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Aquatic invasive species include a variety of organisms - fish, invertebrates, algae, plants and even pathogens like cholera. Some species arrive attached to ship hulls, and other are released into foreign ports via ballast water. Most species do not survive in the new environment, but some organisms are hardy, aggressive, prolific and successful invaders. They disperse rapidly and dominate native species.

Guidelines for Invasive species management in the Pacific : a Pacific strategy for managing pests, weeds and other invasive species = Directives relatives a la gestion des especes envahissantes dans le Pacifique : strategie oceanienne de gestion des ravageurs, adventices et autres especes envahissantes

The special SPREP Meeting: ÿ Noted the ICR progress report and agreed to provide feedback on the two discussion papers relating to proposed Secretariat actions on ICR recommendations 59, 60, 61 and 79 before the 20th SPREP Meeting; and ÿ Endorsed the establishment of a task force, representative of and open to all Members, to progress the issue of core functions and related ICR recommendations and agreed that the Secretariat would also establish an electronic bulletin board to enable greater participation of all Members.

For Torres Strait Islanders, dugong and marine turtle represent more than just subsistence, a source of meat, or a relic of past times; it is a way of life. Dugong and marine turtle are integral to the customary way of life or Ailan Kastom of the Indigenous peoples of Torres Strait. A complex system of logic, knowledge, magic and language, environmental perception, social expectations and responsibilities, and the roots of Islander totems, myths and legends revolve around dugong and marine turtle. The dugong and marine turtle are also symbols of Torres Strait Islanders’ quest to assert their cultural identity and aspirations for self-determination. Dugong and marine turtle hunting also includes cultural adaptation to the coming of modern times. As such there is a responsibility in Ailan Kastom, with respect to culturally important resources such as dugongs and marine turtles.

Whale-watching as an industry in the Pacific is growing much faster than whale numbers are recovering and is proving to be by far the most lucrative use of whales, with the added attraction of doing them no harm, provided that the operations are well managed.

This document reviews actions taken by intergovernmental organizations (IGOs), including regional fisheries management organizations (RFMOs) and other relevant regional fishery bodies (RFBs), to address problematic sea turtle and seabird interactions in marine capture fisheries. Sea turtles and seabirds are subject to a number of natural and anthropogenic mortality sources, including fishing operations. As a result, all sea turtle species of known status are recognized as being endangered. All sea turtle species excluding the flatback are listed in Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), which regulates international trade. Of the 61 species of seabirds affected by longline fisheries, 26 are threatened with extinction, including 19 species of albatrosses. The Convention on Migratory Species, which has a broader remit than CITES in terms of its requirements for both domestic and multilateral conservation measures, lists all sea turtles, albatrosses, giant petrels and Procellaria petrels in its Appendices. Due to concern over the status of sea turtles and certain species of seabirds and the possible negative effects of fishing on these populations, several IGOs have taken measures to address these problems. Some of these organizations have begun examining seabird or sea turtle interactions, several have adopted voluntary measures to address problematic interactions, while five RFMOs have legally binding measures requiring the employment of seabird avoidance methods in pelagic and demersal longline and trawl fisheries. There currently are no legally binding measures in place by an IGO to manage turtle-fishery interactions or seabird interactions in coastal gillnet fisheries. Several IGOs, which lack fisheries management authority, serve as advisory mechanisms and conduct cooperative research, or have a primary responsibility of regional sea turtle or seabird conservation.

This report provides an overview of the current state of knowledge of cetacean diversity, habitat and threats in the Pacifi c Islands Region. The boundaries of the Pacifi c Islands Region (Chapter 1), as defi ned by the Convention of Migratory Species (CMS) Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the Conservation of Cetaceans and their Habitats in the Pacifi c Islands Region (CMS 2006), are the marine areas under the jurisdiction of each Country or Territory of the Pacifi c Islands Region, and extend to the area defi ned by the Noumea Convention, i.e., between the Tropic of Cancer and 60° South latitude, and between 130° East longitude and 120° West longitude. The region stretches over some 10,000 kilometres from east to west and 5,000 kilometres from north to south, with a combined economic exclusion zone (EEZ) of approximately 30 million km². This region contains 22 Pacifi c Island Countries and Territories, as well as a portion of the Australian continent, both the North and South Islands of New Zealand, and a portion of the Hawaiian Islands. The region is purported to hold the most extensive and biologically diverse reefs in the world, the deepest ocean trenches, the world’s largest tuna fi shery, as well as a range of globally threatened species such as sea turtles, dugongs and cetaceans (UNDP 1999)

The Pacific Islands region is important for a great number of cetaceans (whales and dolphins), whether as a permanent habitat, a breeding ground or a migration corridor. Currently, more than thirty species of whales and dolphins have been identified in this area. The presence and diversity of cetaceans in our region has led to the development of whale watching, both on a commercial and recreational basis. Whale watching is defined as viewing activities in the natural environment, of any cetacean species from land, sea or air. Today, this activity provides a sustainable use of humpback and other whales that were exploited to less than 5% of their initial abundance earlier this century, and generates many benefits to communities, contributing to sustainable development.

Members of the South Pacific Whale Research Consortium met at the University of Auckland from 8-12 February, 2009 to discuss (i) the results of fieldwork and analysis conducted during 2008 and, (ii) conservation initiatives in the region. As with previous synoptic surveys dating back to the austral winter of 1999, surveys of humpback whales were conducted to collect genetic samples, individual identification photographs and song recordings in the four primary regions: New Caledonia, Tonga (Vava’u), Cook Islands and French Polynesia (Moorea). Other regions surveyed in 2008 included Samoa, American Samoa, Fiji, New Zealand, Niue, Norfolk Island, Hervey Bay, Peregian Beach and Eden. A total of 218 photo-identified individuals recorded from throughout the Oceania region during 2007 were matched against the quality-controlled Oceania region photo-ID catalogues from the years 1999- 2007. This revealed additional evidence of low levels of interchange among breeding grounds of Oceania. Following the genotype match reported between French Polynesia and Colombia (breeding stocks F and G) reported in the 2008 SPWRC report, a comparison of quality controlled flukes from French Polynesia and the Antarctic Peninsula was undertaken during 2008. This comparison did not produce any confirmed matches between the two regions. Song analysis for the years 2002-2006 showed a pattern of sequential movement of unique song types from eastern Australia, east across the breeding grounds of Oceania. Members once again expressed their opposition to Japan's continued lethal research programme in the Antarctic and their concern that the ongoing or planned hunt of fin and humpback whales could negatively impact small, recovering populations some of which are the subject of long-term, non-lethal research by the Consortium.

In 2008, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) reviewed the conservation status of cetacean populations worldwide. As a consequence of this review, the Oceania population of humpback whales has been re-classified from Threatened to Endangered. This is in recognition that, although humpback whales in many parts of the world are showing encouraging signs of recovery from whaling, most of the small breeding populations in the South Pacific remain at extremely low levels and some remain vulnerable to extinction. The Oceania region encompassed over 9,008,458 km² of ocean, 14 countries and 16 territories spread over both the South and North Pacific Oceans. However, for the purposed of this plan, the planning boundaries are proposed to be delineated by the known breeding range of the Southern Hemisphere humpback whale breading stocks which were reclassified to Endnagered recently by the IUCN (that is Breeding StocksE(ii & iii) and F (i & ii)) and cover the Exclusive Economic Zones which fall within this boundary.