ocean acidification and melting of Antarctic sea ice. This may impact krill availability, the major food source for blue whales. C. Noise interference - Blue whales rely on sound to find prey and mates. noise can potentially result in injury or death, masking of vocalisations, displacement from essential resources (e.g. prey, breeding habitat), and behavioural responses. Potential sources of man-made underwater noise interference in Australian waters include seismic surveys for oil, gas and geophysical exploration, industrial development activities (such as drilling, pile driving, blasting and dredging), gas processing and shipping. D. Vessel disturbance Vessel disturbance can occur in the form of collisions or by – disrupting the behaviour of animals. Vessel collision can lead to mortality or significant injury, and could impede recovery of blue whale populations. Vessel disturbance or collisions can result from industrial, recreational or commercial activities including whale watching. Actions Actions were prioritised to deliver tangible results to meet the Interim Recovery Objectives (Section 1.2) over time. There are a number of action areas identified in this Plan that address the high’ and risk threats to pygmy and Antarctic ‘very ‘high’ blue whales (above). Actions that support measuring population recovery, distribution and identification of important habitat were also prioritised. These actions and their ratings are summarised in Table 1. Summary of Actions and Priority Ratings identified in the Conservation 1. Management Plan for pygmy and Antarctic blue whales. Action blue Antarctic blue whale whale Priority Priority Rating Rating Assessing and addressing threats Maintain and improve existing legal and Very high Very high management protection Assessing and addressing anthropogenic Very high High noise Understanding Impacts of climate variability High High and change Minimising vessel collisions High High Enabling and measuring recovery Measuring and monitoring population Very high Very high recovery Describe the population structure of blue High High whales
ocean acidification and melting of Antarctic sea ice. This may impact krill availability, the major food source for blue whales. C. Noise interference - Blue whales rely on sound to find prey and mates. noise can potentially result in injury or death, masking of vocalisations, displacement from essential resources (e.g. prey, breeding habitat), and behavioural responses. Potential sources of man-made underwater noise interference in Australian waters include seismic surveys for oil, gas and geophysical exploration, industrial development activities (such as drilling, pile driving, blasting and dredging), gas processing and shipping. D. Vessel disturbance – Vessel disturbance can occur in the form of collisions or by disrupting the behaviour of animals. Vessel collision can lead to mortality or significant injury, and could impede recovery of blue whale populations. Vessel disturbance or collisions can result from industrial, recreational or commercial activities including whale watching. Actions Actions were prioritised to deliver tangible results to meet the Interim Recovery Objectives (Section 1.2) over time. There are a number of action areas identified in this Plan that address the ‘very high’ and ‘high’ risk threats to pygmy and Antarctic blue whales (above). Actions that support measuring population recovery, distribution and identification of important habitat were also prioritised. These actions and their ratings are summarised in Table 1. 1. Summary of Actions and Priority Ratings identified in the Conservation Management Plan for pygmy and Antarctic blue whales. Action blue whale Priority Rating Antarctic blue whale Priority Rating Assessing and addressing threats Maintain and improve existing legal and management protection Very high Very high Assessing and addressing anthropogenic noise Very high High Understanding Impacts of climate variability and change High High Minimising vessel collisions High High Enabling and measuring recovery Measuring and monitoring population recovery Very high Very high Describe the population structure of blue whales High High