Greater Atlantic Regions reported significantly less funding: 18 percent 

($10.4M) and 15 percent ($8.8M), respectively. In addition, in the third tier, the Pacific Islands and 

Southeast Regions reported even less – 12 and 11 percent ($6.6M and $6.5M), respectively. Most of the 

 16 Also known as the National Marine Fisheries Service 17 Also known as the Office of Ocean and Atmospheric Research
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 8

funding expended by national programs (92 percent; $10.4M) was reported by the Office of Protected 

Resources at NOAA Fisheries’ headquarters in Silver Spring, Maryland. 

 18 For regional totals (offices and science centers combined), the far right column lists the percent of the combined 

funding directed toward the regions ($56.9M). 19 Includes the West Coast Regional Office, and the Northwest and Southwest Fisheries Science Centers 20 Includes the Northeast Regional Office and Northeast Fisheries Science Center

Table 5. Fiscal year 2015 total funding reported by various headquarters programs, 

regional offices, and science centers, and by region, 

within NOAA Fisheries.18

NOAA Fisheries Funding 

(millions)

Percent of

sub-total

Percent of

agency total

Fisheries science centers

Alaska 13.5 40 20

Southwest 5.6 16 8

Northeast 5.2 15 8

Pacific Islands 4.6 14 7

Southeast 3.4 10 5

Northwest 1.7 5 3

Sub-total 34.1 100 50

Regional offices

Alaska 11.0 48 16

Greater Atlantic 3.6 16 5

West Coast 3.1 14 5

Southeast 3.1 14 5

Pacific Islands 2.0 9 3

Sub-total 22.8 100 33

Programs

Office of Protected Resources 10.4 92 15

Office of Science and Technology 0.80 7 1

Office of International Affairs 0.10 <0.5 <0.5

Sub-total 11.4 100 17

Total 68.3 100

By regions (regional offices and science centers combined, programs excluded)

Alaska 24.6 43

West Coast 19 10.4 18

Greater Atlantic 20 8.8 15

Pacific Islands 6.6 12

Southeast 6.5 11

Total 56.9 100
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 9

Figure 2. Fiscal year 2015 total funding reported by NOAA Fisheries programs, 

regional offices, and science centers.

National Ocean Service

The National Ocean Service is comprised of nine centers, programs, and offices, five of which have 

conducted or supported activities relevant to marine mammal research or conservation in the past:

• The National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS) provide local and national coastal 

managers with the science, information and tools they need to support research, 

monitoring and assessment and to address coastal issues, especially harmful algal blooms, 

pollution, climate change, and ecosystem management;

• The Office of National Marine Sanctuaries supports marine mammal research and 

conservation activities at most of its 13 marine sanctuaries and one marine national 

monument; the sanctuaries and monument exist to protect, conserve, and enhance the 

ecological integrity of special marine ecosystems and the organisms that live within them, 

including marine mammals;

Alaska Fisheries 

Science Center 

($13.5M)

Alaska Regional Office 

($11.0M)

Office of Protected 

Resources ($10.4M) Southwest Fisheries 

Science Center 

($5.6M)

Northeast Fisheries 

Science Center 

($5.2M)

Pacific Islands 

Fisheries Science 

Center ($4.6M)

Greater Atlantic 

Regional Fisheries 

Office ($3.6M)

Southeast Fisheries 

Science Center 

($3.4M)

West Coast Regional 

Office ($3.1M)

Southeast Regional 

Office ($3.1M)

Pacific Islands Regional 

Office ($2.0M)

Northwest Fisheries 

Science Center 

($1.7M)

Office of Science and 

Technology ($0.8M)

Office of International 

Affairs ($0.1M)
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 10

• The Office for Coastal Management (OCM) unifies private sector, nonprofit, scientific and

governmental efforts to make coastal communities more resilient; OCM delivers a wide 

variety of coastal data, tools and training to coastal communities to address environmental 

challenges such as protecting endangered species, and protecting coastal communities 

from hurricanes and sea-level rise;

• The Office of Response and Restoration (OR&R) provides scientific information for 

responding to coastal hazards, such as oil and chemical spills, and restoring affected 

ecosystems; OR&R provides the science and information needed to support the U.S. Coast 

Guard during spills and in coordinating with federal, state, and tribal natural resource 

trustees to restore coastal resources damaged by those spills; and

• The Integrated Ocean Observing System Program (IOOSP); part of the larger interagency 

Integrated Ocean Observing System, it provides ocean-related information, investigative 

tools, and forecasts to ocean users, managers, and emergency responders.

For fiscal year 2015, the National Ocean Service reported a total of 16 projects and $2.3M in funding for 

those projects and other marine mammal activities. Four National Marine Sanctuaries 21 reported $1.9M in 

funding, and NCCOS reported the remaining $440K. The other offices (OCM and OR&R) did not have any 

marine mammal activities to report for fiscal year 2015.

NOAA Research

NOAA Research, also known as the Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research, conducts or supports 

research on environmental phenomena such as ocean currents, El Niño and La Niña events, fisheries 

productivity, deep sea thermal vents, climate variability, and coastal ecosystem health – all topics indirectly 

related, but highly relevant, to marine mammals. The Office’s research network includes the following:

• NOAA Research Laboratories collaborate with universities and non-profit organizations to 

conduct a broad range of ocean research. The Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory 

(PMEL) has been involved in research on acoustics, the Arctic, and Arctic climate disruption, 

much of which is highly relevant to the conservation and management of Arctic marine 

mammals;

• The Office of Ocean Exploration and Research is dedicated to increasing ocean knowledge 

through the exploration, research, and the use of undersea technologies. Research 

activities conducted by, or with the support of, this office promote understanding of the 

marine environment and often provide insights into the natural history of marine mammals 

and their use of specific marine environments;

• The Climate Program Office provides strategic guidance and oversight for NOAA's climate 

science and services programs. This office funds programs that focus on understanding the 

climate system, predicting climate variability and change, and improving society’s ability to 

adapt to such change. Studies conducted or supported by this Office also provide insights 

into the potential effects of climate disruption on marine mammals; and

 21 Channel Islands, Cordell Bank, Gray’s Reef, Greater Farallones, Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale, 

Monterey Bay, Papahānaumokuākea, and Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuaries
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 11

• The National Sea Grant College Program works with universities and research institutions to 

support scientific studies of ocean resources. State Sea Grant organizations occasionally 

fund marine mammal studies.

Although NOAA Research reported funding for its National Sea Grant Program in fiscal year 2014, it did not 

respond to the Commission’s fiscal year 2015 call for data.

Department of Defense

The Mission of the Department of Defense is “to provide the military forces needed to deter war and to 

protect the security of our country.” Preparations and training to fulfill this mission can have impacts on 

the environment and marine mammals. Several components of the Department of Defense are focused on 

understanding, monitoring and mitigating those impacts.

Department of the Navy

The Navy funds marine mammal research and conservation activities to meet its environmental compliance 

obligations under the MMPA, ESA, and National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), and to fulfill its 

responsibilities as a steward of the marine environment. A review of the research and conservation 

activities undertaken by the Navy indicates that these activities are aimed largely at three particular needs. 

The first is to conduct studies related to the abundance, distribution, foraging, reproduction, physiology, 

hearing and sound production, behavior, and ecology of marine mammals. The second is to understand the 

potential effects on marine mammals from Navy training and testing activities, particularly from the use of 

mid-frequency active sonar and underwater detonations, in order to improve impact analysis. The third is 

to monitor and report on Navy training and testing activities involving the use of active sonar and 

underwater detonations. Overall, the Navy reported allocating $35.9M (25 percent of all federal funding

reported) for 186 marine mammal research and conservation projects, and other activities, in fiscal year 

2015 (Figure 1, Table 4). Within the Navy, research and conservation of marine mammals is funded 

primarily by the Office of Naval Research (ONR), the Living Marine Resources (LMR) program, the Navy’s 

Atlantic and Pacific Fleets, and its Systems Commands 22 (Figure 3, Table 6).

ONR supports a wide range of basic and early-stage applied research and technology development related 

to understanding the physiological, behavioral, ecological, and demographic effects of sound on marine 

mammals. In fiscal year 2015, ONR reported directing $10.1M to 93 marine mammal research and 

conservation projects (Figure 3, Table 6). Under the Chief of Naval Operations, the Fleets and System 

Commands reported allocating $16.4M for 67 projects aimed at mitigating and monitoring their activities to 

avoid, minimize, and/or document the potential effects on marine mammals during training and testing 

activities. 

 22 Naval Air Systems Command and Naval Sea Systems Command
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 12

Table 6. Fiscal year 2015 total funding reported by the Navy.

Office Funding

(millions)

Percent

of total

Office of Naval Research (ONR) 10.1 28

Atlantic Fleet (LANTFleet) 7.9 22

At-Sea Compliance Program (ASCP) 4.4 12

Living Marine Resources (LMR) 3.9 11

Pacific Fleet – West Coast (PacFleet – WC) 3.0 8

Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) 2.8 8

Pacific Fleet – Hawaii and Marianas (PacFleet – H&M) 1.4 4

SURTASS LFA 1.0 3

Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) 0.71 2

Naval Facilities Engineering Command Northwest (NAVFAC NW) 0.21 1

Naval Facilities Engineering Command Mid-Atlantic (NAVFAC MIDLANT) 0.18 1

Naval Facilities Engineering Command Southeast (NAVFAC SE) 0.14 <0.5

Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command (SPAWAR) 0.07 <0.5

Naval Facilities Engineering Command Southwest (NAVFAC SW) 0.04 <0.5

Total 35.9 100

The Navy’s At-Sea Compliance Program, which serves and is funded by the Fleets and System Commands, 

expended $4.4M on six projects. Also under the Chief of Naval Operations, the Living Marine Resources 

(LMR) Program, which supports applied research and technology development to improve understanding of 

the consequences for marine species occurring near Navy at-sea training and testing activities, reported 

allocations of $3.9M for 20 projects, many of which focused on passive acoustic monitoring technologies 

and methods, hearing studies, and the SOCAL behavioral response study. 

Department of the Army

Two agencies within the Department of the Army reported marine mammal activities totaling $1.5M (three

projects) in fiscal year 2015. 

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers serves as the nation’s engineers, working with other federal agencies, 

state agencies, non-governmental organizations, and academic institutions. It builds, supports, and 

manages dams, levees, and waterways; supports military activities with construction and infrastructure 

needs; assists in various ways with natural resource management and restoration; assists with disaster 

response; and undertakes various development projects to support the national economy. In fiscal year 

2015 the Corps reported $1.5M in funding for three projects and numerous other activities related to 

marine mammal research and conservation in 14 of their districts.

23 Almost all of those funds were to 

 23 Alaska, Baltimore, Charleston, Jacksonville, Los Angeles, Mobile, New England, New Orleans, New York, Philadelphia, Savannah,

Seattle, Vicksburg and Wilmington
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 13

protect specific marine mammal species during Corps navigation projects. In addition, the Program 

Executive Office for Simulation, Training, and Instruction funded one project for $56K.

Figure 3. Fiscal year 2015 total funding reported by the Navy.

Environmental Research Programs

The Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program (SERDP) is the Department of Defense’s 

science and technology program for assessing the impact of military activities on the environment, 

including marine mammals. In addition, SERDP manages and protects the natural resources, including 

threatened and endangered species, on Department of Defense lands and ocean training ranges. SERDP 

achieves its goals by working with the Department of Energy, the Environmental Protection Agency and 

other relevant federal agencies. The Environmental Security Technology Certification Program (ESTCP) 

identifies cost-effective technologies that address the Department of Defense’s highest environmental 

priorities. The program promotes the transfer of innovative technologies that have successfully established 

proof of concept to field or production use. The combined funding by the Department of Defense for two 

ESTCP projects, four SERDP projects and other activities during fiscal year 2015 was $1.5M.

ONR ($10.1M)

LANTFleet ($7.9M)

ASCP ($4.4M)

LMR ($3.9M)

PACFLEET WC 

($3.0M)

NAVSEA

($2.8M)

PACFLEET H&M 

($1.4M)

SURTASS LFA 

($1.0M)

NAVAIR ($0.7M)

NAVFAC NW

($0.2M)

NAVFAC MIDLANT 

($0.2M)

NAVFAC SE ($0.1M) SPAWAR ($0.1M)

NAVFAC SW 

($0.04M)
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 14

Department of the Air Force

Elgin and Vandenberg Air Force bases reported $142K in funding and three projects focused on surveying, 

monitoring or mitigation. 

Department of the Interior

The Department of the Interior protects and manages the nation’s natural resources and cultural heritage, 

provides scientific and other information about those resources, and honors the nation’s trust 

responsibilities or special commitments to American Indians, Alaska Natives, and affiliated island 

communities. The Department has a diverse set of agencies that conduct or fund marine mammal projects 

and activities. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) is responsible for managing polar bears, walrus, sea 

otters and West Indian manatees, and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) provides much of the scientific 

research necessary to support that management. The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) and 

the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) working cooperatively manage the impact of 

the energy sector on the ocean, including that on marine mammals, in U.S. federal waters. The National 

Park Service manages a large number of National Seashores and coastal National Parks, and similarly the 

FWS manages numerous coastal National Wildlife Refuges. In fiscal year 2015, the Department of the 

Interior, through these agencies, reported allocations of $24.5M for 153 marine mammal projects and 

other activities (Table 7).

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

The FWS has primary responsibility for the conservation and management of the polar bear, West Indian 

manatee, Pacific walrus, and sea otter populations that occur within the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone. The 

Service also supports the protection and conservation of these species and others 24 in foreign and 

international waters. The FWS includes a number of offices or programs that have a role in marine 

mammal research or management:

• The Division of Management Authority reviews applications and issues permits for scientific 

research, enhancement, public display, and import/export of marine mammal parts and 

products;

• The Division of International Conservation coordinates international activities for the 

marine mammal species the FWS is responsible for and that occur in foreign or 

international waters;

• The Endangered Species staff at FWS headquarters coordinate activities for species under the ESA, 

including listing, down-listing or delisting, critical habitat determination, and recovery planning;

• The National Wildlife Refuge System has 180 coastal and marine refuges, most having at 

least some marine mammal presence. Refuge personnel are responsible for managing 

marine mammal populations and habitat. Refuge staff assists during stranding and 

entanglement events, marine mammal surveys and assessments, and other aspects of 

marine mammal conservation.

 24 West African manatee, Amazonian manatee, dugong, Atlantic walrus, Western sea otter, and marine otter
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 15

• The National Marine Mammal Coordinator at FWS headquarters provides national 

consistency for marine mammal-related activities;

• The Marine Mammal Management office in Anchorage, Alaska, has the responsibility to 

manage and conserve polar bears, Pacific walruses, and northern sea otters in Alaska;

• The Washington Fish and Wildlife Office manages northern sea otters in Washington state;

• The Ventura Fish and Wildlife Office manages southern sea otters in California;

• The North Florida Ecological Services Field Office manages the Florida subspecies of the 

West Indian manatee;

• The Caribbean Field Office manages the Antillean subspecies of the West Indian manatee in 

Puerto Rico; and

• The FWS regional offices provide support to these field offices for their work with partners 

to census populations, assess population health, develop and implement conservation 

plans, promulgate regulations, and create cooperative relationships.

In fiscal year 2015 FWS reported allocating $8.5M (Table 7) to 36 projects and other activities related to the 

marine mammals under its purview. Most of those funds ($5.2M) were reported by the Marine Mammals 

Management office for the management of polar bears, walruses and sea otters in Alaska (Table 7). By 

contrast to the Alaska region with three species to manage, FWS allocated $1.8M in the Atlantic, Gulf of 

Mexico and Caribbean to manatees, and $266K to sea otters along the Pacific Coast.25

Table 7. Fiscal year 2015 total funding reported by agencies, centers, and offices, and by region, 

within the Department of the Interior.

Department of the Interior Funding 

(millions)

Percent of

sub-total

Percent 

of total

Fish and Wildlife Service

Marine Mammals Management Office, Alaska 5.2 61 21

Crystal River NWR 0.88 10 4

North Florida ES Office 0.69 8 3

International Affairs Program - Permits 0.58 7 2

Headquarters - Ecological Services (ES) Program 0.42 5 2

International Affairs Program - International Conservation 0.26 3 1

Ventura (CA) ES Office 0.16 2 1

Caribbean ES Office 0.13 2 1

Washington ES Office 0.07 1 1

Region 4 ES 0.07 1 <0.5

Farallon NWR <0.10 <0.5 <0.5

Texas Coast ES Office <0.10 <0.5 <0.5

Oregon Coast NWR <0.10 <0.5 <0.5

Alaska Maritime NWR <0.10 <0.5 <0.5

Sub-total 8.5 100 35

 25 Washington and California
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 16

Table 7 (continued).

Department of the Interior Funding 

(millions)

Percent of

sub-total

Percent 

of total

Fish and Wildlife Service (continued)

U.S. Geological Survey

Alaska Science Center 4.3 58 17

Wetland and Aquatic Research Center 1.2 16 5

Headquarters 0.92 12 5

Western Ecological Science Center 0.71 9 4

Patuxent Wildlife Research Center 0.15 2 1

Leetown Science Center 0.12 2 <0.5

Fort Collins Science Center <0.10 1 <0.5

National Wildlife Health Center <0.10 <0.5 <0.5

Sub-total 7.5 100 31

Bureau of Ocean Energy Management

Alaska Outer Continental Shelf Office 4.3 63 18

Atlantic Outer Continental Shelf Office 1.9 28 8

Pacific Outer Continental Shelf Office 0.25 4 1

Gulf of Mexico Outer Continental Shelf Office 0.22 3 1

Headquarters 0.17 3 1

Sub-total 7.1 100 28

National Park Service

Glacier Bay NP 0.52 34 2

Kenai Fjords NP 0.21 14 1

Alaska Region 0.18 11 1

Inventory and Monitoring Division 0.17 11 1

New Bedford Whaling NHP 0.16 10 1

Pacific West Region 0.13 8 1

Point Reyes NS <0.1 4 <0.5

Biological Resources Division <0.1 3 <0.5

Redwood NP <0.1 1 <0.5

Cape Cod NS <0.1 1 <0.5

Katmai NP and Preserve <0.1 1 <0.5

Natural Sounds and Night Skies Division <0.1 1 <0.5

Everglades NP <0.1 1 <0.5

Cape Hatteras NS <0.1 <0.5 <0.5

Fire Island NS <0.1 <0.5 <0.5

Channel Islands NP <0.1 <0.5 <0.5

Gateway NRA <0.1 <0.5 <0.5

Canaveral NS <0.1 <0.5 <0.5

Cumberland Island NS <0.1 <0.5 <0.5
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 17

Table 7 (continued).

Department of the Interior Funding 

(millions)

Percent of

sub-total

Percent 

of total

National Park Service (continued)

Cabrillo NM <0.1 <0.5 <0.5

Haleakala NP <0.1 <0.5 <0.5

Olympic NP <0.1 <0.5 <0.5

Kaloko-Honokohau NHP <0.1 <0.5 <0.5

Gulf Islands NS <0.1 <0.5 <0.5

Golden Gate NRA <0.1 <0.5 <0.5

Southeast Region <0.1 <0.5 <0.5

Water Resources Division <0.1 <0.5 <0.5

Padre Island NS <0.1 <0.5 <0.5

Sub-total 1.5 100 6

Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement

Environmental Enforcement Division 0.09 <1

Total 24.4 100

By region (agencies, centers, and offices combined)

Alaska 14.7 60

Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico 5.3 22

National 3.0 12

Pacific 1.4 6

Total 24.4 100

U.S. Geological Survey

The USGS works with the FWS, other federal and state agencies, and conservation and academic 

organizations to study the biology, population dynamics, and ecology of polar bears, walruses, sea otters, 

and West Indian manatees. The Survey is strictly a research organization and has no management or 

regulatory authority over these species. The agency conducts marine mammal research within its 

Ecosystems Mission Area. The USGS makes the results of its research available to management agencies, 

such as the FWS, to inform management decisions. In fiscal year 2015 the USGS reported allocations of 

$7.5M (Table 7) for 39 projects and other activities to assess the status and health of the polar bear, walrus, 

sea otter, and West Indian manatee, to ascertain their vulnerability to natural and human-related risk 

factors, and to advise on management measures needed to protect and conserve them. 

Bureau of Ocean Energy Management and the Bureau of Safety & Environmental Enforcement

The safe development of the nation’s offshore energy and mineral resources is under the purview of BOEM. 

BOEM’s Office of Environmental Programs, three regional offices (Alaska, Pacific, and Gulf of Mexico), and 

its Office of Renewable Energy Programs (currently focused on the Atlantic outer continental shelf, OCS, 

region) plan and initiate research needed to comply with the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act, MMPA, 
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 18

ESA, NEPA, and other legislation. The research is organizationally divided into regions of the U. S. outer 

continental shelf: the Alaska, Pacific, Gulf of Mexico, and Atlantic OSC regions. During fiscal year 2015 

BOEM allocated $6.9M (Table 7) for 26 projects and other activities, most of which were designed to assess 

the distribution, movements, relative abundance, and ecology of marine mammals in areas where offshore 

energy development (oil and gas exploration and extraction, and wind and hydrokinetic electrical 

generation) was scheduled to occur, in development, or already underway. BOEM also assess possible 

adverse impacts from sand and gravel extraction in U. S. federal waters. The regional distribution of funds 

within BOEM was extremely uneven in fiscal year 2015. The Gulf of Mexico and Pacific regions reported 

just 1.9 percent ($466K), combined, of the funds that the agency directed toward marine mammals. In 

contrast, the Alaskan region reported 63 percent ($4.3M; 12 projects) of the agency’s marine mammal 

budget, and the Atlantic region reported 28percent ($1.9M). In the Alaska region those funds were focused 

on the CHAOS study of acoustics, oceanography and zooplankton in the Chukchi Sea, Arctic marine 

mammals (e.g., bowhead whales, walrus, polar bears and “ice” seals), and the Arctic Marine Biodiversity 

Observing Network. BSEE reported $90K (1 project) in funding for research associated with environmental 

enforcement activities.

National Park Service

The National Park Service contributes to research and management of marine mammals in waters and on 

lands under its authority. Its activities include conducting section 7 consultations under the ESA, ensuring 

compliance with NEPA, and undertaking marine mammal conservation efforts. NPS functions in a critical 

junction between marine mammal science and public education. The Park Service is a leader in marine 

mammal conservation and education at sites such as the Channel Islands and Kenai Fjords National Parks, 

Point Reyes and Cape Cod National Seashores, and Golden Gate and Gateway National Recreational Areas. 

Cultural and educational displays, like those at New Bedford Whaling National Historic Park, tell the 

collective human and marine mammal histories, including native subsistence activities continuing in present 

day. National Park Service Research and Learning Centers, like the Ocean Alaska Science and Learning 

Center, conduct marine mammal research in collaboration with other federal agencies, state partners, and 

universities, and connect students and volunteers to marine mammal conservation through hands-on 

science. Additionally, the National Park Service also supports capacity building and training of its resource 

managers, who participate in marine mammal stranding networks, health and disease monitoring,

disentanglement operations, and necropsies. Regional Inventory and Monitoring (I&M) Network staff 

provide guidance, technical assistance, and logistical support to NPS units by conducting natural resource 

inventories and monitoring and integrating data into NPS planning, management, and decision making. The 

National Park Service considers marine mammals to be a focal point of its Migratory Species Program, 

which was established in 2009. In fiscal year 2015, the National Park Service allocated $1.5M for 51 studies 

of marine mammal ecology and other activities in eight of its National Parks, eight of its National Seashores, 

six other units (e.g., National Historic Parks, National Monuments), and several of its regional offices or 

national programs (e.g., the Biological Resources Division, Inventory and Monitoring Division) (Table 7).
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 19

Independent Agencies

Marine Mammal Commission

The Marine Mammal Commission (the Commission) supports research and studies pertaining to the 

conservation and protection of marine mammals in accordance with the provisions of the MMPA, ESA, and 

NEPA. The Commission manages its research program to avoid redundancy with studies conducted by 

other agencies and to fill information gaps. Through its support of research and conservation projects, it 

seeks to develop pro-active solutions to emerging human/marine mammal issues before they become 

crises requiring more costly solutions. The Commission fills an important role in the marine mammal 

community, funding small-scale but important projects, of which some are innovative studies looking for 

seed money and others support low budget but vital research and conservation activities in developing 

countries. In fiscal year 2015 the Commission was allocated a total $3.3M to carry out its duties (Figure 1,

Table 4), including $121K in expenditures for five projects covering a wide range of marine mammal species 

and related topics. The bulk of the Commission’s expenditures went to fulfilling its duties,26 which include

1) reviewing federal marine mammal activities; 2) reviewing the condition of marine mammal stocks, their 

protection and conservation, humane means for their taking, and federal research programs; 3) 

undertaking or funding studies necessary to the conservation and protection of marine mammals; 4) 

making recommendations to the Secretaries of Commerce (NOAA Fisheries, in effect) and Interior (U.S. Fish 

and Wildlife Service, in effect), and other federal officials, regarding actions necessary for the protection 

and conservation of marine mammals; 5) making recommendations to the Secretary of State regarding 

appropriate policies for the protection and conservation of marine mammals internationally; 6) making 

recommendations to the Secretaries Commerce and Interior appropriate revisions to the endangered 

species list; and 7) making recommendations to appropriate federal officials and Congress relative to the 

furtherance of the Marine Mammal Protection Act, including provisions pertaining to native Americans that

may be affected adversely.

National Science Foundation

The National Science Foundation (NSF) supports research projects that examine aspects of marine mammal 

habitats such as large marine ecosystems, including in the Antarctic and Arctic ecosystems, and provides 

support for a number of basic studies on marine mammal physiology, behavior, and ecology. In addition, 

NSF supports ocean research in disciplines considered important to marine mammals as well as research on 

methods to mitigate, monitor, and assess the potential effects of certain human activities and natural 

environmental factors on marine mammals and their habitats. 

In fiscal year 2015, NSF reported $1.7M (Figure 1, Table 4) in funding for 11 projects involving research on a 

wide variety of topics, including dive physiology, cetacean phylogeny, geomagnetic navigation, ecosystems, 

dolphin language, and passive acoustic monitoring.

 26 The survey reported herein is one element related to the first two duties.
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 20

The Smithsonian Institution

The Smithsonian reported seven projects totaling $573K in expenditures by the National Zoo, Museum of 

Natural History, Tropical Research Institute and Environmental Research Center. Project foci included 

studies of sea otter nutrition, marine traffic separation schemes, monitoring manatee population and 

habitat in Panama, phylogenetics of Lagenorhynchus dolphins, and the evolution of sound reception in 

cetaceans.

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

NASA reported project expenditures of $50,000 for the monitoring of manatees near the Kennedy Space 

Center.

Department of Homeland Security

U.S. Coast Guard

The U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) is the only agency within the Department of Homeland Security that expends 

resources on issues related to marine mammals. The USCG focuses primarily on compliance with and 

enforcement of the nation’s maritime laws and regulations and on emergency response to both natural 

(e.g., hurricanes) and human-related crises (e.g., distressed vessels). The Coast Guard supports some 

marine mammal research and conservation activities through its Marine Protected Species Program, which 

aligns its goals and objectives closely with those of the National Marine Fisheries Service and Fish and 

Wildlife Service. In fiscal year 2015, the USCG reported programs in eight of its district that were focused 

on the protection of marine mammals, totaling approximately $2.8M (Figure 1, Table 4).

Department of Energy

Office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy

The Department of Energy occasionally supports marine mammal research. Studies have focused primarily 

on sustainable energy development in aquatic ecosystems, and on problems related to monitoring marine 

mammals. For fiscal year 2015 survey the Office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy’s Wind and 

Water Power Technologies Office reported the allocation of just over $900K for seven research projects and 

other activities related to marine mammals (Figure 1, Table 4). Research was focused on the development 

of tools needed to measure and monitor impacts of renewable energy systems on marine mammals, and 

gather baseline information off the U.S. East Coast and Oregon.

Department of Health and Human Services

National Institutes of Health

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) in the Department of Health and Human Services is the nation’s 

medical research agency and consists of 27 Institutes and Centers. It supports basic research on a wide 
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 21

range of topics, some of which are relevant to marine mammal health. Similarly, the health of marine 

mammals is considered a potential factor in disease processes that may affect humans and/or domestic 

animals. In fiscal year 2015, NIH reported three projects pertinent to marine mammal physiology and toxin 

exposure totaling approximately $707K (Figure 1, Table 4).

Project Expenditures

Total funding by departments, agencies and offices was described in the previous sections, where total 

funding included direct project expenditures, direct expenditures for miscellaneous marine mammal 

activities and the indirect or support costs associated with these two categories of expenditures. This 

section summarizes the projects reported to the survey in terms of their objectives, focal species, and 

geographical coverage, using the number of projects and direct expenditures as measures of importance.

Project Objectives

The survey asked respondents to specify the objectives for each project and the allocation of the project 

funding among objectives. Of the 539 projects reported to the survey, 134 listed a single objective, and 

another 263 listed two to five objectives. Ninety-two projects listed 6-10 objectives, and 50 projects listed 

more than 10 objectives.

Categories representing activities focused on assessing and understanding the status of marine mammals 

(Population Dynamics and Stock Assessment; Conservation, Management and Policy; Ecology; Technology 

Development; Biology; and Animal Health) were associated with the largest expenditures ($21.2M to $7.7M 

per category; Figure 4; Table 8). In contrast, expenditures for projects that focused on the impacts of 

human activities on marine mammals were much lower. The largest expenditures within this group were 

for objectives associated with the impacts of anthropogenic sound ($9.5M), which reflects the Navy’s 

Table 8. Fiscal year 2015 direct expenditures reported by categories of project objectives.

Objective Category Funding

(millions)

Percent

of total

Populations Dynamics and Stock Assessment 21.2 22

Conservation, Management and Policy 18.0 19

Ecology 11.7 12

Technology Development 9.5 10

Anthropogenic Sound Impacts 9.5 10

Biology 8.5 9

Animal Health 7.7 8

Communication, Outreach, and Meetings 3.9 4

Fishery Interactions 2.7 3

Other Anthropogenic Impacts 1.0 1

Human Dimensions 0.68 1

Pollution Impacts 0.43 0.5

Total 94.8 100
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 22

concern regarding sonar, and BOEM’s concerns with seismic surveys, pile-driving, large ships, and any other 

significant anthropogenic sound source. Expenditures for Fishery Impacts were $2.7M, which is small given 

that fisheries bycatch is widely acknowledged as the largest source of direct mortality and serious injury for 

marine mammals. 

Figure 4. Fiscal year 2015 project expenditures reported by project objective.

With regard to the objective categories, Population Dynamics and Stock Assessment ranked first with direct 

expenditures of 21.2M, which accounted for 22 percent of the $94.8M in direct project expenditures 

(Figure 4, Table 8). Within this category, 58 percent ($12.2M) of expenditures were directed toward 

Distribution and Movements, Population Size/Abundance, and Trends (Table 9). Another 32 percent 

($6.7M) was directed toward Vital Rates, Population Dynamics, and Stock Assessment. The last 11 percent 

($2.3M) was devoted to studies of Population Structure, Genetics and Stock Delineation. 

The second ranked category was Conservation, Management and Policy, with direct expenditures of 

$18.0M. Within this category, expenditures were spread widely, with Monitoring, Surveillance and 

Populations 

Dynamics and Stock 

Assessment 

($21.2M)

Conservation, 

Management and 

Policy ($18.0M)

Ecology ($11.7M)

Technology 

Development 

($9.5M)

Anthropogenic 

Sound Impacts 

($9.5M)

Biology ($8.5M)

Animal Health 

($7.7M)

Communication, 

Outreach, and 

Meetings ($3.9M)

Fishery Interactions 

($2.7M)

Other 

Anthropogenic 

Impacts ($1.0M)

Human Dimensions 

($0.68M)

Pollution Impacts 

($0.43M)
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 23

Enforcement accounting for 23 percent ($4.1M), Conservation and Population Protection/Recovery 16 

percent ($2.9M), and several management objectives accounting for 61 percent ($11.0M; Table 9).

Table 9. Fiscal year 2015 direct project expenditures by reported objective (all agencies combined).

Project objective Funding 

(millions)

Percent of

sub-total

Population 

Dynamics 

and Stock 

Assessment

Distribution and movements 5.6 26

Size / abundance 4.8 23

Vital rates 2.6 12

Stock assessment 2.2 10

Population dynamics 1.9 9

Trends 1.8 8

Population delineation 1.4 7

Population structure 0.84 4

Sub-total 21.2 100

Conservation, 

Management, and 

Policy

Monitoring 3.2 18

Permitting / authorization 2.9 16

Consultation / listing-delisting / NEPA 2.7 15

Conservation 1.9 10

Regulatory compliance 1.8 10

Management 1.5 9

Population protection / recovery 1.0 6

Policy 1.0 6

Surveillance / enforcement 0.83 5

Co-management 0.82 5

Governance 0.15 1

Sub-total 18.0 100

Ecology

Habitat use 3.3 28

Trophic interactions 3.1 27

Ecosystems 1.4 12

Habitat characterization 1.3 11

Population ecology 1.2 10

Behavioral ecology 1.1 9

Traditional knowledge 0.28 2

Sub-total 11.7 100

Technology 

Development 

Tags/telemetry devices 2.2 23

Acoustic detection, classification & location 1.3 14

Mathematical / statistical / simulation models 1.2 13

Acoustic devices 1.2 12

Sampling platforms 1.0 10

Acoustic density estimation models 0.50 5
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 24

Table 9 (continued).

Project objective Funding 

(millions)

Percent of

sub-total

Technology 

Development 

(continued)

Database design / maintenance / archiving 0.47 5

Cameras 0.33 4

Biological sampling devises 0.29 3

Oceanographic sampling devices 0.28 3

Photo-ID 0.22 2

Biological testing methodologies 0.22 2

Imaging / Image analysis 0.16 2

Line transect methodology <0.01 1

GIS <0.01 <0.5

Habitat mapping / modeling <0.01 <0.5

Sub-total 9.5 100

Anthropogenic 

Sound Impacts

Military activities – sonar 5.3 56

Military activities – explosions 3.0 32

Industrial activity – shipping 0.63 7

Characterization/Analysis of sound budgets 0.31 3

Industrial activity – pile driving 0.16 2

Energy development – seismic surveys <0.01 <0.5

Energy development – drilling <0.01 <0.5

Energy development – platform removal <0.01 <0.5

Energy development – non-seismic surveys <0.01 <0.5

Sub-total 9.5 100

General Biology

Behavior – diving / foraging / feeding 2.4 28

Physiology / endocrinology / neurology / etc. 1.6 19

Genetics / taxonomy 1.5 17

Bioacoustics – sound production 0.96 11

Bioacoustics – sound reception 0.69 8

Behavior – kinematics 0.51 6

Behavior – social / reproductive 0.40 5

Anatomy / Morphology 0.32 4

Reproduction / Growth / Aging 0.13 2

Paleontological studies <0.10 1

Sub-total 8.5 100

Animal Health

Monitoring/assessment 1.2 15

Stranding response 1.1 15

Body condition 1.0 13

Disease 0.93 12

Care and rehabilitation 0.88 11

Sample collection 0.83 11
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 25

Table 9 (continued).

Project objective Funding 

(millions)

Percent of

sub-total

Animal Health 

(continued)

Diagnostics 0.60 8

Necropsy 0.40 5

Biotoxins 0.39 5

Contaminants 0.36 5

Sub-total 7.7 100

Communication, 

Outreach and 

Meeting

Outreach 1.5 40

Education 1.2 31

Meetings/workshops/conferences 0.77 20

Publications 0.34 9

Sub-total 3.9 100

Fishery 

Interactions

Entanglement response 0.73 27

Bycatch – mitigation 0.55 20

Bycatch – other fishing gear 0.55 20

Bycatch – gillnet / pot gear entanglement 0.49 18

Depredation 0.30 11

Indirect fishery interactions <0.10 3

Sub-total 2.7 100

Other 

Anthropogenic 

Impacts

Disturbance 0.33 33

Tourism - observing 0.24 24

Vessel strikes 0.24 23

Pile driving 0.13 13

Tourism – swim-with / feeding <0.10 7

Coastal development / dredging <0.10 <0.5

Sub-total 1.0 100

Human 

Dimensions

Marine mammals and coastal communities 0.50 73

Whaling / subsistence harvesting 0.16 24

Social science <0.10 2

Economics <0.10 1

Sub-total 0.68 100

Pollution Impacts 

Hydrocarbon spills/leaks 0.23 54

Nutrient runoff / HABs 0.11 26

Marine debris <0.10 9

Persistent toxins <0.10 8

Marine debris - plastics <0.10 3

Sub-total 0.43 100

Total 94.8
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 26

The Ecology objectives category garnered $11.7M in direct expenditures with two objectives, Habitat Use 

and Habitat Characterization, amounting to 39 percent ($4.6M) of the total. Studies of Trophic 

Interactions, Diet and Foraging Ecology received 27 percent ($3.1M) of the funding, with a wide range of

other ecological studies accounting for most of the rest of the expenditures (31 percent, $3.7M). 

Expenditures for Traditional Ecological Knowledge amounted to just $276K (Table 9).Technology 

Development accounted for $9.5M in direct expenditures, which were spread fairly evenly across numerous 

objectives (Table 9). The development of Tags and Telemetry Devices was allocated 23 percent ($2.2M) of 

the total expenditures. The development of algorithms for the Detection, Classification and Location of 

marine mammal vocalizations, and models/analyses for a variety of purposes received 35 percent ($3.3M) 

of the $9.5M. The development of various types of devices (e.g., sampling platforms, acoustic devices, 

cameras, etc.) accounted for another 32 percent ($3.2M) of direct expenditures. 

Anthropogenic sounds from a variety of sources, such as seismic surveys, military activities and shipping, 

impact marine mammals directly and affect the suitability of their environments. Projects that addressed 

Anthropogenic Sound Impacts accounted for $9.5M in direct project expenditures (Table 9). Studies related 

to the use of Military Sonar and Explosion accounted 88 percent ($8.3M) of the expenditures. Studies 

related to Shipping accounted for another 7 percent ($627K). No other category accounted for more than 

three percent of the expenditures.

General Biology, a traditional and important area of marine mammal research, accounted for $8.5M in 

direct expenditures. Diving, Foraging and Feeding Behavior was the largest focus of general biology 

research, 28 percent ($2.4M) of the total, while other behavioral studies accounted for another 11 percent

($908K). Physiology, Reproduction, Growth and Aging research received 21 percent ($1.8M), while 

Genetics, Anatomy, Morphology and Taxonomy accounted for another 21 percent ($1.8M; Table 9). 

Studies of the production and reception of sound by cetaceans accounted for another 19 percent ($1.7M).

Expenditures for Animal Health totaled $7.7M. Marine Mammal Stranding Response, including necropsies 

of dead animals and the care and rehabilitation of live strandings received 31 percent ($2.4M) of the 

Animal Health expenditures (Table 9). Various activities involved with assessing and monitoring the 

condition and health of wild marine mammals accounted for another 47 percent ($3.6M), and studies of 

Contaminants, Disease and Biotoxins accounted for an additional 22 percent ($1.7M). 

Projects addressing Communication, Outreach and Meetings accounted for $3.9M in expenditures, with 

Outreach, Education and Publications receiving 80 percent ($3.1M) of the total, and the remaining 

expenditures going toward Meetings, Workshops, and Conferences (Table 9).

The objectives category, Fisheries Interactions, accounted for $2.7M in direct expenditures (Table 9), with 

bycatch projects accounting for most of that amount (86 percent; $2.3M). 

A variety of other anthropogenic impacts ($1.0M) were the subject of other projects (Table 9). Disturbance 

accounted for 33 percent ($333K) of the expenditures, Tourism for 30 percent ($310K), and Vessel Strikes 

for 23 percent ($236K).
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 27

Projects in the Human Dimensions category 27 accounted for approximately $684K in direct expenditures 

(Table 9). Studies of the interactions between growing populations of Marine Mammals and Coastal 

Communities accounted for 73 percent ($499K) of those expenditures. Historic Whaling and contemporary 

Subsistence Harvesting accounted for 24 percent ($164K), while Social Science and Economics studies 

garnered just 3 percent ($20K) of the total project expenditures in this category.

Projects within the Pollution Impacts category accounted for approximately $430K, with the bulk of those 

funds (53 percent; $229K) being allocated to studies on Hydrocarbon Spills and Leaks (Table 9). 

Species and Species Groupings

One hundred and twenty-eight species were listed as at least the partial focus of one or more projects.

Roughly half of all projects (267) focused on just one species, and another 129 listed two to five species as 

the targets of the project. Forty-five projects listed 6-10 species, and 30 listed 11-20. In contrast, because 

surveys of the distribution and abundance of marine mammals and stranding programs are a standard part 

of the activities of several agencies, 68 projects listed over 20 species.

Almost all species were listed as the focus of multiple projects. Only 16 species 28 were listed on three or 

fewer projects. At the other end of the spectrum, 12 species – humpback, fin, blue, sperm whale, killer,

Cuvier’s beaked Short-finned pilot and minke whale, common bottlenose and Risso’s dolphin, harbor seal, 

harbor porpoise – were at least a partial focus of more than 15 percent of the projects.

The 61 projects that were not focused on any particular species and were potentially applicable to all 

species accounted for $3.4M in direct expenditures by federal agencies in fiscal year 2015. Examples of 

such projects are: 

• Marine Mammal Monitoring and Stranding Response at Olympic National Park;

• Animal Telemetry Network Data Assembly Center;

• The Development of Advanced Passive Acoustic Monitoring Systems Using Micromars Technology;

• Support for Society for Marine Mammalogy 2015 Biennial Conference;

• Development of an Interim Passive Ocean Acoustic Waveguide Remote Sensing System for 

Instantaneous Continental-Shelf Scale Marine Mammal Monitoring, Localization and Species 

Classification in Near Real Time;

• Marine Mammal Protection Act Compliance and Reporting;

• Marine Mammal Effects from Testing and Evaluation on Ocean Ranges;

• Collection and Exchange of Marine Mammal Parts;

• Marine Mammal Observer Lookout Effectiveness Study;

• Marine Mammal Stomach Analyses; and

• Fine-Scale Marine Mammal Surveys and Data Analysis.

 27 Whaling and subsistence harvesting, marine mammals and coastal communities, social science, and economics 28 Amazonian manatee, Dugong, marine otter, , Juan Fernandez fur seal, Japanese sea lion, Subantarctic fur seal Mediterranean 

monk seal, Galapagos sea lion, New Zealand fur seal, Caribbean monk seal, New Zealand seal lion, Galapagos fur seal, and South 

American fur seal
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 28

Figure 5. Species with more than $2.0M in direct project expenditures in fiscal year 2015.

Sixty-four species received over $200K in direct expenditures (Table 10), and 16 of those species had 

expenditures of over $2.0M each (Figure 5), including six baleen whale species (humpback, North Atlantic 

right, fin, blue, and bowhead), four pinniped species (Steller sea lion, Hawaiian monk seal, walrus, and 

harbor seal), four odontocetes (common bottlenose dolphin, killer whale, sperm whale, and Cuvier’s 

beaked whale), and West Indian manatees, polar bears, and sea otters.

Fiscal year 2015 funding by various taxonomic or ecological groups is presented in Figure 6. Of the $91.4M 

that was directed at, or associated with, particular species or species groups, $34.8M (38 percent) went to 

odontocetes (dolphins, beaked whales, sperm whales, 29 monodontids, 30 and porpoises), $24.5M (27 

percent) to the pinnipeds (true and eared seals, and walrus), $24.5M (27 percent) to baleen whales 

 29 Sperm whale, pygmy sperm whale and dwarf sperm whale 30 Beluga and narwhal

Humpback whale 

($6.2M)

Steller sea lion 

($4.2M)

Hawaiian monk 

seal ($4.2M)

Walrus

($4.1M)

Common 

bottlenose 

dolphin 

North Atlantic ($4.1M)

right whale 

($4.0M)

Fin whale 

($3.6M)

West Indian 

manatee 

($3.0M)

Blue whale 

($2.9M)

Harbor seal 

($2.4M)

Killer whale 

($2.4M)

Polar bear ($2.2M)

Bowhead whale 

($2.2M)

Sea otter ($2.1M)

Sperm whale ($2.1M)

Cuvier’s beaked whale 

($2.0M)
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 29

(rorquals, 31 right whales, 32 and the gray whale), $4.4M (5 percent) to the polar bear and sea otter 

combined, and $3.1M (4 percent) to sirenians (manatees and dugongs).

Figure 6. Fiscal year 2015 direct project expenditures reported 

by taxonomic or ecological grouping.33

 31 Humpback, blue, fin, sei, minke, and Brydes whales 32 North Atlantic, North Pacific, Southern and pygmy right whale 33 Ocean dolphins are dolphins and small toothed whales of the family Delphinidae. The rorquals belong to the family 

Balaenopteridae. The true and eared seals are members of the families Phocidae and Otariidae, respectively. The beaked 

whales are members of the family Ziphiidae. The right whales include the members of the families Balaenidae and 

Neobalaenidae. The walrus is the sole member of the family Odobenidae. The polar bear is the only member of the family 

Ursidae that is considered a marine species. The sperm whales include the sperm whale, which is the sole member of the family 

Physeteridae, and the dwarf and pygmy sperm whales, which are members of Kogiidae, a closely related family. The manatees 

are members of the family Trichechidae within the order Sirenia; included in this grouping is the dugong, which is the sole living 

member of the other family within the Sirenia, Dugongidae. The gray whale is the sole species in the family Eschrichtiidae. The 

sea otter is the sole marine member of the family Mustelidae, for which any data were reported. The monodontids, narwhal and 

beluga whale, are members of the family Monodontidae. The porpoises are members of the family Phocoenidae. The river 

dolphins, which are linked by the habitat they occupy, belong to one of four families: Iniidae, Lipotidae, Pontoporiidae, and 

Platanistidae.

Ocean Dolphins 

($19.3M)

Rorquals

($16.3M)

True Seals

($12.8M)

Beaked Whales 

($8.8M)

Eared Seals

($7.7M)

Right Whales 

($6.6M)

Walrus 

($4.1M)

Sperm Whales 

($3.6M)

Manatees

($3.1M)

Polar Bear

($2.2M)

Otters

($2.1M)

Gray Whale

($1.6M)

Monodontids 

($1.6M)

Porpoises

($1.4M) River Dolphins 

($0.04M)
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 30

Conservation Status

Marine mammal conservation status is designated by NOAA Fisheries and the FWS in accordance with the 

provisions of the ESA and MMPA. The ESA defines a species as endangered if it is “in danger of extinction 

within the foreseeable future throughout all or a significant portion of its range” or threatened if it is “likely 

to become an endangered species within the foreseeable future throughout all or a significant portion of its 

range.” The MMPA defines a marine mammal “species or population stock [that] is below its optimal 

sustainable population level” as depleted. It defines a strategic marine mammal stock as one: 

(A) “for which the level of direct human caused mortality exceeds the potential biological removal level;

(B) “which, based on the best available scientific information, is declining and is likely to be listed as a 

threatened species under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 ... within the foreseeable future; or

(C) “which is listed as a threatened species or endangered species under the Endangered Species Act of 

1973 ... or is designated as depleted... .”

Thus, any species listed as endangered or threatened under the ESA also will be designated as depleted and 

categorized as strategic under the MMPA, and any species designated as depleted will be categorized as 

strategic. However, not every species with one or more strategic stocks will necessarily be designated as 

depleted or listed as threatened or endangered.

In fiscal year 2015, federal agencies allocated $91.4M in direct expenditures for research and/or 

conservation projects focused on particular species. Of this total, 61 percent ($55.6M) was directed 

toward, or associated with, species listed as endangered or threatened, or designated as depleted or 

categorized as strategic (Figure 7). Species or stocks in this grouping included several that are at small 

population sizes and/or declining, such as Steller sea lion ($4.2M), Hawaiian monk seal ($4.2M), North 

Atlantic right whale ($4.0M), killer whale ($3.6M), sea otter ($2.1M), and Northern fur seal ($1.6M). 

Funding ranged from about $0.62M to $6.2M dollars for each of the 21 most highly funded (<$500K)

species listed as endangered or threatened under the ESA, or designated as depleted or strategic under the 

MMPA. Funding for those 21 species totaled $54.3M (average $2.6M) compared to $1.3M (average $105K) 

for the remaining 12 listed/designated species. The other $35.8M of direct expenditures that was focused 

on particular species was directed toward, or associated with, species not listed or designated in one of 

these categories. The species in this grouping that had substantial expenditures, typically because of their 

importance to coastal communities or susceptibility to human impacts, included the harbor seal ($2.4M), 

Cuvier’s beaked whale ($2.0M), Blainville’s beaked whale ($1.8M), minke whale ($1.7M), gray whale ($1.6), 

California sea lion ($1.6M), Risso’s dolphin ($1.2M), Short-beaked common dolphin ($1.1M), and Shortfinned pilot whale ($1.0M). However, not all species of importance to coastal communities or susceptible 

to human impacts received expenditures as substantial as these. For example, direct expenditures of 

$890K were directed toward harbor porpoises, and $745K to gray seals. 

Expenditures for several Arctic species, which are important to Native communities and very susceptible to 

climate change impacts, were substantial (e.g., walrus $4.1M, bowhead whale $2.2M, spotted seal $1.1M, 

bearded seal $670K, and ringed seal $619M). 
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 31

Figure 7. Fiscal year 2015 direct project expenditures reported 

by species’ ESA and MMPA conservation status.34

To further illustrate the variation in expenditures, for endangered large whales the combined funding for 

humpback,35 North Atlantic right, bowhead, fin, blue and sperm whales averaged $3.5M per species 

($21.0M in total; individual funding ranged from $2.1M to $6.2M), whereas that for the two remaining U.S. 

species – sei and North Pacific right whales –averaged $622K per species ($1.2 in total; individually $907K 

and $336K, respectively).

 34 The Strategic category does not include those stocks that are categorized as strategic automatically because they are listed as 

endangered or threatened under the ESA, only those not listed but categorized as strategic under the MMPA because the stock is 

declining and its rate of direct human-caused mortality exceeds its PBR. 35 Humpback whales were endangered for most fiscal year 2015. Most populations DPSs were de- or down-listed in 

September 2016.

Endangered 

($38.8M)

Not Listed

($35.8M)

Strategic

($8.1M)

Threatened

($7.1M)

Depleted

($1.6M)
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 32

Geographic Region

Survey respondents identified the geographic regions within which each project operated or was relevant

to the project. The options for geographic regions included the coastal Large Marine Ecosystems and large 

open ocean areas (Appendix C). Fifty-two Large Marine Ecosystems (LMEs) or open ocean areas were 

selected by respondents across the whole survey, amounting to $88.6M in direct project expenditures. The 

14 LMEs and open ocean areas with the greatest funding accounted for 93 percent ($82.5M) of the total 

expenditures (Figure 8). The combined total for the U.S. Arctic LMEs 36 captured the largest portion of the 

funding (21 percent, $18.4M). Two adjacent areas – the Gulf of Alaska LME and the Northwest Pacific 

Ocean – accounted for another 12 percent ($10.8M). The single LME with the largest expenditures was the 

California Current (17 percent of the total; $15.2M); the adjacent Northeast Pacific Ocean area accounted 

for another seven percent ($6.1M) of the expenditures. Further to the west and south, the Insular Pacific –

Hawaiian LME accounted for an additional 12 percent ($10.3M) of the expenditures. Expenditures in the 

Northeast U.S. Continental Shelf LME accounted for 9 percent ($8.1M) of the total, and the adjacent 

Northwest Atlantic Ocean area another five percent ($4.1M). The Southeast U.S. Continental Shelf, Gulf of 

Mexico and Caribbean LMEs accounted for 15 percent ($13.3) combined in direct project expenditures.

Discussion

The main purpose of this survey and report is to provide information to federal agencies, individually and as 

a community, to help ensure the wisest use of limited resources for marine mammal research and 

conservation. The Commission intends that this report, and those that follow, assist agencies in 1) 

matching their resources to their needs and responsibilities (i.e., setting priorities and distributing funds 

accordingly), and 2) identifying areas where they may better coordinate within and among agencies. 

The Commission also believes that this and subsequent reports will provide a useful long-term record of 

federal resources allocated to marine mammal research and conservation.

The survey results provide an informative overview of the total amount of federal funding being used for 

marine mammal research and conservation. The results also provide a useful overview of the agencies 

contributing to that funding, their objectives, the distribution of the funding by region within agencies, the 

target species and species groups, and the conservation status of those species. That information should 

be useful for representatives of federal and state agencies, Congress, academic organizations, nongovernmental conservation organizations, industries, American Natives, and the public who wish to learn 

more about the resources being directed toward marine mammal research and conservation.

The results will undoubtedly prompt the question of whether the total resources being directed toward 

marine mammal research and conservation are sufficient and are being used in the best possible way. By 

itself, this survey was not designed to address those questions. Indeed, answering those questions will 

require considerably more information about the threats to species and their habitat; their risks of decline, 

extirpation, or extinction; and the types of action needed to resolve research and conservation challenges.

 36 Chukchi Sea, Beaufort Sea, East Bering Sea and West Bering Sea LMEs
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 33

Figure 8. Fiscal year 2015 direct project expenditures reported by geographic

location – Large Marine Ecosystems and open-ocean areas.

Next Steps

Although the Commission has made important changes and improvements to the design of the survey and 

the online survey tool, additional effort is needed to improve agencies’ and respondents’ understanding of

the survey and to improve the consistency of data gathering and completeness. Doing so means learning 

more about the various ways agencies use and account for their resources. 

Some issues to be addressed include—

• Consistency in defining projects — The number of projects supported or conducted by an agency is 

an imprecise measure of research and conservation effort because projects vary from the activities 

of a single person with few resources, to much larger projects involving multiple personnel and 

disciplines and requiring substantial resources such as vessels, aircraft, or extensive laboratory 

California Current 

($15.2M)

Insular PacificHawaiian ($10.3M)

Northeast U.S. 

Continental Shelf 

($8.1M)

Chukchi Sea

($7.8M)

Southeast U.S. 

Continental Shelf 

($7.4M)

East Bering Sea 

($7.3M)

Northeast Pacific 

Ocean ($6.1M)

Gulf of Alaska

($4.7M)

Gulf of Mexico

($4.6M)

Northwest Atlantic 

Ocean ($4.1M)

Beaufort Sea

($2.4M)

Northwest Pacific 

Ocean ($2.1M)

Caribbean Sea

($1.3M)

Scotian Shelf

($1.0M)
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 34

facilities. In several cases, and in more than one agency, respondents entered entire programs as a 

single project when the survey design called for those activities to be entered as a series of 

projects. Such disparities should not have affected the overall funding estimates, but do affect the 

amount and resolution of information available, and its resolution for apportioning funds among 

species, taxonomic groups, species’ status, regions, and project objectives.

• Apportioning funds among objectives, species and locations — The survey asks respondents who 

select more than one objective, species/stock or location for a project to apportion the funding for 

that project among the choices they made. In 2017, the Commission will be working with agencies 

to improve the options for selecting and apportioning funding among objectives, species and 

locations. 

• Total unit funding — As with the fiscal year 2014 survey, the Commission again asked agencies to 

estimate their total marine mammal funding for each of the administrative units that conducted or 

funded such work. Feedback from some agencies indicates that some of these estimates may not 

be sufficiently accurate, and /or that too much time is required to generate the estimates. In 

addition, some agencies have found it to be very difficult to extract the information requested 

because their accounting systems do not capture project and expenditure in a compatible format. 

The Commission will be working closely with these agencies to improve the survey and to minimize 

these issues.

• Incomplete reporting — The lack of responses from a small set of agencies adds a source of bias to 

the amounts reported here as well as to the overall analyses and results. For instance, the lack of 

response from the Department of State means that funding for international marine mammal 

research and conservation is under-reported. Some agencies were able to report on work from 

some, but not all, of their units, and there is no doubt that some projects related to marine 

mammals were overlooked. The Commission will be working with agencies to improve the 

coverage of the survey in coming years.
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 35

Appendix A

Common and scientific names

Common and scientific names for marine mammals are included in this report or selected as the foci of one 

or more projects submitted to the 2015 Survey. The list is based on the Society for Marine Mammology’s 

“List of Marine Mammal Species and Subspecies.” 37 The codes in parentheses are used to indicate that the 

species does not occur in the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone around the continental U.S., Alaska, or Hawaii, 

but rather occurs in foreign (F) or international waters (I), or in the waters of U.S. territories (T).

Common name Scientific name

Amazon river dolphin (F) Inia geoffrensis

Amazonian manatee (F) Trichechus inunguis

Andrew’s beaked whale (F) Mesoplodon bowdoini

Antarctic fur sea (I) Arctocephalus gazella

Antarctic minke whale (F, I) Balaenoptera bonaerensis

Arnoux’s beaked whale (F, I) Berardius arnuxii

Atlantic humpback dolphin (F) Sousa teuszii

Atlantic spotted dolphin Stenella frontalis

Atlantic white-sided dolphin Lagenorhynchus acutus

Australian sea lion (F) Neophoca cinerea

Australian snubfin dolphin (F) Orcaella heinsohni

Baikal seal (F) Phoca sibirica

Baird’s beaked whale Berardius bairdii

Bearded seal Erignathus barbatus

Beluga whale Delphinapterus leucas

Blainville’s beaked whale Mesoplodon densirostris

Blue whale Balaenoptera musculus

Bowhead whale Balaena mysticetus

Bryde’s whale Balaenoptera edeni

Burmeister’s porpoise (F) Phocoena spinipinnis

California sea lion Zalophus californianus/wollebaeki

Caspian seal (F) Phoca caspica

Chilean dolphin (F) Cephalorhynchus eutropia

Chinese river dolphin (F) Lipotes vexillifer

 37 Available at https://www.marinemammalscience.org/species-information/list-of-marine-mammal-species-subspecies/
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 36

Common name Scientific name

Clymene dolphin Stenella clymene

Commerson’s dolphin (F) Cephalorynchus commersonii

Common bottlenose dolphin (F) Tursiops truncatus

Costero (F) Sotalia guianensis

Crabeater seal (I) Lobodon carcinophaga

Cuvier’s beaked whale Ziphius cavirostris

Dall’s porpoise Phocoenoides dalli

Dugong (F) Dugong dugon

Dusky dolphin (F) Lagenorhynchus obscurus

Dwarf sperm whale Kogia sima

False killer whale Pseudorca crassidens

Fin whale Balaenoptera physalus

Finless porpoise (F) Neophocaena phocaenoides

Franciscana (F) Pontoporia blainvillei

Fraser’s dolphin Lagenodelphis hosei

Gervais’ beaked whale Mesoplodon europaeus

Ginkgo-toothed beaked whale Mesoplodon ginkgodens

Gray seal Halichoerus grypus

Gray whale Eschrichtius robustus

Gray’s beaked whale (F, I) Mesoplodon grayi

Guadalupe fur seal Arctocephalus townsendi

Harbor seal Phoca vitulina

Harbor porpoise Phocoena phocoena 

Harp seal Pagophilus groenlandicus

Hawaiian monk seal Monachus schauinslandi

Heaviside’s dolphin (F) Cephalorhyncus heavisidii

Hector’s beaked whale (F, I) Mesoplodon hectori

Hector’s dolphin (F) Cephalorhynchus hectori

Hooded seal Cystophora cristata

Hourglass dolphin (F, I) Lagenorhynchus cristata

Hubb’s beaked whale Mesoplodon carlhubbsi

Humpback whale Megaptera novaeangliae

Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphin (F) Tursiops aduncus

Indo-Pacific humpback dolphin (F) Sousa chinensis
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 37

Common name Scientific name

Irrawaddy dolphin (F) Orcaella brevirostris

Killer whale Orcinus orca

Long-beaked common dolphin Delphinus capensis

Long-finned pilot whale Globicephala melas

Longman’s beaked whale Indopacetus pacificus

Marine otter (F) Lontra feline

Melon-headed whale Peponocephala electra

Minke whale Balaenoptera acutorostrata

Narwhal Monodon monoceros

North Atlantic right whale Eubalaena glacialis

North Pacific right whale Eubalaena japonica

Northern bottlenose whale Hyperoodon ampullatus

Northern elephant seal Mirounga angustirostris

Northern fur seal Callorhinus ursinus

Northern right whale dolphin Lissodelphis borealis

Omura’s whale (F, I) Balaenoptera omurai

Pacific white-sided dolphin Lagenorhynchus obliquidens

Pantropical spotted dolphin Stenella attenuata

Peale’s dolphin (F, I) Lagenorhynchus australis

Perrin’s beaked whale Mesoplodon perrini

Polar bear Ursus maritimus

Pygmy beaked whale Mesoplodon peruvianus

Pygmy killer whale Feresa attenuata

Pygmy right whale (F, I) Caperea marginata

Pygmy sperm whale Kogia breviceps

Ribbon seal Histriophoca fasciata

Ringed seal Pusa hispida

Risso’s dolphin Grampus griseus

Ross seal (I) Ommatophoca rossii

Rough-toothed dolphin Steno bredanensis

Sea otter Enhydra lutris

Sei whale Balaenoptera borealis

Shepherd’s beaked whale (F, I) Tasmacetus shepherdi

Short-beaked common dolphin Delphinus delphis
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 38

Common name Scientific name

Short-finned pilot whale Globicephala macrorhynchus

South African fur seal (F, I) Arctocephalus pusillus

South American sea lion (F) Otaria flavescens

South Asian river dolphin (F) Platanista gangetica

Southern bottlenose whale (F, I) Hyperoodon planifrons

Southern elephant seal (F, I) Mirounga leonina

Southern right whale (F, I) Eubalaena australis

Southern right whale dolphin (F, I) Lissodelphis peronii

Sowerby’s beaked whale Mesoplodon bidens

Spade-toothed beaked whale (F, I) Mesoplodon traversii

Spectacled porpoise (F, I) Phocoena dioptrica

Sperm whale Physeter macrocephalus

Spinner dolphin Stenella longirostris

Spotted seal Phoca largha

Stejneger’s beaked whale Mesoplodon stejnegeri

Steller sea lion Eumetopias jubatus

Strap-toothed beaked whale (F, I) Mesoplodon layardii

Striped dolphin Stenella coeruleoalba

True’s beaked whale Mesoplodon mirus

Tucuxi (F) Sotalia fluviatilis

Vaquita (F) Phocoena sinus

Walrus Odobenus rosmarus

Weddell seal (I) Leptonychotes weddellii

West African manatee (F) Trichechus senegalensis

West Indian manatee Trichechus manatus

White-beaked dolphin Lagenorhynchus albirostris
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 39

Appendix B

Large Marine Ecosystems and Open-Ocean Areas [2015]

LMEs / Open Ocean Areas

Selected in the Survey

Number of 

Projects

01. East Bering Sea 45

02. Gulf of Alaska 69

03. California Current 168

04. Gulf of California 5

05. Gulf of Mexico 53

06. Southeast U.S. Continental Shelf 83

07. Northeast U.S. Continental Shelf 68

08. Scotian Shelf 13

09. Newfoundland-Labrador Shelf 7

10. Insular Pacific-Hawaiian 47

11. Pacific Central-American 4

12. Caribbean Sea 16

13. Humboldt Current 2

14. Patagonian Shelf 1

15. South Brazil Shelf 1

17. North Brazil Shelf 1

18. West Greenland Shelf 3
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 40

LMEs / Open Ocean Areas

Selected in the Survey

Number of 

Projects

19. East Greenland Shelf 2

20. Barents Sea 1

21. Norwegian Sea 10

25. Iberian Coastal 1

26. Mediterranean 2

27. Canary Current 1

28. Guinea Current 4

30. Agulhas Current 1

31. Somali Coastal Current 1

34. Bay of Bengal 2

40. Northeast Australia 1

41. East-Central Australia 1

44. West-Central Australia 1

51. Oyashio Current 2

52. Sea of Okhotsk 3

53. West Bering Sea 13

54. Chukchi Sea 55

55. Beaufort Sea 38

56. East Siberian Sea 2

57. Laptev Sea 1

58. Kara Sea 1

59. Iceland Shelf 2

60. Faroe Plateau 1

61. Antarctic 6

62. Black Sea 1

63. Hudson Bay 2

64. Arctic Ocean 2

Northeast Atlantic Ocean 3

Northeast Pacific Ocean 12

Northwest Atlantic Ocean 29

Northwest Pacific Ocean 11

Southwest Atlantic Ocean 1

Southwest Pacific Ocean 3

Western Indian Ocean 2

N/A (e.g., all or any areas, or unknown) 59
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 41

Appendix C

Departments, Agencies and Offices

This table lists the federal departments, agencies within departments, and offices within agencies that 

responded to the 2015 survey, along with their total funding and the number of projects they reported.

Department of Commerce ........................................................................................................................... 42

NOAA Fisheries................................................................................................................................... 42

National Ocean Service....................................................................................................................... 42

Department of Defense................................................................................................................................ 43

US Navy............................................................................................................................................... 43

US Army .............................................................................................................................................. 43

Environmental Research Programs.................................................................................................... 44

US Air Force ........................................................................................................................................ 44

Department of the Interior .......................................................................................................................... 44

US Fish & Wildlife Service................................................................................................................... 44

US Geological Survey .......................................................................................................................... 45

Bureau of Ocean Energy Management .............................................................................................. 45

National Park Service.......................................................................................................................... 45

Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement............................................................................ 47

Independent Agencies.................................................................................................................................. 47

Marine Mammal Commission ............................................................................................................ 47

National Science Foundation.............................................................................................................. 47

Smithsonian Institution ...................................................................................................................... 47

National Aeronautics and Space Administration................................................................................ 47

Department of Homeland Security .............................................................................................................. 47

US Coast Guard................................................................................................................................... 47

Department of Energy.................................................................................................................................. 48

Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy............................................................................ 48

Department of Health & Human Services.................................................................................................... 48

National Institutes of Health .............................................................................................................. 48
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 42

Department

Agency

Office

Number 

of Projects Total Funding

Department of Commerce 146 $70,666,619

NOAA Fisheries 130 $68,322,619

Alaska Fisheries Science Center (AFSC) 7 $13,538,254

Alaska Regional Office (AKRO) 32 $11,030,652

Office of Protected Resources (OPR) 37 $10,436,577

Southwest Fisheries Science Center (SWFSC) 6 $5,575,504

Northeast Fisheries Science Center (NEFSC) 4 $5,249,504

Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center (PIFSC) 8 $4,635,650

Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office (GARFO) 5 $3,573,035

Southeast Fisheries Science Center (SEFSC) 4 $3,403,320

West Coast Regional Office (WCRO) 7 $3,144,105

Southeast Regional Office (SERO) 1 $3,092,110

Pacific Islands Regional Office (PIRO) 8 $1,991,749

Northwest Fisheries Science Center (NWFSC) 4 $1,710,229

Office of Science and Technology (S&T) 7 $844,388

Office of International Affairs (OIA) 1 $97,542

National Ocean Service 16 $2,344,084

ONMS - Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale NMS 1 $1,562,200

NCCOS - Headquarters 5 $440,484

ONMS - Channel Islands NMS 6 $306,400

ONMS - Monterey Bay NMS 3 $33,000

ONMS - Gray’s Reef NMS 1 $2,000
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 43

Department

Agency

Office

Number 

of Projects Total Funding

Department of Defense 198 $38,971,844

US Navy 186 $35,881,505

Office of Naval Research (ONR) 93 $10,145,364

Atlantic Fleet 16 $7,880,878

At-Sea Compliance Program 6 $4,426,646

Living Marine Resources (LMR) Program 20 $3,875,965

Pacific Fleet - West Coast 11 $3,009,080

Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) 5 $2,783,754

Pacific Fleet - Hawaii & Marianas 7 $1,413,586

SURTASS LFA 0 $1,000,000

Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) 9 $713,327

Naval Facilities Engineering Command Northwest (NAVFAC NW) 6 $210,764

Naval Facilities Engineering Command Mid-Atlantic (NAVFAC MIDLANT) 8 $179,680

Naval Facilities Engineering Command Southeast (NAVFAC SE) 2 $135,190

Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command (SPAWAR) 1 $68,000

Naval Facilities Engineering Command Southwest (NAVFAC SW) 2 $39,271

US Army 3 $1,479,318

USACE - Jacksonville District 1 $537,395

USACE - Alaska District 0 $425,284

USACE - Savannah District 1 $147,721

USACE - Seattle District 0 $109,043

USACE - New England District 0 $83,900

Program Executive Office for Simulation, Training, and Instrumentation 1 $56,250

USACE - Wilmington District 0 $53,975

USACE - Charleston District 0 $38,390

USACE - Mobile District 0 $13,602
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 44

Department

Agency

Office

Number 

of Projects Total Funding

Department of Defense

US Army (continued)

USACE - New York District 0 $7,200

USACE - Los Angeles District 0 $2,000

USACE - Baltimore District 0 $1,800

USACE - Philadelphia District 0 $1,800

USACE - Vicksburg District 0 $760

USACE - New Orleans District 0 $198

Environmental Research Programs 6 $1,469,280

Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program 4 $822,358

Environmental Security Technology Certification Program 2 $646,922

US Air Force 3 $141,741

Eglin AFB 1 $101,000

Vandenberg AFB 2 $40,741

Department of the Interior 153 $24,447,004

US Fish & Wildlife Service 36 $8,486,221

Marine Mammals Management Office (AK) 15 $5,174,354

Crystal River NWR 1 $880,000

North Florida ES Office 1 $688,000

International Affairs Program - Permits 1 $575,541

Headquarters - Ecological Services (ES) Program 0 $418,781

International Affairs Program - International Conservation 5 $255,890

Ventura (CA) ES Office 3 $158,746

Caribbean ES Office 2 $133,829

Washington ES Office 0 $67,790

Region 4 ES 2 $65,309
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 45

Department

Agency

Office

Number 

of Projects Total Funding

Department of the Interior

US Fish & Wildlife Service (continued)

Farallon NWR1 $33,263

Texas Coast ES Office3 $26,273

Oregon Coast NWR2 $5,945

Alaska Maritime NWR1 $2,500

US Geological Survey 39 $7,460,970

Alaska Science Center 16 $4,303,371

Wetland and Aquatic Research Center 10 $1,214,688

Headquarters3 $924,765

Western Ecological Science Center3 $708,790

Patuxent Wildlife Research Center5 $148,100

Leetown Science Center1 $116,990

Fort Collins Science Center0 $38,000

National Wildlife Health Center1 $6,266

Bureau of Ocean Energy Management 26 $6,867,882

Alaska OCS Region 12 $4,333,362

Atlantic OCS Region4 $1,895,000

Pacific OCS Region2 $250,000

Gulf of Mexico OCS Region4 $216,000

Headquarters4 $173,520

National Park Service51 $1,541,931

Glacier Bay NP5 $522,390

Kenai Fjords NP1 $209,400

Alaska Region2 $176,597

Inventory and Monitoring Division2 $165,300
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 46

Department

Agency

Office

Number 

of Projects Total Funding

Department of the Interior

National Park Service (continued)

New Bedford Whaling NHP1 $159,000

Pacific West Region2 $130,000

Point Reyes NS4 $65,000

Biological Resources Division1 $40,000

Redwood NP1 $15,000

Cape Cod NS5 $11,000

Katmai NP and Preserve1 $10,000

Everglades NP1 $8,000

Natural Sounds and Night Skies Division1 $8,000

Cape Hatteras NS2 $6,000

Fire Island NS1 $4,000

Kalaupapa NHP1 $4,000

Channel Islands NP3 $3,000

Gateway NRA2 $2,300

Canaveral NS1 $2,000

Cumberland Island NS1 $2,000

Cabrillo NM1 $1,744

Haleakala NP1 $1,000

Olympic NP4 $150

Kaloko-Honokohau NHP1 $50

Golden Gate NRA2 $0

Gulf Islands NS1 $0

Headquarters1 $0

Padre Island NS1 $0
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 47

Department

Agency

Office

Number 

of Projects Total Funding

Department of the Interior

National Park Service (continued)

Southeast Region 1 $0

Water Resources Division 1 $0

Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement 1 $90,000

Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement 1 $90,000

Independent Agencies 24 $5,669,433

Marine Mammal Commission 5 $3,340,000

Marine Mammal Commission 5 $3,340,000

National Science Foundation 11 $1,706,433

Geosciences (GEO) Directorate 7 $972,995

Biological Sciences (BIO) Directorate 2 $610,364

Mathematical & Physical Sciences (MPS) Directorate 1 $123,074

Education & Human Resources (EHR) Directorate 1 $0

Smithsonian Institution 7 $573,000

National Zoo (NZP) 1 $300,000

Museum of Natural History (SMNH) 3 $160,000

Tropical Research Institute (STRI) 2 $105,000

Environmental Research Center (SERC) 1 $8,000

National Aeronautics and Space Administration 1 $50,000

Kennedy Space Center 1 $50,000

Department of Homeland Security 8 $2,804,005

US Coast Guard 8 $2,804,005

(LMR) Pacific Area 4 $2,415,999

(LMR) Atlantic Area 4 $388,006
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 48

Department

Agency

Office

Number 

of Projects Total Funding

Department of Energy 7 $900,000

Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy 7 $900,000

Wind and Water Power Technologies Office 7 $900,000

Department of Health & Human Services 3 $707,060

National Institutes of Health 3 $707,060

National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) 2 $363,736

National Institute of Deafness and other Communication Disorders (NIDCD) 1 $343,324

Grand Total 539 $146,166,049
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission i

Appendix D

Project Details

This table provides basic information on the 539 projects reported to the fiscal year 2015 survey, arranged

by the sponsoring Department, Agency and Office. Sponsoring Department, Agency and Office are ordered 

alphabetically, and projects are ordered within Offices by Funding Amount in descending order. Each 

record provides the project’s Title, Performing Organization, Type of (Performing) Organization, Funding 

Amount, and for those that contributed data to a publicly accessible database the Database Data Types that 

were made public. Because the database is relational, space limitations prevent the display of the data on 

Objectives, Species and Locations for each project, but that information can be requested from the 

Commission; write surveyffr@mmc.gov or rpo@mmc.gov.

Contents

Department of Commerce..................................................................................................................................1

National Ocean Service...................................................................................................................................1

NCCOS - Headquarters................................................................................................................................1

ONMS - Channel Islands NMS.....................................................................................................................1

ONMS - Gray’s Reef National Marine Sanctuary........................................................................................2

ONMS - Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary..................................................2

ONMS - Monterey Bay NMS .......................................................................................................................2

NOAA Fisheries...............................................................................................................................................2

Alaska Fisheries Science Center (AFSC) ......................................................................................................2

Alaska Regional Office (AKRO)....................................................................................................................3

Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office (GARFO)...................................................................................4

Northeast Fisheries Science Center (NEFSC) ..............................................................................................5

Northwest Fisheries Science Center (NWFSC)............................................................................................5

Office of International Affairs.....................................................................................................................6

Office of Protected Resources (OPR)..........................................................................................................6

Office of Science and Technology (S&T).....................................................................................................9

Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center (PIFSC) .......................................................................................10

Pacific Islands Regional Office (PIRO).......................................................................................................10

Southeast Fisheries Science Center (SEFSC).............................................................................................11

Southeast Regional Office (SERO).............................................................................................................11
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission ii

Southwest Fisheries Science Center (SWFSC) ..........................................................................................11

West Coast Regional Office (WCRO).........................................................................................................11

Department of Defense....................................................................................................................................12

ESTCP/SERDP ................................................................................................................................................12

Environmental Security Technology Certification Program .....................................................................12

Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program...............................................................12

US Air Force ..................................................................................................................................................12

Eglin AFB ...................................................................................................................................................12

Vandenberg AFB .......................................................................................................................................13

US Army ........................................................................................................................................................13

Program Executive Office for Simulation, Training, and Instrumentation...............................................13

USACE - Jacksonville District.....................................................................................................................13

USACE - Savannah District........................................................................................................................13

US Navy.........................................................................................................................................................13

Atlantic Fleet.............................................................................................................................................13

At-Sea Compliance Program.....................................................................................................................14

Living Marine Resources Program............................................................................................................15

Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR)....................................................................................................16

Naval Facilities Engineering Command Mid-Atlantic (NAVFAC MIDLANT) ..............................................17

Naval Facilities Engineering Command Northwest (NAVFAC NW)...........................................................17

Naval Facilities Engineering Command Southeast (NAVFAC SE)..............................................................18

Naval Facilities Engineering Command Southwest (NAVFAC SW) ...........................................................18

Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA)..................................................................................................18

Office of Naval Research (ONR)................................................................................................................18

Pacific Fleet – Hawaii & Marianas ............................................................................................................25

Pacific Fleet - West Coast .........................................................................................................................26

Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command (SPAWAR)........................................................................27

Office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy .........................................................................................27

Wind and Water Power Technologies Office ...........................................................................................27

Department of Health & Human Services........................................................................................................27

National Institutes of Health ........................................................................................................................27

National Institute of Deafness and other Communication Disorders (NIDCD) ........................................27
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission iii

National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) .................................................................28

Department of Homeland Security ..................................................................................................................28

US Coast Guard.............................................................................................................................................28

(LMR) Atlantic Area...................................................................................................................................28

(LMR) Pacific Area.....................................................................................................................................28

Independent Agencies......................................................................................................................................29

Marine Mammal Commission ......................................................................................................................29

National Aeronautics and Space Administration..........................................................................................29

Kennedy Space Center..............................................................................................................................29

National Science Foundation........................................................................................................................29

Biological Sciences (BIO) Directorate .......................................................................................................29

Education & Human Resources (EHR) Directorate...................................................................................29

Geosciences (GEO) Directorate ................................................................................................................30

Mathematical & Physical Sciences (MPS) Directorate .............................................................................30

Smithsonian Institution ................................................................................................................................30

Environmental Research Center (SERC) ...................................................................................................30

National Zoo (NZP)....................................................................................................................................31

Tropical Research Institute (STRI).............................................................................................................31

Department of Interior.....................................................................................................................................31

Bureau of Ocean Energy Management ........................................................................................................31

Alaska OCS Region ....................................................................................................................................31

Atlantic OCS Region..................................................................................................................................32

Gulf of Mexico OCS Region.......................................................................................................................32

Headquarters............................................................................................................................................33

Pacific OCS Region ....................................................................................................................................33

Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement......................................................................................33

Environmental Studies Program...............................................................................................................33

National Park Service....................................................................................................................................34

Alaska Region............................................................................................................................................34

Biological Resources Division....................................................................................................................34

Cabrillo NM...............................................................................................................................................34

Canaveral NS.............................................................................................................................................34
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission iv

Cape Cod NS .............................................................................................................................................34

Cape Hatteras NS......................................................................................................................................34

Channel Islands NP ...................................................................................................................................35

Cumberland Island NS ..............................................................................................................................35

Everglades NP ...........................................................................................................................................35

Fire Island NS ............................................................................................................................................35

Gateway NRA............................................................................................................................................35

Glacier Bay NP ..........................................................................................................................................35

Golden Gate NRA......................................................................................................................................36

Gulf Islands NS ..........................................................................................................................................36

Haleakala NP.............................................................................................................................................36

Headquarters............................................................................................................................................36

Inventory and Monitoring Division...........................................................................................................36

Kaloko-Honokohau NHP ...........................................................................................................................36

Katmai NP and Preserve ...........................................................................................................................37

Kenai Fjords NP.........................................................................................................................................37

Natural Sounds and Night Skies Division..................................................................................................37

New Bedford Whaling NHP ......................................................................................................................37

Olympic NP ...............................................................................................................................................37

Pacific West Region ..................................................................................................................................37

Padre Island NS.........................................................................................................................................37

Point Reyes NS..........................................................................................................................................38

Redwood NP .............................................................................................................................................38

Southeast Region......................................................................................................................................38

Water Resources Division.........................................................................................................................38

US Fish & Wildlife Service.............................................................................................................................38

Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge ...............................................................................................38

Caribbean Ecological Services Office........................................................................................................38

Crystal River National Wildlife Refuge......................................................................................................39

Farallon National Wildlife Refuge.............................................................................................................39

International Affairs Program - International Conservation ....................................................................39

International Affairs Program - Permits...................................................................................................39
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission v

Marine Mammals Management Office ....................................................................................................39

North Florida Ecological Services Office...................................................................................................41

Oregon Coast National Wildlife Refuge....................................................................................................41

Region 4 Ecological Services Office ..........................................................................................................41

Texas Coast Ecological Services Office .....................................................................................................41

Ventura Ecological Services Office ...........................................................................................................41

US Geological Survey ....................................................................................................................................42

Alaska Science Center...............................................................................................................................42

Headquarters............................................................................................................................................43

Leetown Science Center...........................................................................................................................43

National Wildlife Health Center................................................................................................................43

Patuxent Wildlife Research Center...........................................................................................................44

Wetland and Aquatic Research Center.....................................................................................................44

Western Ecological Research Center........................................................................................................45
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 1

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Department of Commerce

National Ocean Service

NCCOS - Headquarters

Tools for Detecting Sublethal Effects to Support Improved 

Injury Assessment: Endocrine Hormone and Detoxification 

Pathway Responses in Remotely Collected Skin and Blubber 

from Cetaceans

NOS National Centers for 

Coastal Ocean Science Federal $221,920

Injury Assessment for Estuarine and Coastal Marine 

Mammals Following the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill

NOS National Centers for 

Coastal Ocean Science

Federal $162,000

Development of National Guidelines for Marine Mammal 

Natural Resource Damage Assessments

NOS National Centers for 

Coastal Ocean Science Federal $30,000

Dolphin Teeth/Age Analyses for the Gulf of Mexico Unusual 

Mortality Event Investigation and the Deepwater 

Horizon/Natural Resource Damage Assessment DolphinHealth Assessment 

NOS National Centers for 

Coastal Ocean Science Federal $23,000

Coastal Marine Mammal Stranding Assessments 

2014 and Beyond

NOS National Centers for 

Coastal Ocean Science Federal $3,564

ONMS - Channel Islands NMS

Vessel Speed Reduction Trial To Reduce the Risk of Whale 

Ship Strikes in the Santa Barbara Channel

Channel Islands National 

Marine Sanctuary Federal $173,900

Channel Islands Naturalist Corp: Citizen Science 

Recording of Whale Locations

Channel Islands National 

Marine Sanctuary Federal $75,000

Whale Advisory Zones to Slow Ship Traffic and 

Monitoring of Large Vessel Traffic

Channel Islands National 

Marine Sanctuary Federal $27,500

Marine Shipping Working Group Channel Islands National 

Marine Sanctuary Federal $22,500

Marine Mammal Entanglement or Stranding Response Channel Islands National 

Marine Sanctuary Federal $6,000

Permitting for Marine Mammal Research within the Channel 

Islands National Marine Sanctuary

Channel Islands National 

Marine Sanctuary Federal $1,500
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 2

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Department of Commerce

National Ocean Service (continued)

ONMS - Gray’s Reef National Marine Sanctuary

North Atlantic Right Whale Education and Outreach Projects Gray's Reef National 

Marine Sanctuary Federal $2,000

ONMS - Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary

Protection, Research and Education for Humpback Whales 

and their Habitats in the Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale 

National Marine Sanctuary

Hawaiian Islands Humpback 

Whale National 

Marine Sanctuary

Federal $1,562,200

ONMS - Monterey Bay NMS

Hydrophone Sound Analyses of Marine Mammals 

- Monterey Bay Observation Network

Monterey Bay Aquarium 

Research Institute

Non-Profit $20,000

Marine Mammal Aerial Surveys at Davidson Seamount Monterey Bay National 

Marine Sanctuary Federal $8,000 Meta, Summary

Coastal Ocean Mammal and Bird Education and 

Research Survey - Data Transfer Moss Landing Marine Laboratories Academic $5,000 Meta, Summary

NOAA Fisheries

Alaska Fisheries Science Center (AFSC)

Steller Sea Lion Ecology and Behavior Research AFSC Marine Mammal Laboratory Federal $3,155,860 Meta, Raw

Northern Fur Seal Stock Assessment and Ecological Research AFSC Marine Mammal Laboratory Federal $1,077,609 Meta, Raw

Loss of Sea Ice: Surveys of Ice-Associated Seals AFSC Marine Mammal Laboratory 

- Polar Ecosystems Program Federal $908,900 Meta, Raw, Summary

Harbor Seal Surveys, Assessment, and Co-management AFSC Marine Mammal Laboratory 

- Polar Ecosystems Program Federal $811,600 Meta, Raw, Summary

Ecology of Ice-Associated Seals in the Bering Sea AFSC Marine Mammal Laboratory 

- Polar Ecosystems Program Federal $729,000 Meta, Raw

Ice Seal Assessment and Co-management AFSC Marine Mammal Laboratory 

- Polar Ecosystems Program Federal $378,600

Cetacean ecology studies AFSC Marine Mammal Laboratory Federal $340,321 Meta
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 3

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Department of Commerce

NOAA Fisheries (continued)

Alaska Regional Office (AKRO)

Monitoring Steller Sea Lion Status in Russia AFSC Marine Mammal Laboratory Federal $210,000 Meta, 

Summary

National Fish & Wildlife Foundation Cooperative Agreement 

for Cook Inlet Beluga Photo Identification National Fish & Wildlife Foundation Non-Profit $150,000 Meta, Raw, Summary

Fur Seal Satellite Tags AFSC Marine Mammal Laboratory Federal $140,000

Acoustician Assistance for Cook Inlet Analyses Pacific States Marine 

Fisheries Commission State/Local $120,000 Summary

Cook Inlet Beluga Biopsy Collection and Analysis LGL, Ltd Non-Profit $120,000 Summary

Advanced Cameras for Ice Seal Aerial Surveys AFSC Marine Mammal Laboratory Federal $95,000 Meta, 

Summary

St. George Fur Seal Pup Harvest Monitoring Inupiaq Alaska Group, LLC For Profit $80,000 Summary

Alaska Stranding Program Data Manager and 

Health Specialist Contractor Alaska Biosystems Inc. For Profit $75,000 Meta, Raw, Summary

Monitoring of Incidental Take of Steller Sea Lion 

in Russian Fisheries AFSC Marine Mammal Laboratory Federal $75,000 Summary

North Pacific Right Whale Acoustic Records Analysis AFSC Marine Mammal Laboratory Federal $75,000 Summary

Right Whale Research Cruise AFSC Marine Mammal Laboratory Federal $65,000 Summary

Cook Inlet Beluga Live Stranding Response 

Supplies and Support

Wildlife Computers, Inc.; 

Alaska Aerial Media For Profit $60,000 Summary

Eastern Distinct Population Segment Steller Sea Lion Post 

Delisting Monitoring Brand/Resight Work AFSC Marine Mammal Laboratory Federal $60,000 Meta, Summary

Western Aleutian Steller Sea Lion Vital Rates Imagery AFSC Marine Mammal Laboratory Federal $60,000 Raw

Steller Sea Lion Captures in Washington and California AFSC Marine Mammal Laboratory Federal $40,000 Meta, 

Summary

Steller Sea Lion Western Distinct Population Segment Critical 

Habitat - Public Hearings 

Pacific States Marine 

Fisheries Commission State/Local $40,000 Summary
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 4

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Department of Commerce

NOAA Fisheries (continued)

Alaska Regional Office (AKRO)

Improve Cook Inlet Beluga Scientific 

Sightings Database/Mapper Axiom Data Science, LLC For Profit $37,237 Meta, Raw, Summary

Harmful Algal Bloom Testing for Stranded Marine Mammals Northwest Fisheries Science Center Federal $30,000 Summary

Veterinary and Pathology Services Support 

for Stranding Network Alaska Veterinary Pathology Services For Profit $28,000 Summary

Comment Analysis for Cook Inlet Beluga Recovery Plan Azura Consulting, LLC For Profit $27,425 Summary

Northern Fur Seal Foraging and Pollock Distribution AFSC Marine Mammal Laboratory Federal $25,000 Meta, 

Summary

Acoustic Propagation Modelling for Lease Sale 193 URS For Profit $23,000 Summary

Marine Mammal Stomach Analyses Alaska Department of Fish and Game State/Local $20,000

Ringed Seal Critical Habitat Analyses Pacific States Marine 

Fisheries Commission State/Local $20,000 Meta, Summary

Steller Sea Lion Carcass Surveys as an 

Index of Fishery Interaction NMFS Alaska Regional Office Federal $20,000 Summary

Acoustics Training JASCO For Profit $15,000

Cook Inlet Beluga Outreach and Education AFSC Marine Mammal Laboratory Federal $15,000 Summary

Large Whale Entanglement Response Partnership NOS National Marine 

Sanctuary Program Federal $15,000 Meta, Raw, Summary

Marine Mammal Stranding Program Flight Support DOI/OAS Federal $15,000 Meta, Raw, 

Summary

Eastern Distinct Population Segment Steller Sea Lion Post 

Delisting Monitoring Pup Counts to Detect Possible UME AFSC Marine Mammal Laboratory Federal $10,000 Summary

Aleutian Islands Steller Sea Lion Pup Health Assessment AFSC Marine Mammal Laboratory Federal $8,000 Summary

Support for Pinniped Entanglement Group NOAA Fisheries Federal $4,300 Summary

Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office (GARFO)

Large Whale Take Reduction and Disentanglement 

(Including Right Whale Activities)

Greater Atlantic Regional 

Fisheries Office Federal $1,592,662 Summary
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 5

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Department of Commerce

NOAA Fisheries

Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office (GARFO) (continued)

Whale Watching program, Marine Mammal Authorization, 

and List of Fisheries

Greater Atlantic Regional 

Fisheries Office Federal $798,256 Summary

Cooperative State Plans Greater Atlantic Regional 

Fisheries Office Federal $541,852 Summary

Conservation with States Greater Atlantic Regional 

Fisheries Office Federal $350,400 Summary

Marine Mammal Protection Greater Atlantic Regional 

Fisheries Office Federal $200,808 Summary

Northeast Fisheries Science Center (NEFSC)

Right Whale Photo-Identification Catalog New England Aquarium Non-Profit $450,000 Meta, Raw

Right Whale Sightings Database University of Rhode Island Academic $100,000 Meta, Raw

Right whale Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Studies Woods Hole Oceanographic 

Institution - CINAR Academic $99,000

Developing a Bio-Compatible Large Whale Tracking Tag Woods Hole Oceanographic 

Institution CINAR Academic $47,000

Image Analysis from Pinniped Surveys Integrated Statistics For Profit $28,000 Meta, 

Summary

Adapt Custom-Built Algorithms for Modeling Detection 

Range and Site-Specific Detection Probability for Baleen Whales for 

Northeast Fisheries Science Center

Space and Naval Warfare Systems 

Command - Systems Center Pacific Federal $20,000

Bycatch Analyses of Marine Mammals in Observed Fisheries 

in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic U.S. Integrated Statistics For Profit $20,000 Meta, Raw, Summary

Northwest Fisheries Science Center (NWFSC)

Southern Resident Killer Whale Recovery Needs Research Northwest Fisheries Science Center Federal $623,228 Meta, Raw, 

Summary

Research on ESA-listed Salmon and 

Marine Mammal Interaction Northwest Fisheries Science Center Federal $91,805 Meta, Raw, Summary
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 6

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Department of Commerce

NOAA Fisheries

Northwest Fisheries Science Center (NWFSC) (continued)

Marine Mammal Protection Act Priority Research 

in the Northwest U.S. Northwest Fisheries Science Center Federal $75,799 Meta, Raw, 

Summary

Research to Improve Stock Assessment of Marine Mammals 

in the U.S. Northwest Region Northwest Fisheries Science Center Federal $56,123 Meta, Raw, Summary

Office of International Affairs

Pinniped Entanglement Investigation and 

Response in the Northeastern U.S. International Fund for Animal Welfare Non-Profit $97,542 Summary

Office of Protected Resources (OPR)

Strengthening Efforts to Minimize and Mitigate the 

Incidental Take of False Killer Whales (Pseudorca crassidens)

Hawaii Department of Land and 

Natural Resources State/Local $340,800

Dedicated Support to Maintain Enhanced Operations and 

Coverage for Marine Mammal Stranding Response, Rehabilitation 

and Data Collection in Ventura County

Channel Islands Marine 

and Wildlife Institute Non-Profit $100,000 Meta, Raw, 

Summary

Response and Investigating Causes of Mortality in 

Washington Marine Mammals

Washington Department of 

Fish & Wildlife State/Local $100,000 Meta, Raw, Summary

Support for Facility Operation to Maintain Response, 

Treatment and Data Collection of Live and 

Dead Marine Mammals in New York State.

Riverhead Foundation for Marine 

Research and Preservation Non-Profit $100,000 Meta, Raw, 

Summary

Tracking the Role of Human Interaction and Disease in the 

Northern Oregon - Southern Washington 

Marine Mammal Stranding Program

Portland State University Academic $100,000 Meta, Raw, 

Summary

Supporting marine mammal stranding response, education 

and outreach along the east coast of central Florida: A region of 

repeated Unusual Mortality Events

Hubbs-Sea World Research Institute Non-Profit $99,996 Meta, Raw, 

Summary

Marine Mammal Stranding Response, Rescue and Recovery; 

Enhancing Operations, Rapid Response, and Sample Collection 

Along the Louisiana Coast

Louisiana Department of 

Wildlife and Fisheries State/Local $99,992 Meta, Raw, 

Summary
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 7

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Department of Commerce

NOAA Fisheries

Office of Protected Resources (OPR) (continued)

Marine mammal stranding response in Puget Sound and 

Washington Outer Coast, and for large cetaceans throughout 

Washington State, 2016-2018

Cascadia Research Collective Non-Profit $99,969 Meta, Raw, 

Summary

Supporting and Enhancing the Capabilities of the Oregon 

Marine Mammal Stranding Network Oregon State University Academic $99,964 Meta, Raw, Summary

Live Marine Mammal Response in Alaska: 

Rehabilitation & Readiness for Unusual Events

Seward Association for the 

Advancement of Marine Science Non-Profit $99,945 Meta, Raw, Summary

Coordinating Expert Response, Rehabilitation, and Data 

Collection for Stranded Marine Mammals in Virginia

Virginia Aquarium; Marine Science 

Center Foundation, Inc. Non-Profit $99,703 Meta, Raw, Summary

Support for Hawaiian Monk Seal Rehabilitation Project 

Designed to Enhance Survival of Critically Endangered Seals The Marine Mammal Center Non-Profit $99,465 Meta, Raw, Summary

Response to and Coordination of Marine Mammal Strandings 

in North Carolina with Special Emphasis on Bottlenose Dolphin PostUnusual Mortality Event and Human Interaction Monitoring

University of North Carolina

- Wilmington Academic $98,295 Meta, Raw, 

Summary

Continued Strengthening of Alaska's Marine Mammal 

Stranding Program through Collaborative Level B and C Reporting; 

Diagnostic Support and Continuing Education 

for Stranding Network Members

University of Alaska, Anchorage Academic $97,998 Meta, Raw, 

Summary

Marine Mammal Stranding Response in Central Coastal and 

Inland North Carolina and Continued Bottlenose Dolphin PostUnusual Mortality Event Surveillance

North Carolina Department of 

Environmental Quality State/Local $95,385 Meta, Raw, 

Summary

Support of the Texas Marine Mammal Stranding Network 

Rehabilitation and Research Program for Enhanced Investigation of 

Stranding Events along the Texas Coast

Texas Marine Mammal 

Stranding Network Non-Profit $90,407 Meta, Raw, 

Summary

Investigating Causes of Mortality in Pacific Cetaceans Hawaii Pacific University Academic $90,000 Meta, Raw, 

Summary

Enhancement to the Channel Islands Cetacean Research 

Unit's Bio-Surveillance and Cetacean Health Monitoring Program

Channel Islands Cetacean 

Research Unit Non-Profit $87,078 Meta, Raw, Summary
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 8

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Department of Commerce

NOAA Fisheries

Office of Protected Resources (OPR) (continued)

Enhanced Stranding Response and a Continued Response 

Partnership Between The Long Marine Lab and Moss Landing 

Stranding Networks

University of California, Santa Cruz Academic $85,983 Meta, Raw, 

Summary

Vehicle and Programmatic Support for the Humboldt State 

University Marine Mammal Stranding Program serving Del Norte, 

Humboldt and Mendocino Counties in Northern California

Humboldt State University Sponsored 

Programs Foundation Academic $81,724 Meta, Raw, 

Summary

The South Carolina Marine Mammal Stranding Network: 

Restoring Stranding Response Capacity Coastal Carolina University Academic $80,661 Meta, Raw, Summary

Mass stranding capacity building for equipment and training, 

and rapid detection, response and recovery of 

stranded cetaceans in Southwest Florida

More Marine Lab, Inc. Non-Profit $80,389 Meta, Raw, 

Summary

Improving Staff and Volunteer Qualifications in Order to 

Enhance Response and Data Collection from Dead Stranded Marine 

Mammals in Southern Mendocino and Sonoma counties, California

California Academy of Sciences Non-Profit $79,957 Meta, Raw, 

Summary

Support and Enhancement for the Marine Mammal 

Stranding Program at Sea Research Foundation's Mystic Aquarium Sea Research Foundation Non-Profit $79,933 Meta, Raw, Summary

Stranding Response and Disease Surveillance 

in San Juan County, Washington The Whale Museum Non-Profit $78,634 Meta, Raw, Summary

Marine Mammal Rehabilitation Facility 

Upgrades and Consistent Coverage California Wildlife Center Non-Profit $73,667 Meta, Raw, Summary

Programmatic Support for Pinniped Rehabilitation in 

Northern New England: Enhancing Data Collection and 

Preparedness for Emergency Events

The National Marine Life Center, Inc. Non-Profit $70,041 Meta, Raw, 

Summary

A National Service Center for Post-Release 

Monitoring of Small Cetaceans Chicago Zoological Society, Inc. Non-Profit $58,316 Meta, Raw, Summary

Continuing the Marine Mammal 

Morphological Parasite Laboratory The National Marine Life Center, Inc. Non-Profit $51,734 Meta, Raw, Summary

Development and Deployment of an Incident Management 

Team Through the Continued Support of the Specially Trained 

Animal Response Team

Riverhead Foundation for 

Marine Research and Preservation Non-Profit $50,000 Summary
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 9

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Department of Commerce

NOAA Fisheries

Office of Protected Resources (OPR) (continued)

Multi-Regional Harmful Algal Bloom Toxin Diagnostics for the 

Marine Mammal Stranding Network Florida Institute of Technology, Inc. Academic $49,888 Meta, Raw, Summary

Level 1 and Level 2 Necropsy Training for Increasing Quality 

of Level A, B, and C Data Collection by the 

Southeast Cetacean Stranding Network

Florida Fish & Wildlife 

Conservation Commission State/Local $33,080 Meta, Raw, 

Summary

The Juan de Fuca Marine Mammal Stranding Network: 

Response and Volunteer Training Feiro Marine Life Center Non-Profit $25,226 Meta, Raw, Summary

Diagnostic Tools and Technologies for Assessing effects of 

Contaminants and Pathogens in Marine Wildlife

NOS National Centers for 

Coastal Ocean Science Federal $20,000

Building on the Success of the Seacoast Science Center

-the New Stranding Response Program Seacoast Science Center, Inc. Non-Profit $15,000 Meta, Raw, Summary

Marine Mammal Risk Assessment Along the 

Southeast and Mid-Atlantic Coast

NOS National Centers for 

Coastal Ocean Science Federal $6,136

Research Proposals Review and Comment Gray's Reef National 

Marine Sanctuary Federal $0

Office of Science and Technology (S&T)

Protected Species Toolbox Fisheries Science Center Federal $400,000

Fine-Scale Marine Mammal Surveys and Data Analysis Fisheries Science Center Federal $159,196

Passive Acoustic Ocean Observing: Marine Mammals and 

Anthropogenic Sound from the High Arctic to the Bering Sea Fisheries Science Center Federal $74,500

An ocean-noise Budget for the Rapidly Changing 

Arctic: Quantifying the Contribution of 

Vessel Traffic and Seismic Exploration

Fisheries Science Center Federal $59,992

Mapping Ocean Noise off Southern California: A Meso-scale 

Operational Test of a Pelagic Buoy-based Recording System Fisheries Science Center Federal $55,700

Passive Acoustics Data Archive Fisheries Science Center Federal $50,000

Design of an Inexpensive and Easily Deployable Acoustic 

Recorder to Establish Shallow-Water Ocean Noise Reference 

Stations in National Marine Sanctuaries and National Parks

Fisheries Science Center Federal $45,000
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 10

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Department of Commerce

NOAA Fisheries (continued)

Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center (PIFSC)

Hawaiian Monk Seal Research Program 

(Research, Enhancement, and Emergency Response)

PIFSC Hawaiian Monk Seal 

Research Program Federal $2,891,000 Meta, Raw, Summary

Cetacean Research - Stock Assessment of occurrence, 

distribution, abundance and, where possible: 

stock structure and anthropogenic impacts

Pacific Islands Fisheries 

Science Center Federal $806,440 Meta, Raw, 

Summary

Cetacean Research Program - Mariana Islands Range 

Complex: Small Boat Surveys for Cetaceans around the Islands of 

Guam, Rota, Saipan, Tinian, and Aguijan

PIFSC Cetacean Research Program Federal $494,962 Meta, Raw, 

Summary

Cetacean Research Program - Passive Acoustics Including: 

Deployment, Recovery; Towing Hydrophone Arrays and 

Development of an Improved Array Design and Glider Technology

PIFSC Cetacean Research Program Federal $443,248 Meta, 

Summary

Hawaiian Monk Seal Monitoring at 

Kalaupapa National Historical Park Kalaupapa National Historical Park Federal $4,000 Meta, Raw, Summary

Pacific Islands Regional Office (PIRO)

Management of West Hawaii Marine 

Mammal Response Network Ocean Associates, Inc. For Profit $110,000

Hawaiian Monk Seal Response Team Management: 

Grant to Hawaiian Monk Seal Foundation Monk Seal Foundation Non-Profit $65,000

Project Kiaʻi Kai: Marine Mammal Stewardship and Research Pacific American Foundation Non-Profit $18,300

Hawaiian Monk Seal Recovery Team 

Meetings and Facilitation Malama Learning Center Non-Profit $18,300

Sounding the Call for the Recovery of the Hawaiian Monk 

Seal Through the Voices of Our Youth The Kohala Center Non-Profit $18,300

Hawaiian Monk Seal Response

Network Support (Hawaii Island) The Marine Mammal Center Non-Profit $10,000

Furthering Quality Cetacean Stranding 

Investigationsin the Pacific Islands NMFS Pacific Islands Regional Office Federal $9,000

Implementation of Dolphin SMART in Hawaii Hawaii Pacific University Academic $6,000
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 11

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Department of Commerce

NOAA Fisheries (continued)

Southeast Fisheries Science Center (SEFSC)

Stock Assessment Improvement Plan Southeast Fisheries Science Center Federal $776,000 Meta, Raw, 

Summary

Marine Mammal Protection Act 

Wide Ranging Research Activities Southeast Fisheries Science Center Federal $665,000 Meta, Raw, Summary

North Atlantic Right Whales Passive Acoustic Monitoring Southeast Fisheries Science Center Federal $574,000 Meta, Raw, 

Summary

Gulf of Mexico Bryde's Whale Research Southeast Fisheries Science Center Federal $221,000 Meta, Raw, 

Summary

Southeast Regional Office (SERO)

Right Whale Southeast Implementation Team NMFS Southeast Regional Office Federal $5,000

Southwest Fisheries Science Center (SWFSC)

International Dolphin Conservation Program Migration 

Patterns and Tuna Tracking and Verification Program

SWFSC Marine Mammal

and Turtle Division Federal $2,728,190 Meta, Raw, Summary

Endangered Species Act-Listed Species Research for 

Endangered Species Act Section 7 Analyses

SWFSC Marine Mammal 

and Turtle Division Federal $1,048,019 Meta, Raw, Summary

Marine Mammal Protection - National Marine Fisheries 

Service Program Oversight and Direction

SWFSC Marine Mammal 

and Turtle Division Federal $601,612 Meta, Raw, Summary

Protected Species Stock Assessment to Inform Marine 

Mammal Protection Act and Endangered Species Act Assessments

SWFSC Marine Mammal 

and Turtle Division Federal $210,883 Meta, Raw, Summary

Stock Assessment Data Collection for the Recovery 

of Endangered Large Whales

SWFSC Marine Mammal 

and Turtle Division Federal $203,415 Meta, Raw, Summary

Dolphin Interaction with Yellowfin 

Tuna Fishery Research

SWFSC Marine Mammal 

and Turtle Division Federal $194,497 Meta, Raw, Summary

West Coast Regional Office (WCRO)

Outreach and Oversight to Reduce Pinniped 

Interactions with People and Salmon

NMFS West Coast Regional Office; 

State of Washington; State of Oregon Federal $245,000

West Coast Gray Whales: Genetics and Surveys 

for Research and Management 

Southwest Fisheries Science Center; 

Alaska Fisheries Science Center Federal $85,500
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 12

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Department of Commerce

NOAA Fisheries

West Coast Regional Office (WCRO) (continued)

Research Support for Southern Resident 

Killer Whale Recovery Program NWFSC; SWFSC Federal $68,000

U.S. West Coast pinniped life history studies AFSC Marine Mammal Laboratory Federal $67,000

Large Whale Threat Reduction: 

Fishery Interactions and Ship Strikes NMFS West Coast Regional Office Federal $46,147

Harbor Porpoise Aerial Surveys AFSC Marine Mammal Laboratory Federal $42,500

West Coast Region Marine Mammal Stranding Network NMFS West Coast Regional Office Federal $39,618 Raw

Department of Defense

ESTCP/SERDP

Environmental Security Technology Certification Program

Autonomous Real-Time Passive Acoustic Monitoring of 

Baleen Whales for Mitigating Interactions with Naval Activities

Naval Facilities Engineering 

Command - Atlantic Federal $426,559

Integrated Measurement of Naval Sonar Operations 

and Precise Cetacean Locations Naval Undersea Warfare Center Federal $220,363

Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program

Behavioral Ecology of Cetaceans: The Relationship of Body 

Condition with Behavior and Reproductive Status University of St. Andrews Academic $596,892

Behavioral Ecology of Deep-Diving 

Odontocetes in the Bahamas

Bahamas Marine Mammal 

Research Organisation Non-Profit $106,700

Odontocete Cetaceans: Quantifying Behavioral Ecology and 

Response to Predators Using a Multi-Species Approach Duke University Academic $60,499

Deep Mapping Teuthivorous Whales and Their Prey Fields Oregon State University Academic $58,267

US Air Force

Eglin AFB

Eglin Gulf Test and Training Range Mitigation Actions Eglin Air Force Base 

Natural Resources Office Federal $101,000
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 13

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Department of Defense

US Air Force

Vandenberg AFB

Marine Mammal Monitoring, Potential Impacts 

of Rocket and Missile Launches 30th Civil Engineer Squadron/CEIEA Federal $26,741

Marine Mammal Surveys (Recurring) - Fiscal Year 2015 30th Civil Engineer Squadron Federal $14,000

US Army

Program Executive Office for Simulation, Training, and Instrumentation

Marine Mammal Effects from Testing and 

Evaluation on Ocean Ranges

Space and Naval Warfare Systems 

Command - Systems Center Pacific Federal $56,250

USACE - Jacksonville District

Right Whale Aerial Surveys - Georgia Early Warning system Florida Fish and Wildlife 

Conservation Commission State/Local $63,200 Summary

USACE - Savannah District

Right Whale Aerial Surveys - Georgia Early Warning system Florida Fish and Wildlife 

Conservation Commission State/Local $63,200 Summary

US Navy

Atlantic Fleet

Navy Acoustic Effects Model Naval Undersea Warfare Center Federal $2,013,000 Summary

Exercise Data Collection, Mitigation Analysis and Reporting Navy Undersea Warfare 

Development Center Federal $1,450,000 Summary

Baseline Aerial Surveys within U.S. Navy 

Atlantic Operating Areas

University of North Carolina

- Wilmington Academic $808,000 Meta, Raw, Summary

Baseline Passive Acoustic Monitoring within 

U.S. Navy Atlantic Operating Areas Duke University Academic $659,000 Meta, Summary

Assessment of Deep Diving Cetacean Behavior Duke University Academic $518,000 Meta, Raw, 

Summary

Marine species Density Models for the Arctic Ecosystem 

Integrated Survey Study Area HDR/Duke University For Profit $422,308 Meta, Summary

Tagging and Tracking of Endangered North Atlantic 

Right Whales in Florida Waters Duke University Academic $405,000 Meta, Summary
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 14

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Department of Defense

US Navy

Atlantic Fleet (continued)

Marine Species Density Data Gap Assessments and Update 

for the Atlantic Fleet Training and Testing Study Area Duke University Academic $299,895 Meta, Summary

Mid-Atlantic Humpback Whale Monitoring HDR, Inc. For Profit $259,000 Meta, Raw, 

Summary

Baseline Vessel Surveys within U.S. Navy 

Atlantic Operating Areas Duke University Academic $248,000 Meta, Raw, Summary

Marine Species Monitoring Program 

Oversight and Management NAVFAC Atlantic Federal $190,000 Meta, Raw, Summary

Sonar Positional Reporting System U.S. Fleet Forces Command Federal $169,000

Data Gap Analysis and Data Collection for Marine Species 

Density Models in the Mediterranean Sea HDR/Duke University For Profit $165,275

Acoustic Monitoring and Evaluation of Tursiops Response 

to Mine Exercise Training Activities Oceanwide Science Institute Non-Profit $125,000 Meta, Raw, Summary

Haul-Out Counts and Photo-Identification of Pinnipeds 

in Chesapeake bay, VA and Narragansett Bay, RI NAVFAC Atlantic; NUWC Newport Federal $104,000 Meta, Raw, Summary

Ice Exercise - Endangered Species Act Consultations U.S. Fleet Forces Command Federal $45,400

At-Sea Compliance Program

Hawaii-Southern California Training and Testing 

Environmental Impact Statement

Naval Facilities Engineering 

Command - Pacific Federal $1,970,000 Summary

Atlantic Fleet Training and Testing 

Environmental Impact Statement

Naval Facilities Engineering 

Command - Atlantic Federal $1,289,646 Summary

Northwest Training and Testing 

Environmental Impact Statement

Naval Facilities Engineering 

Command - Northwest Federal $322,000 Summary

Mariana Islands Training and Testing 

Environmental Impact Statement

Naval Facilities Engineering 

Command - Pacific Federal $311,000 Summary

Marine Mammal Protection Act Compliance and Reporting SPAWAR Federal $300,000

Gulf of Alaska Navy Training Activities Supplemental 

Environmental Impact Statement

Naval Facilities Engineering 

Command - Northwest Federal $234,000 Summary
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 15

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Department of Defense

US Navy (continued)

Living Marine Resources Program

Southern California Behavioral Response Study

Cascadia Research Collective; 

SEA, Inc. Non-Profit $1,163,294 Summary

Marine Mammal Monitoring on Navy Ranges Naval Undersea Warfare Center 

- Division Newport Federal $488,981 Summary

Integrated Real-time Autonomous 

Passive Acoustic Monitoring System

Ocean Acoustical Services and 

Instrumentation Systems, Inc. For Profit $421,892 Summary

Technology Demonstration for Navy 

Passive Acoustic Monitoring Scripps Institution of Oceanography Academic $270,480 Summary

Database and Metrics for Testing Automated Signal 

Processing for Passive Acoustic Monitoring Scripps Institution of Oceanography Academic $243,200 Raw, Summary

Jawphone Simulations to Maximize the Utility of 

Psychoacoustic and Auditory Evoked Potentials Experiments San Diego State University Academic $185,101 Summary

Improving the Navy’s Automated Methods for Passive 

Underwater Acoustic Monitoring of Marine Mammals

Space and Naval Warfare Systems 

Command - Systems Center Pacific Federal $135,000

Simple Performance-Characterized Automatic Detection 

of Marine Mammal Sounds Oregon State University Academic $100,000 Raw, Summary

U.S. National Park Service Participation in the Southern 

California Behavioral Response Study Naval Postgraduate School Federal $95,986

Standardization of AEP Audiometry Methods to Ensure 

Comparable Data Inclusion in a National Marine Mammal Auditory 

Evoked Potentials Database

National Marine Mammal Foundation Non-Profit $89,237 Summary

Passive Acoustic Density Estimation of Baleen Whales: using 

Sonobuoys to Estimate Call-Rate Correction Factors Southwest Fisheries Science Center Federal $68,750 Summary

Demonstration of High-Performance Passive Acoustic 

Monitoring Glider and Profiler Float Oregon State University Academic $64,350 Summary

The Effects of Noise on Marine Mammals Curtin University Academic $57,840 Summary

Behavioral Audiometry in Multiple 

Killer Whales (Orcinus orca) 

National Marine Mammal 

Foundation, Inc. Non-Profit $40,688 Summary
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 16

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Department of Defense

US Navy

Living Marine Resources Program (continued)

Improving the Navy’s Automated Methods for Passive 

Underwater Acoustic Monitoring of Marine Mammals

Space and Naval Warfare Systems 

Command - Systems Center Pacific Federal $24,097 Summary

Primary Audiograms of Hearing in Baleen Whales: A Model 

System for Mitigating Sound Impacts

Woods Hole Oceanographic 

Institution; Boston University Academic $21,836 Summary

Acoustic Metadata Management for Navy Fleet Operations San Diego State University Academic $20,033

Behavioral Dose-Response Relationship and Temporary 

Threshold Shift in Harbor Porpoises (Phocoena phocoena) Sea Mammal Research Company For Profit $9,000 Summary

Density Estimation for Cetaceans from Acoustic Fixed 

Sensors in Testing and Evaluation Areas University of St. Andrews Academic $5,207 Summary

Blue and Fin Whale Density Estimation in the U.S. Pacific 

Fleet Southern California Offshore Range Using 

Passive Acoustic Monitoring Data

University of California, San Diego Academic $5,000 Summary

Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR)

Atlantic Fleet Training and Testing 

Environmental Impact Statement

Naval Facilities Engineering 

Command -Atlantic Federal $318,552 Summary

Atlantic Fleet Training and Testing 

Environmental Impact Statement Naval Air Warfare Center Federal $81,100 Summary

Northwest Training and Testing 

Environmental Impact Statement Naval Air Warfare Center Federal $75,375 Summary

Hawaii-Southern California Training and Testing 

Environmental Impact Statement Naval Air Warfare Center Federal $69,500 Summary

Aerial Surveys for Whale Densities Aspen Helicopters For Profit $60,000

Visual aerial surveys around target points 

prior to live-fire events Aspen Helicopters For Profit $50,000

Behavioral Effects of Missile Launches 

on Hauled-Out Pinnipeds

Naval Air Warfare Center

- Weapons Division Federal $30,000

Effects of Missile Launch Sounds 

on Hauled-Out Pinnipeds Greeneridge Sciences, Inc. For Profit $15,000
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 17

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Department of Defense

US Navy

Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) (continued)

Mariana Islands Training and Testing 

Environmental Impact Statement Naval Air Warfare Center Federal $13,800 Summary

Naval Facilities Engineering Command Mid-Atlantic (NAVFAC MIDLANT)

Baseline Nearshore Surveys for Several 

Mid-Atlantic Installations Contractor For Profit $87,078

Incidental Harassment Authorization Application for 

Waterfront Improvements Project at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard Contractor For Profit $44,192 Summary

Incidental Harassment Authorization Application 

for New London Pier 32 Replacement Contractor For Profit $35,258 Summary

Baseline Nearshore Surveys for several 

Mid-Atlantic Installations Contractor For Profit $5,152

In-House Acoustic Modeling for Berth Replacement Naval Facilities Engineering 

Command - Mid-Atlantic Federal $2,000

In-House Acoustic Modeling for Boat Ramp Repair at Joint 

Expeditionary Base - Little Creek

Naval Facilities Engineering 

Command - Mid-Atlantic Federal $2,000

In-House Acoustic Modeling for Breasting Dolphin 

Repairs at Craney Island

Naval Facilities Engineering 

Command - Mid-Atlantic Federal $2,000

In-House Acoustic Modeling for Fender Pile 

Repairs at Naval Station Norfolk

Naval Facilities Engineering 

Command - Mid-Atlantic Federal $2,000

Naval Facilities Engineering Command Northwest (NAVFAC NW)

New Wharf Construction - Naval Base Kitsap Contractor For Profit $134,645

Naval Base Kitsap Bremerton Pier 6 Acoustic Monitoring Naval Surface Warfare Center 

- Carderock Division Federal $35,000

Environmental Documentation of Planned Service Pier 

Construction - Naval Base Kitsap

Naval Facilities Engineering 

Command - Northwest Federal $22,565

Navy Region Northwest Pinniped Monitoring Naval Facilities Engineering 

Command - Northwest Federal $10,000

Compliance Documentation for Pile Repairs Naval Facilities Engineering 

Command - Northwest Federal $6,554
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 18

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Department of Defense

US Navy

Naval Facilities Engineering Command Northwest (NAVFAC NW) (continued)

Naval Magazine Indian Island Ammo Wharf 

Pile Repair Monitoring Report

Naval Facilities Engineering 

Command - Northwest Federal $2,000

Naval Facilities Engineering Command Southeast (NAVFAC SE)

Environmental Assessment and Application for a Letter of 

Authorization for Wharf Repairs / Pile Driving at SUBASE Kings Bay

Naval Facilities Engineering Command 

- Southeast / CNRSE Federal $70,000 Summary

Bottlenose Dolphin Surveys - Naval Support 

Activity Panama City Gulf South Research Corporation For Profit $65,190 Summary

Naval Facilities Engineering Command Southwest (NAVFAC SW)

San Nicolas Island Sub-Tidal Habitat Surveys USGS Western Ecological 

Research Center Federal $36,169 Meta, Raw, Summary

Naval Base Point Loma Marine Mammal Surveys Space and Naval Warfare Systems 

Command - Systems Center Pacific Federal $3,102

Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA)

Environmental Compliance Efforts for At-Sea Testing

Naval Facilities Engineering 

Command; Naval Undersea 

Warfare Center

Federal $2,086,372 Summary

Littoral Combat Ship Shock Trial Mitigation Monitoring 

and Compliance Documentation

Various Navy commands 

and contractors Federal $472,000 Summary

Visual Survey of Marine Mammals Near Panama City, Florida NOAA Hollings Marine Lab Federal $112,882 Meta, Raw

Puget Sound Aerial Marine Mammal Surveys HDR, Inc.; Smultea Inc. For Profit $100,000 Meta, 

Summary

Visual surveys before and after sonar test event Naval Undersea Warfare Center 

- Division Keyport Federal $12,500 Summary

Office of Naval Research (ONR)

Off-Range Beaked Whale Studies: Baseline Data and Tagging 

Development for Northern Bottlenose Whales (Hyperoodon 

ampulatus) off Jan Mayen, Norway

University of St. Andrews Academic $419,225

Acoustic Moorings for Integrated Cetacean-Prey Studies Scripps Institution of Oceanography Academic $398,676
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 19

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Department of Defense

US Navy

Office of Naval Research (ONR) (continued)

Cetacean Community Ecology in the Waters 

of Sri Lanka and the Bay of Bengal

Woods Hole Oceanographic 

Institution Academic $362,299

Development of the Population Consequences of Acoustic 

Disturbance Model to Assess Biological Significance 

of Acoustic Disturbance

University of California, Santa Cruz Academic $292,851

Linking Deep Water Prey Fields with Odontocete 

Population Structure and Behavior Oregon State University Academic $284,613

High Risk Behaviors in Marine Mammals: Linking Behavioral 

Responses to Anthropogenic Disturbance 

to Biological Consequences

University of California, Santa Cruz Academic $280,639

Comparing Manned Aerial Surveys to Unmanned Aerial 

Surveys for Cetacean Monitoring in the Arctic Dahlgren Federal $250,000

Marine Arctic Ecosystem Study: Pilot Project on Marine 

Mammal Tagging and Tracking Stantec Consulting, Ltd Non-Profit $250,000

A Commercially Available Broadband 

Acoustic Monitoring Instrument

Woods Hole Oceanographic 

Institution Academic $224,634

Pathophysiologic Mechanism of Ammonium Urate 

Nephrolithiasis in Navy Dolphins

University of Texas Southwestern 

Medical Center - Dallas Academic $200,633 Summary

Breath Metabolites for Personalized Medicine 

in U.S. Navy Marine Mammal Program National Marine Mammal Foundation Non-Profit $200,445 Summary

Young Investigator Program Expansion: Ocean Basin Impact 

of Ambient Noise on Marine Mammal Detectability, 

Distribution and Acoustic Communication

Pennsylvania State University Academic $200,000

Improving Large Cetacean Implantable Satellite Tag Designs 

to Maximize Tag Robustness and Minimize Health Effects 

to Individual Animals

Cascadia Research Collective Non-Profit $199,259

Building a Virtual Model of a Baleen Whale: Phase 3 Quantitative Morphology Consulting For Profit $186,986

Behavioral Context of Blue and Fin Whale Calling 

for Density Estimation Scripps Institution of Oceanography Academic $182,292
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 20

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Department of Defense

US Navy

Office of Naval Research (ONR) (continued)

Multi-Study Ocean Acoustics Human Effects Analysis University of St. Andrews Academic $179,269

Blood Oxygen Conservation in Diving Sea Lions: 

How Low Does Oxygen Really Go? Scripps Institution of Oceanography Academic $179,184

Using an Interim Population Consequence of Disturbance 

Protocol to Assess the Effects of Disturbance Associated with U.S. 

Navy Exercises on Marine Mammal Populations

SMRU Marine Ltd For Profit $170,169

Acquisition of Oceanographic Measurements from Baleen 

Whales: Field Deployments of Tags Aarhus University Academic $163,500

Behavioral and Physiological Response 

of Baleen Whales to Ships and Ship Noise Cascadia Research Collective Non-Profit $149,826

Characterization of a New Adiponectin Assay for the 

Assessment of Metabolic Syndrome in Bottlenose Dolphins Medical University of South Carolina Academic $148,825 Summary

Animal Telemetry Network Data Assembly Center: Phase 2 Stanford University Academic $148,300

Acoustic Behavior of North Atlantic Right Whale 

(Eubalaena glacialis) Mother-Calf Pairs Syracuse University Academic $141,561

Development of Novel Noninvasive Methods of Stress 

Assessment in Baleen Whales New England Aquarium Non-Profit $139,707

Beaked Whale Group Deep Dive Behavior 

from Passive Acoustic Monitoring Naval Undersea Warfare Center Federal $136,000

An Investigation of Fin and Blue Whales in the northeast 

Pacific Ocean Using Data from Cascadia Initiative 

Ocean Bottom Seismometers

University of Washington Academic $134,086

Finalizing the DTAG: Implementation and testing of design 

improvements for reliability and availability

Woods Hole Oceanographic 

Institution Academic $129,258

Comparative and Cumulative Energetic Costs of Odontocete 

Responses to Anthropogenic Disturbance Northwest Fisheries Science Center Federal $126,594

Behavioral Response Research Evaluation Workshop University of St. Andrews Academic $123,173

Development and Validation of a New Technique for 

Detection of Stress and Pregnancy University of Alaska Academic $121,258
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 21

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Department of Defense

US Navy

Office of Naval Research (ONR) (continued)

Cetacean Social Behavioral Response to Sonar Exposure Kelp Marine Research Non-Profit $119,473

Large Scale Density Estimation of Blue and Fin whales: 

Utilizing Sparse Array Data to Develop and Implement a New 

Method for Estimating Blue and Fin Whale Density

University of St. Andrews Academic $119,266

Dolphin Echolocation Processing Space and Naval Warfare Systems 

Command - Systems Center Pacific Federal $118,100

Field Testing and Performance Evaluation of the Long-Range 

Acoustic Real-Time Sensor for Polar Areas Cornell University Academic $115,831

Finalizing the DTAG: Implementation and testing of design 

improvements for reliability and availability University of Michigan Academic $111,729

Understanding the Foraging Ecology of Beaked and ShortFinned Pilot Whales in Hawaiian Waters University of Hawaii Academic $110,217

Molecular Indicators of Chronic Stress in a Model Pinniped 

- the Northern Elephant Seal National Marine Mammal Foundation Non-Profit $109,928

Determining Baseline Stress-Related Hormone 

Values in Large Cetaceans Baylor University Academic $109,297

Investigation of the Molecular Response 

of Belugas to "Stressors" Mystic Aquarium Non-Profit $100,381

Application of Density Estimation Methods 

to Datasets Collected from a Glider Portland State University Academic $100,001

Design of a Multi-Week Sound and Motion Recording 

and Telemetry Tag for Behavioral Studies on Whales Wildlife Computers, Inc. Non-Profit $99,999

Environmental DNA Barcoding: Using Next Generation 

Sequencing of Environmental DNA for Detection 

and Identification of Cetacean Species

Oregon State University Academic $99,994

Design of a Multi-Week Sound and Motion Recording 

and Telemetry Tag for Behavioral Studies on Whales University of St. Andrews Academic $99,615

A Study to Interpret the Biological Significance of Behavior 

Associated with 3S Experimental Sonar Exposures University of St. Andrews Academic $98,779
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 22

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Department of Defense

US Navy

Office of Naval Research (ONR) (continued)

Cumulative Effects of Human Activities 

on Marine Mammal Populations The National Academy of Sciences Non-Profit $95,000

Determining Risk Factors for Diabetes to Prevent and Treat 

Chronic Diseases in Navy Bottlenose Dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) National Marine Mammal Foundation Non-Profit $94,945 Summary

Large Scale Density Estimation of Blue and Fin Whales The Pennsylvania State University Academic $90,000

Does Depth Matter? Examining Factors that Could Influence 

the Acoustic Identification of Odontocete Species on 

Bottom-Moored Recorders

Oceanwide Science Institute Non-Profit $89,747

Using Passive and Active Acoustics to Examine Relationships 

of Cetacean and Prey Densities Scripps Institution of Oceanography Academic $85,000

A Population Consequence of Acoustic Disturbance Model 

for Cuvier's Beaked Whale (Ziphius cavirostris) in Southern California Naval Undersea Warfare Center Federal $84,400

Understanding the Onset of Health Impacts 

Caused by Disturbances University of Aberdeen Academic $83,574

Quantifying Stress in Marine Mammals: Measuring 

Biologically Active Cortisol in Cetaceans and Pinnipeds University of Toronto Academic $75,619

Interactions among Behavioral Responses of Baleen Whales 

to Acoustic Stimuli, Oceanographic Features and Prey Availability

Southall Environmental 

Associates, Inc. For Profit $74,613

Photogrammetry with an Unmanned Aerial System to Assess 

Body Condition and Growth of Blainville's Beaked Whales

Bahamas Marine Mammal 

Research Organisation Non-Profit $74,492

Develop a General Framework for Estimating Cetacean 

Density from Data Collected by Slow-Moving Autonomous Ocean 

Vehicles, Investigating Key Aspects of Survey Design, 

Data Collection and Data Analysis

University of St. Andrews Academic $72,762

Metabolic Studies to Formulate Prevention and Treatment 

Strategies for Ammonium Urate Nephrolithiasis in Navy Dolphins National Marine Mammal Foundation Non-Profit $72,579 Summary

Behavioral Ecology of Narwhals in a Changing Arctic University of Washington Academic $69,399

Comparative and Cumulative Energetic Costs of Odontocete 

Responses to Anthropogenic Disturbance University of California, Santa Cruz Academic $68,755
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 23

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Department of Defense

US Navy

Office of Naval Research (ONR) (continued)

Measuring Compartment Size and Gas Solubility 

in Marine Mammals

Woods Hole Oceanographic 

Institution Academic $67,171

Anesthesia Ventilator for Atlantic Bottlenose Dolphins 

and California Sea Lions Innovative Veterinary Medicine, Inc. For Profit $64,811 Summary

Quantifying the Effects of Propagation on 

Classification of Cetacean Vocalizations Dalhousie University Academic $63,377

Modeling Soundscapes in Pacific and Atlantic Oceans Heat, Light, and Sound Research, Inc. For Profit $62,500

Improving the Utility of the Computed Axial Tomography 

Scan Video Cam and Tri-Axial Accelerometer for Examining Foraging 

in Top Marine Predators

Stanford University Academic $61,896

Assessing Beaked Whale Reproduction and Stress Response 

Relative to Sonar Activity at the Atlantic Undersea Test 

and Evaluation Center

Southwest Fisheries Science Center Federal $60,932

Variability of Hormonal Stress Markers and Stress Responses 

in a Large Cross-Sectional Sample of Elephant Seals Sonoma State University Academic $59,750

Comparing the Foraging Efficiency of Beaked Whales 

On and Off Naval Ranges University of St. Andrews Academic $56,543

Characterization and Treatment of Metabolic Syndrome and 

Iron Overload in Navy Bottlenose Dolphins National Marine Mammal Foundation Non-Profit $56,180 Summary

A Power Analysis and Recommended Study Design to 

Directly Detect Population-Level Consequences 

of Acoustic Disturbance

Southwest Fisheries Science Center Federal $54,956

Measuring and Validating Levels of Steroid Hormones in the 

Skin of Bottlenose Dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) Aarhus University Academic $53,105

Probiotics for Maintaining Dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) 

Health and the Readiness of the U.S. Navy's 

Marine Mammal Systems

Accacia International, Inc. For Profit $49,411 Summary

Interactions among Behavioral Responses of Baleen Whales 

to Acoustic Stimuli, Oceanographic Features and Prey Availability University of California, Santa Cruz Academic $48,817
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 24

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Department of Defense

US Navy

Office of Naval Research (ONR) (continued)

Marine bioacoustics: Soundtracks for the Future Kohala Center Non-Profit $48,697

Predicting Trophic Interactions and Habitat Utilization in the 

California Current ecosystem University of California - Santa Cruz Academic $46,767

Cetacean Social Behavioral Response to Sonar Kelp Marine Research For Profit $45,036

Evaluation of Non-Lethal Effects of Nitrogen Bubbles on 

Marine Mammal Health and the Potential Role of Immune Activity in 

Facilitating the Development of Dive Related Injury

Mystic Aquarium Non-Profit $43,237

Atlantic Fleet Training and Testing 

Environmental Impact Statement

Naval Facilities Engineering 

Command - Atlantic Federal $39,395 Summary

Variability of Hormonal Stress Markers Collected from a 

Managed Dolphin Population National Marine Mammal Foundation Non-Profit $37,502

Trackplot Enhancements: Support for Multiple 

Animal Tracks and Gyros University of New Hampshire Academic $34,518

The Development of Advanced Passive Acoustic Monitoring 

Systems Using Micromars Technology Desert Star Systems, LLC Non-Profit $34,225

Behavioral Response Studies of Cetaceans to Naval Sonar 

Signals in Norwegian Waters University of St. Andrews Academic $32,395

Support for Society for Marine Mammalogy 

2015 Biennial Conference The Marine Mammal Center Non-Profit $30,000

Workshop on the Detection, Classification, Localization and 

Density Estimation of Marine Mammals 

Using Passive Acoustics – 2015

Scripps Institution of Oceanography Academic $25,960

A Population Consequence of Acoustic Disturbance Model 

for Cuvier's Beaked Whale (Ziphius cavirostris) in Southern California University of St. Andrews Academic $25,418

Development of Automated Whistle and Click Classifiers for 

Odontocete Species in the Northwest Atlantic Ocean 

and the Waters Surrounding Hawaii

Bio-Waves, Inc. For Profit $24,828

Unsupervised Learning (Clustering) of 

Odontocete Echolocation Clicks San Diego State University Academic $24,228
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 25

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Department of Defense

US Navy

Office of Naval Research (ONR) (continued)

A Population Consequence of Acoustic Disturbance Model 

for Cuvier's Beaked Whale (Ziphius cavirostris) in Southern California Cascadia Research Collective Non-Profit $23,460

Development of Atlantic Bottlenose Dolphin Cytokine Assays 

as Diagnostic Markers of Infection, and to Monitor 

Immune Function or Responses to Vaccination

USDA Agricultural Research 

Service - Ames Federal $22,650 Summary

Behavioral and Physiological Response 

of Baleen Whales to Ships and Noise Southwest Fisheries Science Center Federal $19,200

Modeling Gas Dynamics in California Sea Lions Texas A&M University, Corpus Christi Academic $16,171

Beaked Whale Group Deep Diving Behavior 

from Passive Acoustic Monitoring

Bahamas Marine Mammal 

Research Organisation Non-Profit $15,782

A Power Analysis and Recommended Study Design to 

Directly Detect Population-Level Consequences 

of Acoustic Disturbance

Naval Undersea Warfare Center Federal $11,620

Beaked Whale Group Deep Dive Behavior 

from Passive Acoustic Monitoring University of St. Andrews Academic $9,999

Movements and Habitat Use of Dwarf and Pygmy Sperm 

Whales Using Remotely-Deployed LIMPET Satellite Tags Cascadia Research Collective Non-Profit $8,070

Pacific Fleet – Hawaii & Marianas

Baseline Visual Surveys and Analysis of Archived Passive 

Acoustic Monitoring Data

Pacific Islands Fisheries 

Science Center Federal $495,000 Meta, Summary

Passive Acoustic Monitoring Using Pacific Missile Range 

Facility Hydrophones Including Behavioral Response and 

Long-Term Data Recording/Analysis

Space and Naval Warfare 

Systems Command Federal $460,000 Meta, 

Summary

Visual Survey, Satellite Tag Data Collection, Aerial Surveys in 

Conjunction with Training Events and Analysis for Marine Species 

Monitoring at Pacific Missile Range Facility

HDR, Inc.; NUWC For Profit $260,000 Meta, 

Summary

Puuloa range acoustic data analysis

Naval Facilities Engineering 

Command Engineering; 

Expeditionary Warfare Center

Federal $97,000
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 26

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Department of Defense

US Navy

Pacific Fleet – Hawaii & Marianas (continued)

Surveying Marine Mammals with High-Powered Bigeye 

Binoculars from a Shore-Based Platform in the Marianas HDR, Inc. For Profit $68,000 Meta, Summary

Marine Mammal Observer Lookout Effectiveness Study National Underwater Warfare 

Center - Newport Federal $30,000 Meta, Summary

Photographic Aerial Monitoring Survey of the Kaula Islet Normandeau For Profit $3,586

Pacific Fleet - West Coast

Distribution and Movement Patterns of Blue 

and Fin Whales in the Eastern Pacific Oregon State University Academic $1,094,000

Blue Whale, Fin Whale, Humpback Whale, and Cuvier's 

Beaked Whale/Vocalization/Echolocation and Impact Assessment 

from Anthropogenic Sounds

Scripps Institution of Oceanography Academic $620,000

Southern Resident Killer Whale Offshore Movement Northwest Fisheries Science Center Federal $403,000

Gulf of Alaska and Pacific Northwest 

Passive Acoustic Monitoring Scripps Institution of Oceanography Academic $280,000

Puget Sound Aerial Marine Mammal Surveys HDR, Inc.; Smultea Inc. For Profit $241,000 Meta, 

Summary

Density estimation of Cuvier's Beaked Whales in Southern 

California Using Passive Acoustic Monitoring Scripps Institution of Oceanography Academic $120,000

Acoustic Monitoring Study Underwater Detonation Range 

Northwest Training and Testing Naval Undersea Warfare Command Federal $104,000

Marine Mammal Surveys During California Cooperative 

Oceanic Fisheries Investigations Scripps Institution of Oceanography Academic $102,000

San Diego Bay and Silver Strand Training Complex 

Marine Mammal Surveys

Space and Naval Warfare Systems 

Command - Systems Center Pacific Federal $35,000

Silver Strand Training Complex and San Diego Bay 

Marine Mammal Surveys

Space and Naval Warfare 

Systems Command Federal $10,080
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 27

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Department of Defense

US Navy

Pacific Fleet - West Coast (continued)

Fin Whale And Cuvier's Beaked Whale 

Vocalization/Echolocation And Impact Assessment From 

Anthropogenic Sounds at Navy's Southern California Offshore 

Antisubmarine Warfare Range

Naval Undersea Warfare Center 

- Division Newport Federal $0

Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command (SPAWAR)

Blue Whale Compliance Surveys in the San Diego Arc Space and Naval Warfare Systems 

Command - Systems Center Pacific Federal $68,000

Department of Energy

Office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy

Wind and Water Power Technologies Office

Tethys: Environmental Effects of Wind and Water Power 

Technologies Database

DOE Pacific Northwest 

National Laboratory Federal $500,000 Meta, Summary

Marine and Hydrokinetic Turbine Strike Severity Analysis Sandia National Lab and Pacific 

Northwest National Lab Federal $400,000 Summary

An Intelligent Adaptable Monitoring Package for Marine 

Renewable Energy Projects University of Washington Academic $0 Summary

Marine Mammal Behavioral Response to Tidal Turbine Sound University of Washington Academic $0 Summary

Modeling Wildlife Densities and Movements across Temporal 

and Spatial Scales on the Mid-Atlantic Continental Shelf Biodiversity Research Institute Non-Profit $0 Meta, Raw, Summary

Nekton Interaction Monitoring System DOE Pacific Northwest 

National Laboratory Federal $0 Summary

Unobtrusive Multi-static Serial LiDAR Imager for Wide-area 

Surveillance and Identification of Marine Life at Marine and HydroKinetic InstallationsFlorida Atlantic University Academic $0 Summary

Department of Health & Human Services

National Institutes of Health

National Institute of Deafness and other Communication Disorders (NIDCD)

Comparative Genetics of Sweet Taste in Carnivora Monell Chemical Senses Center Non-Profit $343,324 Summary
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 28

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Department of Health & Human Services

National Institutes of Health (continued)

National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS)

A Novel Antibody Based Biomarker for Toxicity 

of Chronic Domoic Acid Exposure University of Washington Academic $245,871 Summary

Does in Utero Exposure to Domoic Acid Cause 

Temporal Lobe Epilepsy? Standford University Academic $117,865 Summary

Department of Homeland Security

US Coast Guard

(LMR) Atlantic Area

District 5, U.S. Coast Guard Marine Mammal 

Enforcement and Conservation U.S. Coast Guard Federal $239,273

District 7, U.S. Coast Guard Marine Mammal 

Enforcement and Conservation USCG District 7 Federal $70,844

District 8, U.S. Coast Guard Marine Mammal 

Enforcement and Conservation USCG District 8 Federal $34,676

District 1, U.S. Coast Guard Marine Mammal 

Enforcement and Conservation USCG District 1 Federal $34,574

(LMR) Pacific Area

District 14, U.S. Coast Guard Marine Mammal 

Enforcement and Conservation USCG District 14 Federal $1,721,417

District 17, U.S. Coast Guard Marine Mammal 

Enforcement and Conservation USCG District 17 Federal $284,777

District 11, U.S. Coast Guard Marine Mammal 

Enforcement and Conservation USCG District 11 Federal $267,164

District 13, U.S. Coast Guard Marine Mammal 

Enforcement and Conservation USCG District 13 Federal $142,641
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 29

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Independent Agencies

Marine Mammal Commission

Assessing High Cetacean Diversity and Omura’s Whale 

Distribution in Northwest Madagascar during the Western Indian 

Ocean Oil and Gas Boom

New England Aquarium Non-Profit $43,048

Connectivity Between Indian Ocean Humpback Dolphin 

Populations in East Africa: What is the Most Appropriate 

Unit for Conservation?

Wildlife Conservation Society Non-Profit $37,010

Investigating Factors for Unusual Dolphin Mortalities on the 

U.S. Atlantic Coast: Focus on the Immune System University of Connecticut Academic $29,942

The Impacts of Noise on Reproductive Advertisement of an 

Aquatically Breeding Pinniped Syracuse University Academic $9,111

8th Workshop for the Coordinated Research and 

Conservation of the Franciscana Projeto Toninhas Non-Profit $2,000

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Kennedy Space Center

Long Term Monitoring of the Abundance and Distribution 

of Manatees on the Kennedy Space Center KEMCON/Ecological Program For Profit $50,000

National Science Foundation

Biological Sciences (BIO) Directorate

Instrument Development for Biological Research - Type B: 

Refinement of a Miniature Oceanographic Data Recorder that Can 

Be Carried by Marine Mammals and other 

Pelagic Species for Commercial Production

Texas A&M University, Main Campus Academic $536,366 Meta, 

Summary

The Phylogeny and Evolution of Cetacea: Resolution of Rapid 

Radiations and a Molecular Blueprint for Modern Whales, 

Dolphins, and Porpoises

University of California, Riverside Academic $73,998 Raw

Education & Human Resources (EHR) Directorate

Understanding Biotic Response to Environmental Change in 

Tropical Ecosystems Through a Place-Based Context University of Hawaii, Hilo Academic $0 Meta, Summary
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 30

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Independent Agencies

National Science Foundation

Geosciences (GEO) Directorate

Unraveling the Genomic and Molecular Basis of the Dive 

Response: Nitric Oxide Signaling and Vasoregulation 

in the Weddell Seal

Massachusetts General Hospital Non-Profit $440,830 Meta, Raw

Development of an Interim Passive Ocean Acoustic 

Waveguide Remote Sensing System for Instantaneous 

Continental-Shelf Scale Marine Mammal Monitoring, 

Localization and Species Classification in Near Real Time

Northeastern University Academic $218,051

How Development and Behavior Interact to Change Skull 

Form: Exploring and Sharing Evolutionary Insights from the Fossil 

Record of Cetaceans (Whales, Dolphins, and Porpoises)

New York Institute of Technology Academic $81,682 Meta, 

Summary

Collaborative Research: Geomagnetic Navigation by Weddell 

Seals Beneath Antarctic Ice Texas A & M University Academic $79,443 Meta, Summary

Collaborative Research: Geomagnetic Navigation by Weddell 

Seals Beneath Antarctic Ice University of Texas, Austin Academic $79,000 Meta, Summary

Collaborative Research: Geomagnetic Navigation by Weddell 

Seals Beneath Antarctic Ice

University of California, Santa Cruz Academic $73,989 Meta, 

Summary

Long-Term Ecological Research Palmer, Antarctica: LandShelf-Ocean Connectivity, Ecosystem Resilience and Transformation 

in a Sea-Ice Influenced Pelagic Ecosystem

Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory Academic $0 Meta, Raw, 

Summary

Mathematical & Physical Sciences (MPS) Directorate

In Search of Dolphin Language Rockefeller University Academic $123,074

Smithsonian Institution

Environmental Research Center (SERC)

Feeding Behavior, Diet, and Energetic Balances in Sea Otters Smithsonian Environmental Research 

Center Federal $8,000

Museum of Natural History (SMNH)

Collection and Exchange of Marine Mammal Parts Smithsonian National Museum 

of Natural History Federal $110,000
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 31

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Independent Agencies

Smithsonian Institution

Museum of Natural History (SMNH) (continued)

Evolution of the Sound Reception Pathway in Cetaceans Smithsonian National Museum 

of Natural History Federal $25,000

Phylogenetics, Biogeography, and Conservation of 

Lagenorhynchus acutus, L. albirostris, and L. obliquidens 

in U.S. Waters

Smithsonian National Museum 

of Natural History Federal $25,000

National Zoo (NZP)

American Trail - Education and Outreach on Conservation Smithsonian National Zoological Park Federal $300,000

Tropical Research Institute (STRI)

Eastern Pacific Marine Traffic Separation Schemes: Planning 

for Expansion and Measuring Compliance and Acoustic Impact

Smithsonian Tropical Research 

Institute Federal $75,000

Monitoring Changes in Population and Habitat of Manatee 

(Trichechus manatus) in Rio Changuinola and 

Area of Influence, Bocas del Toro, Panama

Smithsonian Tropical Research 

Institute Federal $30,000

Department of Interior

Bureau of Ocean Energy Management

Alaska OCS Region

Chukchi Acoustic, Oceanography and 

Zooplankton Extension Study)

AFSC Marine Mammal Laboratory; 

Pacific Marine Environmental 

Laboratory

Federal $1,287,805 Meta, Raw, 

Summary

Arctic Whale Ecology Study: Use of the Chukchi Sea by 

Endangered Baleen and Other Whales

AFSC Marine Mammal Laboratory; 

Pacific Marine Environmental 

Laboratory

Federal $865,000 Meta, Raw, 

Summary

Distribution and Relative Abundance of Marine Mammals in 

the Chukchi Sea and the Fall Migration of 

Bowhead Whales in the Beaufort Sea

AFSC Marine Mammal Laboratory Federal $840,951 Meta, Raw, 

Summary

Satellite Tracking of Bowhead Whales: Habitat Use, Passive 

Acoustic and Environmental Monitoring Alaska Department of Fish and Game State/Local $510,660 Meta, Raw, Summary

Initiating an Arctic Marine Biodiversity Observing Network 

for Ecosystem Monitoring University of Alaska, Fairbanks Academic $500,000 Meta, Raw, Summary
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 32

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Department of Interior

Bureau of Ocean Energy Management

Alaska OCS Region (continued)

Pinniped Movements and Foraging: Walrus Habitat Use in 

the Potential Drilling Area in the Chukchi Sea Alaska Department of Fish and Game State/Local $229,326 Meta, Raw, Summary

Field Evaluation of an Unmanned Aircraft System for 

Studying Cetacean Distribution, Density, 

and Habitat Use in the Arctic

AFSC Marine Mammal Laboratory Federal $82,620

Marine Mammal/Physical Oceanography Synthesis 

- Synthesis of Arctic Research

OAR Pacific Marine 

Environmental Laboratory

Federal $17,000

Demography and Behavior of Polar Bears Summering 

on Shore in Alaska (Beaufort Sea)

FWS Marine Mammals 

Management Office Federal $0 Meta, Raw, Summary

Demography and Behavior of Polar Bears Summering 

on Shore in Alaska (Beaufort, Chukchi) USGS Alaska Science Center Federal $0 Meta, Raw, Summary

Ice Seal Movements and Foraging: Village-based Satellite 

Tracking and Acoustic Monitoring of Ringed, 

Bearded, and Spotted Seals

Alaska Department of Fish and Game State/Local $0 Meta, Raw,

Summary

Walrus Adaptability and Long-term Responses; Using multiproxy data to project Sustainability University of Alaska, Fairbanks Academic $0 Meta, Raw, 

Summary

Atlantic OCS Region

Atlantic Marine Assessment Program for Protected Species II Northeast Fisheries Science Center Federal $1,750,000 Meta, Raw, 

Summary

Atlantic Marine Assessment Program for Protected Species 

- Aerial Survey Southeast Fisheries Science Center Federal $145,000 Meta, Raw, Summary

Determining Offshore Use by Marine Mammals and Ambient 

Noise Levels Using Passive Acoustic Monitoring

Maryland Department of 

Natural Resources State/Local $0 Meta, Raw, Summary

Understanding Whale Presence in the Virginia 

Offshore Wind Energy Area

Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology, 

Bioacoustics Research Program Academic $0 Meta, Raw, Summary

Gulf of Mexico OCS Region

Florida Manatee Movement and Habitat Use 

in the Northern Gulf of Mexico

USGS Wetland and Aquatic Research 

Center Federal $216,000 Meta, Raw, Summary
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 33

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Department of Interior

Bureau of Ocean Energy Management

Gulf of Mexico OCS Region (continued)

Passive Acoustic Monitoring Program 

for the Northern Gulf of Mexico TBD TBD $0 Meta, Raw, Summary

Pressure Wave and Acoustic Properties Generated by the 

Explosive Removal of Offshore Structures: 

Potential Effects on Protected Species 

CSA Ocean Sciences For Profit $0

Sperm Whales and Bottlenose Dolphins in the Gulf of Mexico Southeast Fisheries Science Center Federal $0 Meta, Raw, 

Summary

Headquarters

Assessment of the Cumulative Effects of Anthropogenic 

Stressors on Marine Mammals National Academy of Sciences Non-Profit $173,520 Raw, Summary

Behavioural Response of Australian Humpback Whales 

to Seismic Surveys

University of Sydney - Institute of 

Marine Science Academic $0 Meta, Raw, Summary

Examination of Health Effects and Long-Term Impacts of 

Deployments of Multiple Tag Types on Blue, Humpback, and Gray 

whales in the Eastern North Pacific

Cascadia Research Collective Non-Profit $0 Meta, Raw, 

Summary

Understanding Propagation of Seismic Noise and Effects to 

Marine Mammals at Larger Temporal and Spatial Scales TBD TBD $0

Pacific OCS Region

A Demonstration Marine Biodiversity Observation Network 

for Ecosystem Monitoring

University of California, Santa Barbara

- Marine Science Institute Academic $250,000 Meta, Raw, Summary

Characterizing and Quantifying Sea Lion and Seal Use of 

Offshore Man-made Structures off California AFSC Marine Mammal Laboratory Federal $0 Meta, Raw, Summary

Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement

Environmental Studies Program

Effects Of Oil, Chemical Dispersant, and Dispersed Oil on the 

Functional Characteristics of Mysticete Whale Baleen

NOAA Office of Response 

and Restoration Federal $90,000 Summary
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 34

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Department of Interior

National Park Service

Alaska Region

Investigating the Effects of Vessel Traffic on Marine Mammal 

Vocalizations in Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Oregon State University Academic $176,597

National Ocean Coordinator: Alaska Region NPS - Alaska Region Federal $0 Summary

Biological Resources Division

National Park System Marine Mammal Technical 

Support and Coordination

NPS Biological Resources Division, 

Wildlife Conservation Branch and 

Wildlife Health Branch - Water 

Resources Division

Federal $40,000 Summary

Cabrillo NM

Gray Whale Education and Outreach Cabrillo National Monument Federal $1,744

Canaveral NS

Manatee Monitoring and Stranding Response Canaveral National Seashore Federal $2,000 Summary

Cape Cod NS

Seal Scouts: Education and Outreach 

at Cape Cod National Seashore Cape Cod National Seashore Federal $11,000

Cape Cod Stranding Network: Marine Mammal Strandings 

at Cape Cod National Seashore International Fund for Animal Welfare Non-Profit $0

Ecology of Harbor Seals and Gray Seals 

in Southern New England waters Northeast Fisheries Science Center Federal $0

Gray seal (Halichoerus grypus) Live Capture, 

Sampling, and Tagging. Northeast Fisheries Science Center Federal $0

Installation of a Vessel Automatic Identification System 

Receiver Station at the Cape Cod National Seashore 

Province Lands Visitor Center

Stellwagen Bank National 

Marine Sanctuary Federal $0 Summary

Cape Hatteras NS

Marine Mammal Stranding Response 

at Cape Hatteras National Seashore

Cape Hatteras National Seashore 

- Outer Banks Group Federal $6,000 Meta, Raw, Summary
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 35

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Department of Interior

National Park Service

Cape Hatteras NS (continued)

Using Camera Traps and Sightings Data to Assess the 

Presence and Haulout Behavior of Harbor Seals in Pamlico Sound Duke Marine Lab Academic $0

Channel Islands NP

Ship Strike Mitigation and Monitoring Channel Islands National Park Federal $3,000

Bioacoustics of the Northern Elephant Seal University of California, Santa Cruz Academic $0

Interpretation at Channel Islands National Park Channel Islands National Park Federal $0 Summary

Cumberland Island NS

Marine Mammal Research and Stranding Response Cumberland Island National Seashore Federal $2,000 Summary

Everglades NP

Manatee Research and Monitoring 

at Everglades National Park Everglades National Park Federal $8,000 Summary

Fire Island NS

Stranding Program with the Riverhead Foundation Riverhead Foundation for Marine 

Research and Preservation Non-Profit $4,000

Gateway NRA

Marine Mammal Monitoring and Public Education Gateway National Recreation Area Federal $2,300 Summary

Protecting Horseshoe Crabs (Limulus polyphemus) and Other 

Wildlife from Fences and Planting Activities at the Rulers Bar and 

Black Wall Saltmarsh Restoration Sites, Jamaica Bay, NY

American Littoral Society Non-Profit $0

Glacier Bay NP

Population Characteristics of Humpback Whales 

in Glacier Bay and Adjacent Waters

Glacier Bay National Park and 

Preserve Federal $263,000

Quantifying Frequency and Severity of Interactions between 

Cruise Ships and Marine Mammals in Glacier Bay National Park

Glacier Bay National Park and 

Preserve Federal $143,000

Monitoring Harbor Seal Population Status 

in Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska

Glacier Bay National Park and 

Preserve 

- Coastal Program

Federal $114,500
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 36

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Department of Interior

National Park Service

Glacier Bay NP (continued)

Killer Whale Population Assessment and Photo-Identification 

of Winter Humpback Whales in Northern Southeastern Alaska North Gulf Oceanic Society Non-Profit $1,000

Underwater Acoustic Monitoring in Glacier Bay Glacier Bay National Park and 

Preserve Federal $890

Golden Gate NRA

Harbor Seal Monitoring at Point Bonita

Golden Gate National Recreation 

Area; Point Reyes National Seashore; 

Pacific Coast Science and Learning 

Center 

Federal $0 Summary

Marine Mammal Stranding Response The Marine Mammal Center; 

California Academy of Sciences Non-Profit $0 Summary

Gulf Islands NS

Educational Field Trip - University of Southern Mississippi -

Gulf Coast Research Laboratory - Whale and Dolphin Behavior Gulf Islands National Seashore Federal $0

Haleakala NP

Monk Seal Monitoring at Haleakalā National Park Haleakalā National Park Federal $1,000

Headquarters

Quantification of Microplastic on National Park Beaches Clemson's Baruch Institute of Coastal 

Ecology and Forest Science Academic $0

Inventory and Monitoring Division

Development of a Statistical Adaptive Monitoring Framework 

for Sea Otters in Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska

NPS SEAN Inventory and 

Monitoring Program Federal $144,300

Channel Islands Pinniped Surveys NOAA Federal $21,000 Summary

Kaloko-Honokohau NHP

Monk Seal Monitoring at Kaloko-Honokohau 

National Historical Park

Kaloko-Honokohau National 

Historical Park Federal $50
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 37

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Department of Interior

National Park Service

Katmai NP and Preserve

Sea Otter Research and Monitoring In Katmai 

National Park and Preserve Katmai National Park and Preserve Federal $10,000

Kenai Fjords NP

Nearshore Marine Vital Signs Monitoring Kenai Fjords National Park; 

U.S. Geological Survey Federal $209,400 Meta, Raw, Summary

Natural Sounds and Night Skies Division

Soundscapes and Marine Mammals NPS Natural Sounds and 

Night Skies Division Federal $8,000 Summary

New Bedford Whaling NHP

Whaling, Maritime History, and Whale Conservation at New 

Bedford Whaling National Historical Park

New Bedford Whaling National 

Historical Park Federal $159,000

Olympic NP

Marine Mammal Monitoring and Stranding Response 

at Olympic National Park Olympic National Park Federal $150 Summary

Annual Range-Wide Sea Otter, Seal and Sea Lion 

Surveys in Washington

Washington State Department of 

Fish and Wildlife State/Local $0

Fall-Winter Supplemental Washington 

Sea Otter Aerial Survey Seattle Aquarium Non-Profit $0

The Impacts of a Reintroduced Keystone Predator on the 

Nearshore Marine Environment on the 

Olympic Coast of Washington State

University of Washington Academic $0

Pacific West Region

Regional Ocean Coordinator: Pacific West Region NPS - Pacific West Region Federal $130,000

Padre Island NS

Marine Mammal Monitoring and Stranding Response Padre Island National Seashore Federal $0 Summary
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 38

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Department of Interior

National Park Service

Point Reyes NS

Monitoring Pinnipeds at Point Reyes National Seashore NPS - Inventory and 

Monitoring Division Federal $60,000

Marine Mammal Stranding Response 

at Point Reyes National Seashore Point Reyes National Seashore Federal $5,000 Raw

Reproductive and Foraging Behavior of Elephant Seals University of California - Santa Cruz Academic $0

Vertebrate Paleontology of the Miocene-Pliocene Purisima 

Formation and Santa Margarita Sandstone University of Otago Academic $0 Summary

Redwood NP

Marine Mammal Monitoring, Stranding Response, 

and Contamination Study Yurok Tribe Native $15,000

Southeast Region

Regional Ocean Coordinator: Southeast Region NPS - Southeast Region Federal $0

Water Resources Division

National Park Service Water Resources: Fisheries, Marine 

Protected Areas, Water Quality, and Sea-Level Rise

NPS Ocean and Coastal 

Resources Branch Federal $0 Summary

US Fish & Wildlife Service

Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge

Marine Mammal Observation and Reporting 

Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge Alaska Maritime National 

Wildlife Refuge Federal $2,500

Caribbean Ecological Services Office

Manatee Recovery, Rescue,

Rehabilitation and Release Program

FWS Caribbean Ecological Services 

Office Federal $93,829

Puerto Rico Department of Natural and Environmental 

Resources Marine Mammal Rescue Program

Puerto Rico Department of Natural 

and Environmental Resources State/Local $40,000
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 39

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Department of Interior

National Park Service

Crystal River National Wildlife Refuge

Manatee Conservation at Crystal River National Wildlife 

Refuge Crystal River National Wildlife Refuge Federal $880,000

Farallon National Wildlife Refuge

Monitor Marine Mammals on Farallon 

National Wildlife Refuge Point Blue Conservation Science Non-Profit $33,263

International Affairs Program - International Conservation

Training and Mentoring of Manatee Conservationists 

in Central African Nations

Sea to Shore Alliance; 

African Aquatic Conservation Fund Non-Profit $116,200

Ensuring the long-term protection of Conkouati Douli 

National Park, Republic of Congo: A Five Year Cooperative 

Agreement between the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 

and the Wildlife Conservation Society

Wildlife Conservation Society Non-Profit $38,450

Cultivating an Ethos of Stewardship through Citizen Science 

and Educational Outreach in the Municipalities of Petatlan 

and Zihuatanejo, Guerrero

Whales of Guerrero Research Project Non-Profit $20,000

Environmental Education and Training Program in the Winter 

Breeding Habitat of the Humpback Whale in the 

States of Nayarit and Jalisco, Mexico

Ecologia y Conservacion 

de Ballenas, A.C. Non-Profit $20,000

Reducing Trade of Bushmeat from Protected Species 

in the Lake Region of Gabon

Organisation Ecotouristique 

du Lac Oguemoué Non-Profit $15,096

International Affairs Program - Permits

Administration of Marine Mammal Protection Act, 

Endangered Species Act, and Convention of International Trade in 

Endangered Species Permits for Marine Mammals

FWS International Affairs 

Program - Permits Federal $447,720

Marine Mammals Management Office

Pacific Walrus Genetic Mark-Recapture FWS Marine Mammals 

Management Office Federal $1,311,963
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 40

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Department of Interior

National Park Service

Marine Mammals Management Office (continued)

Managing Human-Polar Bear Interactions FWS Marine Mammals 

Management Office Federal $244,618

International Research and Management for Conservation 

of Polar Bears in the Chukchi Sea

FWS Marine Mammals 

Management Office Federal $182,354 Summary

Pacific Walrus Co-Management FWS Marine Mammals Management 

Office - Walrus Program Federal $165,019

Implementation of the U.S. Russia Bilateral Agreement 

for the Alaska-Chukotka Polar Bear Population

FWS Marine Mammals 

Management Office Federal $142,664

Survey of Northern Sea Otters in the Aleutian Islands, 

Alaska to Estimate Abundance and Distribution

FWS Marine Mammals 

Management Office Federal $130,754

Pacific Walrus Harvest Monitoring FWS Marine Mammals 

Management Office Federal $55,091

Sea Otter Bio-sampling FWS Marine Mammals 

Management Office Federal $33,795

Pacific Walrus Cooperative Haulout 

Monitoring and Management

FWS Marine Mammals Management 

Office - Walrus Program Federal $32,266 Meta

Aerial Survey of Sea Otters in Cook Inlet FWS Marine Mammals 

Management Office Federal $28,131

Finalizing and Implementing the Conservation 

Management Plan for Polar Bears 

FWS Marine Mammals 

Management Office Federal $21,899 Summary

International Research and Management for Conservation 

of Polar Bears in the Chukchi and Beaufort Seas

FWS Marine Mammals 

Management Office Federal $10,647 Summary

Southern Beaufort Sea Subpopulation of Polar Bear 

Research and Management

FWS Marine Mammals 

Management Office Federal $6,066 Summary

Stock Recovery Planning Meeting FWS Marine Mammals 

Management Office Federal $4,548

Sea Otter Co-Management Meetings FWS Marine Mammals 

Management Office Federal $870
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 41

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Department of Interior

National Park Service

North Florida Ecological Services Office

Manatee Protection Area Markers, Maintenance and Repair

Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation 

Commission - Department of 

Law Enforcement

State/Local $250,000

Oregon Coast National Wildlife Refuge

Pinniped Research Coordination with the National Oceanic 

and Atmospheric Administration and the Oregon 

Department of Fish and Wildlife

Oregon Coast National 

Wildlife Refuge Federal $3,000

Marine Mammal Interpretation/Education Oregon Coast National 

Wildlife Refuge Federal $2,945

Region 4 Ecological Services Office

Implementation of Comprehensive Management 

Plan for Georgia 

Georgia Department of 

Natural Resources State/Local $25,000

Study of Habitat Use and Populations of Manatees in 

Mobile Bay - Increase Awareness and Share Info

Alabama Department of Conservation 

and Natural Resources State/Local $22,500

Texas Coast Ecological Services Office

Rescue of Manatee in Texas and Repatriation to Florida FWS Ecological Services, Clear Lake; 

FWS Law Enforcement, Houston

Federal $12,673

Monitoring Texas Manatee Sightings FWS Texas Coast Ecological 

Services Office Federal $7,000

Protection of Manatees in Texas Via Section 7 Consultation 

and as Part of U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' Permitting

FWS Texas Coast Ecological 

Services Office Federal $6,600

Ventura Ecological Services Office

Southern Sea Otter Recovery and Ecosystem Health 

in Elkhorn Slough

USGS Western Ecological 

Research Center Federal $30,500

Elkhorn Slough Sea Otter Population Study USGS Western Ecological 

Research Center Federal $23,924 Meta, Raw

Patterns and Consequences of Shark Bite Mortality

in Southern Sea Otters

USGS Western Ecological 

Research Center Federal $0
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 42

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Department of Interior

US Geological Survey

Alaska Science Center

Understanding and Forecasting the Response of Sea-Ice 

Dependent Marine Mammals to a Rapidly-Diminishing Arctic Sea-Ice 

Environment: Polar Bears

USGS Alaska Science Center Federal $761,473 Meta, 

Summary

Nearshore Marine Ecosystems Research Program USGS Alaska Science Center Federal $352,503 Meta, 

Summary

Understanding and Forecasting the Response of Sea-Ice 

Dependent Marine Mammals to a Rapidly Diminishing Arctic Sea-Ice 

Environment: Pacific Walrus

USGS Alaska Science Center Federal $290,000 Meta, 

Summary

U.S. Geological Survey Changing Arctic Ecosystems Initiative: 

Developing Demographic Parameters Estimated from Walrus Teeth 

and Observations At-Sea and Onshore Walrus Aggregations 

to Inform Conservation Models

USGS Alaska Science Center Federal $201,179 Meta, 

Summary

U.S. Geological Survey Changing Arctic Ecosystems Initiative: 

Potential effects of Declining Sea Ice on 

Polar Bear Nutritional Ecology

USGS Alaska Science Center Federal $191,111 Meta, 

Summary

U.S. Geological Survey Changing Arctic Ecosystems Initiative: 

Demography and Ecology of Polar Bears 

on the North Slope of Alaska

USGS Alaska Science Center Federal $185,599 Meta, 

Summary

Gulf Watch Alaska: Monitoring Nearshore Benthic Systems 

in the Gulf of Alaska for Long Term Status and Recovery USGS Alaska Science Center Federal $181,331 Meta, Summary

U.S. Geological Survey Changing Arctic Ecosystems Initiative: 

Documenting Walrus Behaviors and Habitat Associations in the 

Chukchi Sea to Inform Conservation

USGS Alaska Science Center Federal $139,149 Meta, 

Summary

U.S. Geological Survey Changing Arctic Ecosystems Initiative: 

Developing Coupled Models of Walrus Population Dynamics and 

Bioenergetics to Inform Conservation

USGS Alaska Science Center Federal $120,707 Meta, 

Summary

U.S. Geological Survey Changing Arctic Ecosystems Initiative: 

Evaluation of Next Generation DNA sequencing to Quantify Walrus 

Diet from Fecal Material

USGS Alaska Science Center Federal $118,192 Meta, 

Summary
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 43

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Department of Interior

US Geological Survey

Alaska Science Center (continued)

U.S. Geological Survey Changing Arctic Ecosystems Initiative: 

The Effects of Declining Sea Ice on Polar Bear 

Behaviors and Energetic Rates

USGS Alaska Science Center Federal $79,456 Meta, 

Summary

Mapping Polar Bear Den Habitat in the 

National Petroleum Reserve – Alaska USGS Alaska Science Center Federal $70,732 Meta, Summary

U.S. Geological Survey Changing Arctic Ecosystems Initiative: 

Gene transcription in Polar Bears (Ursus maritimus): Refining a 

Diagnostic Tool for Polar Bear and Ecosystem Health

USGS Western Ecological 

Research Center Federal $30,000 Meta, 

Summary

Nutritional Ecology of Chukchi Sea Polar Bears USGS - Fort Collins Science Center Federal $19,000 Summary

Polar Bears as a Sentinels for Emerging Wildlife Zoonoses 

with Implications for Public Health in Alaska: Determining Past and 

Present Occurrence of Brucelli spp., Coxiella burnetii, and 

Toxoplasma gondii in Southern Beaufort Sea Polar Bears

USGS Alaska Science Center Federal $590 Meta, 

Summary

Evaluating Chronic Exposure of Sea Otters to Lingering Exxon 

Valdez Oil in Western Prince William Sound 

to Assess Population Recovery 

USGS Alaska Science Center Federal $0 Meta, 

Summary

Headquarters

Understanding Walrus Seasonal Distribution and Habitat Use 

in the Eastern Chukchi Sea USGS Alaska Science Center Federal $586,771 Meta, Summary

An Age Structure Survey to Estimate Current 

Demographics of the Pacific Walrus USGS Alaska Science Center Federal $286,861 Meta, Summary

Documenting the Importance of Mussels in Sea Otter 

Foraging Ecology in Kenai Fjords National Park USGS Alaska Science Center Federal $51,133 Meta, Summary

Leetown Science Center

Genetic Structure of Pacific walrus: Development of 

Molecular Markers to Identify Individual Walrus USGS Leetown Science Center Federal $100,000 Meta, Summary

National Wildlife Health Center

Investigations of Morbidity and Mortality for Sea Otters 

from Washington State USGS National Wildlife Health Center Federal $4,437 Raw,Summary
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 44

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Department of Interior

US Geological Survey

Patuxent Wildlife Research Center

Development of Polar Bear Recovery Plan USGS Patuxent Wildlife 

Research Center Federal $86,200

Analyzing the Population Status and Threats for the Florida 

Manatee (Trichechus manatus latirostris) in the Atlantic 

and Gulf of Mexico

USGS Patuxent Wildlife 

Research Center Federal $30,400

Global Review of the Effects of Small Carnivores on 

Threatened Species - Chapter in Small Carnivore Book

USGS Patuxent Wildlife 

Research Center Federal $12,000

Modelling and Assessing the Impacts of Whale-Watching 

Activities on Cetacean Behavior and Physiology

USGS Patuxent Wildlife 

Research Center Federal $12,000

The Effects of Body Size and Climate on Post Weaning 

Survival of Elephant Seals at Heard Island

USGS Patuxent Wildlife 

Research Center Federal $7,500

Wetland and Aquatic Research Center

Characterizing Manatee Distribution and Habitat Use in the 

Northern Gulf of Mexico 

USGS Wetland and Aquatic Research 

Center Federal $266,410

The Manatee Individual Photo-identification System, 

a Multi-Institution Database to Monitor and

Assess Manatee Population Dynamics

FWS Southeast Ecological 

Science Center Federal $152,236

Development of Population Models and Decision-Support 

Tools to Assess Recovery and Status of the Florida Manatee 

USGS Wetland and Aquatic Research 

Center Federal $134,480

Use of Functional Genomics and Microsatellite DNA Markers 

to Define Population Structure and Fitness Parameters in the West 

Indian Manatee (Trichechus manatus)

USGS Wetland and Aquatic Research 

Center Federal $115,760

Habitat Use of Antillean Manatees at Naval Station 

Guantanamo Bay, Cuba

FWS Wetland and Aquatic Research 

Center Federal $114,098

Establishing Baselines for Landscape and Macrosystems 

Ecological Research: Modeling Past Spatial and Temporal Variation 

in Florida Manatee Survival, Breeding and Movements Rates 

USGS Wetland and Aquatic Research 

Center Federal $58,544

Marine Mammal Health Assessment USGS Wetland and Aquatic Research 

Center Federal $57,235
Federal funding for marine mammal research and conservation Fiscal year 2015

Marine Mammal Commission 45

Project Title Performing Organization

Type of 

Organization

Funding 

Amount

Database 

Data Types

Department of Interior

US Geological Survey

Wetland and Aquatic Research Center (continued)

Winter Aggregations of Florida Manatees 

and Their Habitat Use 

USGS Wetland and Aquatic Research 

Center Federal $54,768

DNA-Based Diet Analysis of Florida Manatees (Trichechus 

manatus) Associated with the 2012-2013 Brevard County 

Unusual Mortality Event

USGS Leetown Science Center Federal $13,882

Picayune Strand Restoration Project: Monitoring and 

Assessing Effects of Hydrologic Restoration on the Florida Manatee

USGS Wetland and Aquatic Research 

Center Federal $11,594

Western Ecological Research Center

Coastal Ecosystem Research USGS Western Ecological 

Research Center

Federal $328,163 Meta, Raw, 

Summary

Sea Otter Population Biology USGS Western Ecological 

Research Center Federal $164,482 Meta, Summary

Pacific Continental Shelf Environmental Assessment 

to Document Species Occurrence and Abundance 

of the Northern California Current System

USGS Western Ecological 

Research Center Federal $2,481 Meta, Raw
4340 East-West Highway | Room 700 | Bethesda, MD 20814 

www.mmc.gov

Marine Mammal Commission 

An independent agency of the U.S. Government