JUNEAU — The Alaska Wildlife Alliance-SE will present, "Marine Mammal Stranding Network," the final lecture in the Wildlife Wednesday Series at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, May 4, in the UAS Egan Lecture Hall.
Aleria Jensen, marine mammal stranding coordinator for NOAA Fisheries’ Alaska Region, will talk about the network, which works to locate and free sea mammals which have been injured due to collisions with watercraft, or become tangled in fishing nets or gear. In 2010, for instance, a total of 220 entanglement events were recorded in Alaska, involving 236 individual animals, according to the Alaska Region Marine Mammal Stranding Summary. In Southeast, a total of 94 animals were reported last year; 39 of those were found alive and 55 were located dead. Numbers in the report indicated that summer months are when most sightings are reported. This is also the time when more boats are on the water, increasing the likelihood of collisions, and when more individuals are fishing in local hot spots.
The lecture is free and open to the public. For more information call Tina, 523-5402. To report a stranding to the Alaska Region Marine Mammal Stranding Network, call the statewide 24-hour hotline at 877-925-7773. Provide the date, location of stranding (including latitude and longitude), number of animals and species. Do not move or touch the animal.
