During the last field season some of our orcas showed signs of food shortage. Some of the whales were anomalously thin, and the dorsal fin of one male collapsed. They also practiced “deep-diving foraging” which was rarely used before, hence they had probably switched to an alternate prey. It is well known that in recent years fish stocks have declined in the Russian Far East because of mass poaching. In the Avacha Gulf poachers have exhausted the important spawning areas of Atka mackerel. The numbers of salmon are also declining in Kamchatka waters. Several years ago orcas began to depredate halibut from longlines, suggesting they are not getting enough food. We plan to study orca feeding behaviour in several regions of Kamchatka to estimate the impact of fish shortage on their survival. Another aim is to spread knowledge about orcas among local people to convince them of the need to preserve orcas and their environment.

Our study will take place in May-September 2009 in the following regions: South-eastern Kamchatka; Commander Islands; Eastern Koryakia. We will estimate the state of animals (normal or thin) by photos and biopsies and observe their hunting behaviour. For each hunting event we will note the prey and the duration of hunting. The rate of hunting time during the day shows if the orcas have enough food. If they don’t, hunting time increases.

We will compare the results of our observations with previous years and between the three regions. South-eastern Kamchatka and Eastern Koryakia are the regions of intensive fishery, and fish stocks are considerably depleted there. Waters around Commander Islands include 30 miles of marine protected area, so they remain relatively unexploited. Comparing behaviour of orcas between the rich and poor regions, we can analyse the extent of food shortage in these regions. We will also compare our results with data from previous years when fish was relatively more abundant. We will present our results in scientific publications and in popular articles in local newspapers to attract the attention of officials and local people to this problem.