Phocoena phocoena

During the Middle Ages, porpoises were called mereswines, or 'sea pigs'. In those days, they were consumed a lot. There was a huge population living along the Dutch coast. Those were the days when anchovies and other small fatty fish were plentiful. The porpoises followed the fish into harbors, which is why they are officially called harbor porpoises. Porpoises grew scarcer halfway through the 20th century, however the number of sightings since 1995 have increased tremendously. The porpoise is presently the most common cetacean in the North Sea.

Morphology
Phocoena phocoena, the harbour porpoise

• is a stocky, rotund animal with a broad-based, low, triangular dorsal fin and small, oval pectoral flippers.
• has a short-beaked head with a dark line that runs from the back of the mouth to the leading edge of the dorsal fin.
• has a comparatively thick layer of blubber which varies in thickness over the body. Blubber thickness can also be affected by nutritional status.
• are very dark grey to black on their back, becoming speckled/intermediate on their sides and white on their underside.
• has straight mouth-line slopes upwards towards the eye (Jefferson et al, 2008).
• tail flukes are defined by a deep median notch, have concave trailing edges and rounded tips (Watson, 1981).
• has 19-28 teeth in each tooth row (Jefferson et al, 2008). Each tooth has a cylindrical ‘neck’, flattened into a spatulate form at the tip.
• tongue has finger-like extensions around its edge known as marginal lingual papillae. These are age-related structures helping to seal the mouth during suckling and then aiding the eating of solid food whilst excluding seawater following weaning (Natural History Museum, 2002).

Phylogeny
Four subspecies are recognized (IUCN, 2009):

• Phocoena. p. phocoena in the North Atlantic
• Phocoena. p. vomerina, in the eastern North Pacific
• Phocoena. p. relicta in the Black Sea (Reeves and Notarbartolo di Sciara 2006)
• An un-named subspecies in the western North Pacific (Rice, 1998)

Large numbers of harbor porpoises are caught in fishing nets, because the porpoises feed on schooling fish such as herring and mackerel, in relatively shallow coastal waters. They are also affected by increasing pollution in coastal waters, and are considered vulnerable or threatened in many parts of their range. They are social, and feed in groups, working their way northward to spend the summer in cooler waters and back south as far as Los Angeles, in the Pacific, and the Carolinas or even Florida, in the Atlantic, for the winter. These small, stocky animals breed when they are 3-5 years old. Females nurse their calves for about 9 months. The stomachs of 4-5 month old juveniles killed in gillnets contained both milk and solid food, which indicates that they were beginning to feed themselves.

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A social species, the harbour porpoise travels in groups numbering between two to five individuals (2), but larger groups may form during migration (4). It feeds on a variety of fish, including herring, mackerel and anchovy (2), a variety of invertebrates are also taken (4). It is known that echolocation is used in the detection and capture of prey, but this is not yet fully understood. Sight and passive listening (for the sounds made by prey) are also important during hunting (7). Mating occurs in summer, and gestation (pregnancy) takes 11 months (4). The calf is suckled for up to eight months and sexual maturity is reached at about four years of age (4). The harbour porpoise has possibly the shortest life-span of any cetacean; they rarely live for more than 12 years (2).

The harbour porpoise is the most commonly seen porpoise (2), and is the most widely distributed of all cetaceans (whales and dolphins) in northern Europe (4). It is easily recognised as it has a low triangular dorsal fin and lacks a beak (2). It is small in comparison to other porpoises, has a plump body with a dark grey to bluish coloured back, a pale belly and a rounded head (5). At birth, young harbour porpoises are dull in colour and typically have 'birth lines', which look like folds in the skin, and persist for the first few hours after birth (5).

Size
Harbour porpoises species vary in size across a geographical range, with males generally being slightly smaller than females of the same age.Adult length averages 1.4 metres with a maximum of 1.8 metres. Adult weight averages about 41kg. Calves are about 75cm long at birth, with an average weight of 5kg (Watson, 1981).

Life expectancy
Maximum longevity is reported as 24 years in the United Kingdom (Lockyer, 1995b), but most do not live beyond 10 years (Jefferson et al, 2008).

Reproduction
The species matures very quickly, with females being able to reproduce at around 14 months old, and males at around 3 years (Watson, 1981).Reproduction is extremely seasonal in all populations of harbour porpoises, with ovulation and conception occurring in spring or summer (Read, 1999).Gestation is 10-11 months, calves are nursed for around 8-12 months and females may become pregnant again the following season (Watson, 1981; Jefferson et al, 2008).

Predation
White sharks and killer whales are the two major predators of harbour porpoises (Read, 1998).In some areas, harbour porpoises have been taken heavily by humans, with their meat being used for human and animal consumption, and their oil for lamps and lubricants (Nowak, 2003).

 Phocoena phocoena is a small cetacean with a blunt short beaked head. It exhibits counter-shading with the animal being generally dark grey on the back and white on the belly. A short, wide-based, triangular dorsal fin, with small bumps on the leading edge is situated midway along the back. The flippers are dark, small and rounded at the tips. The straight mouth line is dark and slopes upwards towards the eye.Phocoenids appear to live in smaller groups and have a simpler social structure than most delphinids. Most harbour porpoise are found in small groups consisting of less than 8 individuals but occasionally form large, loose groups of 50 to several hundred for feeding and migration. 

The harbour porpoise is listed on Appendix II of CITES and Appendix II of the Bern Convention and Annexes II and IV of the EC Habitats Directive. It is also on Appendix 2 of the Bonn Convention (Anon, 1999z). All species of cetaceans are given protection under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 and the Wildlife (Northern Ireland) Order 1985 (Anon, 1999z). All cetacean species are listed on Annex IV (Animal and Plant Species of Community Interest in Need of Strict Protection) of the EC Habitats Directive (Anon, 1999x). All whales are listed on Annex A of EU Council Regulation 338/97 and therefore treated by the EU as if they are on CITES Appendix I thus prohibiting their commercial trade (Anon, 1999x). Whaling is illegal in UK waters (Fisheries Act 1981), but neighbouring countries maintain the right to hunt (Anon, 1999x). An 'Agreement on the Conservation of Small Cetaceans in the Baltic and North Seas' (ASCOBANS), formulated in 1992, has now been signed by seven European countries, including the UK. Under the Agreement, provision is made for protection of specific areas, monitoring, research, information exchange, pollution control and heightening public awareness. Although aimed primarily at dolphins and porpoises, ASCOBANS includes all toothed whales except the sperm whale (Anon, 1999x).

Arctic Ocean, Azores Exclusive Economic Zone, Baltic sea, Belgian Exclusive Economic Zone, Black Sea, Blankenberge, Bredene, Bretagne, De Haan, De Panne, Den Helder, Elbe, European waters (ERMS scope), Goote Bank, Greek Exclusive Economic Zone, Gulf of Maine, Gulf of St. Lawrence, Irish Exclusive economic Zone, Kara Sea, Knokke, Koksijde, Mediterranean Sea, Middelkerke, Nieuwpoort, North Atlantic, North Pacific, North Sea, North West Atlantic, Oostende, Polish Exclusive Economic Zone, Schelde estuary, Senegalese Exclusive Economic Zone, Southern Bight, St. Lawrence Estuary, Swedish Exclusive Economic Zone, United Kingdom Exclusive Economic Zone, Wenduine, Westende, Wimereux

In the Baltic Sea area the historic range apparently included all of the Kattegat/Skagerrak area, the Gulfs of Riga, Finland, and Bothnia, and much of the Baltic Sea proper. However, in the latter half of the 1900s, the range was reduced considerably, and currently porpoises are considered to be virtually absent in the north-eastern Baltic (Koschinski 2002).

Harbour porpoises are found in cold temperate to sub-polar waters of the Northern Hemisphere (Gaskin 1992, Read 1999). They are usually found in continental shelf waters, although they occasionally travel over deeper offshore waters. In the North Pacific, they range from central California and northern Honshu to the southern Beaufort and Chukchi Seas (including the Bering and Okhotsk Seas, and Sea of Japan). In the North Atlantic, they are found from the southeastern United States to southern Baffin Island (they apparently do not enter Hudson Bay) in the west, and from Senegal to Novaya Zemlya in the east. They also occur around southeast and western Greenland, Iceland, and the Faroe Islands, and this is the only cetacean species that currently regularly occupies the Baltic Sea. The species occurs in the Black Sea, Marmara Sea, and Sea of Azov, but with the exception of the adjacent northern Aegean Sea, they do not regularly occur in the Mediterranean Sea.

Found in coastal regions of the North Atlantic, Arctic, and North Pacific Oceans; also the Mediterranean and Black Sea regions. They are found in bays, estuaries, river mouths, and sometimes ascend further up rivers.

Biogeographic Regions: nearctic (Native ); palearctic (Native ); arctic ocean (Native ); atlantic ocean (Native ); pacific ocean (Native ); mediterranean sea (Native )

Other Geographic Terms: holarctic

occurs (regularly, as a native taxon) in multiple nations

Canada

Origin: Native

Regularity: Regularly occurring

Currently: Present

Confidence: Confident

Type of Residency: Year-round

United States

Origin: Native

Regularity: Regularly occurring

Currently: Present

Confidence: Confident

Type of Residency: Year-round

Global Range: (>2,500,000 square km (greater than 1,000,000 square miles)) Temperate and ice-free boreal zone of northern hemisphere; summer visitor to the productive fringes of the Arctic Ocean (Gaskin 1992; Suydam and George, 1992, Can. Field-Nat. 106:489-492); isolated population in the Black Sea; south to Senegal in the eastern Atlantic. Has disappeared from parts of the Baltic Sea, the southern North Sea, and portions of the central California coast (see Read et al. 1993). See also IUCN (1991) for distribution information.

Northern Hemisphere in the North Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.

Found in sub-Arctic and cool temperate waters of the North Atlantic and North Pacific (5), the harbour porpoise is typically a species of coastal areas, although it also occurs over most of the European continental shelf (4). In the UK, seasonal concentrations occur between July and October off western and south-western Ireland, west Wales, the west of Scotland, around Shetland and Orkney as well as around north-east Scotland (4). This species used to occur in the south coast of England and southern parts of the North Sea, but it is now rare in these waters (4).

Phocoena phocoena, also known as the "Common" or "Harbor" Porpoise, is a small cetacean that is 1.5 to 2 meters long and weighs from 45 - 65 kilograms. The female of the species is usually slightly larger than the male. The color of the animal varies from individual to individual, but the most common coloration pattern is a dark dorsal surface that shifts to a lighter colored hue ventrally. Although the dark color is usually black or deep gray, albinos have been reported in which the dark segments are completely or partially white. The flippers, dorsal fin, and tail are all dark in color, and there is a black stripe that runs from the edge of the mouth or eye to the flipper on either side. There is no noticeable forehead or beak on this species, and the snout is short, giving the head a somewhat cone-like shape. P. phocoena has two pectoral flippers, a single dorsal fin, and a tail with two partially separated flukes. All of these appendages are short and not very sharp, with the dorsal fin being triangular shaped and usually around 15 - 20 cm tall. There is a noticeable keel located near the all dark tail flukes, with the tail itself spanning anywhere from 30-65 cm. Inside the slightly upturned mouth there are rows of 16-28 spade-shaped teeth. There is no variance in the shape or type of teeth in P. phocoena.

Range mass: 45 to 60 kg.

Range length: 1.5 to 2 m.

Sexual Dimorphism: female larger

Average basal metabolic rate: 107.675 W.

Length: Maximum female 1.89 m, male maximum 1.78 m.

The head is blunt. Depending on the light, the back may appear black, grey or brown). The flanks are grey and the underside is white. The pectoral fins are black. A dark line runs from the corner of the mouth to the flipper. The more or less triangular small dorsal fin is positioned in the centre of the back. The upper back and dorsal fin are the only features one normally gets to see of a swimming harbour porpoise. The chief characteristics are its small size, the blunt head and the small triangular dorsal fin.

Distinguishing characteristics: Dives without lifting tail. Blow not readily visible. Triangular dorsal fin. Spoon-shaped teeth. Blunt snout. Colour is grey above with white belly.

Habitat and Ecology

Systems

• Marine

Habitat and Ecology

Systems

• Marine

Found in both salt and fresh water areas, Phocoena phocoena require a shallow coastal body of water. In the Western Atlantic, they also move far out to sea near the end of summer and reappear in spring. Other regional populations move south or farther away from shore to avoid ice buildups.

Habitat Regions: temperate ; polar ; saltwater or marine ; freshwater

Aquatic Biomes: pelagic ; rivers and streams; coastal ; brackish water

Other Habitat Features: estuarine

cool temperate and subpolar, mostly in shallow water

Habitat Type: Marine

Comments: Coastal waters and adjacent offshore shallows; also inhabits inshore areas such as bays, channels, and rivers. Mothers and young tend to move into sheltered coves and similar sites soon after parturition.

 It can be found in cool temperate and subpolar waters. Usually found in near shore waters, but occasionally over deeper waters.

Cold temperate and subarctic marine waters. Coastal areas; including bays, estuaries, offshore shallows, tidal rivers and channels.

Favours shallow, cold coastal waters (4). Most sightings have been made within ten kilometres of the land. It frequents relatively shallow bays, estuaries, and tidal channels under about 200 kilometres in depth, and will swim a considerable distance up river (6).

Non-Migrant: Yes. At least some populations of this species do not make significant seasonal migrations. Juvenile dispersal is not considered a migration.

Locally Migrant: Yes. At least some populations of this species make local extended movements (generally less than 200 km) at particular times of the year (e.g., to breeding or wintering grounds, to hibernation sites).

Locally Migrant: No. No populations of this species make annual migrations of over 200 km.

May make seasonal inshore (summer) - offshore (winter) or north (summer) - south (winter) migrations, though movements often are related to movements of prey species (IUCN 1991).

Diet consists mainly of smooth, non-spiny fish, and cephalopods. Herring, pollack, hake, sardines, and cod are commonly eaten. Other sea creatures such as squid and shrimp are also consumed. P. phocoena produces click-like sounds similar to those used by other cetaceans as a means of echolocation in order to locate food.(Johnston(1999), Nowak(1999))

Animal Foods: fish; mollusks; aquatic crustaceans

Primary Diet: carnivore (Piscivore )

Comments: Eats various fishes, squid, and crustaceans. In summer in the Bay of Fundy, adults fed mainly on clupeid and gadid fishes while euphausiids were the most common prey of calves (Can. J. Zool. 70:1629).

Benthic fish, some pelagic fish species, and some benthic invertebrates.

10,000 to >1,000,000 individuals

Comments: Total population for the Gulf of Maine/Bay of Fundy was estimated at 37,500 in 1991, 67,500 in 1992, and 74,000 in 1995 (NMFS 1999). In the 1980s, population from California to Washington was estimated at about 50,000 (Barlow 1987, cited by IUCN 1991). See IUCN (1991) for population estimates for other parts of the range.

Social; travels in groups of 2-10, sometimes up to 50 individuals; may segregate by sex and/or age.

Distribution
Harbour porpoises are found in cool temperate to sub-polar waters of the northern hemisphere, usually near shore and in shallow water (Jefferson et al, 2008).In the North Pacific, they range from southern California and northern Honshu, Japan, to the southern Beaufort and Chukchi seas (Jefferson et al, 1993).In the North Atlantic, they are found from the southeastern United States to southern Baffin Island in the west, and Senegal, West Africa to Novaya Zemlya in the east (Jefferson et al, 1993).Harbour porpoises do not regularly occur throughout most of the Mediterranean except in the northern Aegean Sea, and represent the only cetacean species regularly found in the Baltic Sea (Jefferson et al, 2008). It is the smallest and most numerous small cetacean found in north-western European continental shelf waters (Reid et al, 2003). It is limited to the continental shelf by its demersal foraging behaviour and diving capacity (Gaskin et al, 1993) and by the presence of concentrated aggregations of prey.Porpoises are extremely mobile, can cover large distances in relatively short periods of time and in some areas, may utilize home ranges that encompass tens of thousands of square kilometres (Read and Westergate, 1997).

Population Biology
In the North Atlantic Ocean (including the Black and Azov seas), fourteen populations are recognized. In the North Pacific, at least ten different stocks occur (Jefferson et al, 2008).

Abundance
Current estimates suggest that the global abundance of the harbour porpoise is around 700,000 animals, with evidence of declining populations in the Baltic and Black Seas (IUCN, 2009).

Harbour porpoises usually occur in small groups of less than 8-10 individuals, although larger groups of up to several hundred have been recorded (Jefferson et al, 1993; Hoek, 1992). Larger group aggregation may be associated with migration or feeding behaviour (Jefferson et al, 1993). They are rarely found in close association with other cetacean species (Read, A.J., 1999).Porpoises are difficult to approach and follow, generally avoiding boats and other human activity. Though fast swimmers, they are not acrobatic, rarely breaching or leaping. They make brief dives, usually lasting for less than five minutes. They will often lie motionless at the surface on calm days, either resting or scanning the water below (Watson and Gaskin, 1983). Dive depths in excess of 200 metres have been recorded (Westgate et al, 1995).

Feeding
Harbour porpoises feed on a wide variety of fish and cephalopods. Many prey species are benthic or demersal (Jefferson et al, 2008). Prey species vary by location, with small, schooling clupeoid and gadid fishes forming a major part of their diet (Read, A.J., 1999). Harbour porpoises forage independently and seldom use co-operative strategies for concentrating or obtaining prey (Würsig, 1986).

Comments: Active day/night.

Average lifespan
Status: wild: 13.0 years.

Maximum longevity: 20.4 years (captivity) Observations: These animals rarely live more than 13 years in the wild (Ronald Nowak 1999). One captive specimen was still alive at 20.4 years of age (Richard Weigl 2005).

It is not clearly known how extensive the mating season is in P. phocoena, but it seems that mating mainly occurs from June to September with births occurring from May to August. It is commonly noted that gestation lasts 11 months with nursing following for another 7 or 8 months. A female will give birth to one calf per year, with the birth size of the calf being 6-8kg and 70-100cm long. Sexual maturity is reached by the fifth year, if not before, and the life span of P. phocoena is believed to be anywhere from 6 to 20 years. (Johnston(1999), Nowak(1999))

Breeding interval: A female will give birth to one calf per year

Breeding season: Mating mainly occurs from June to September

Average number of offspring: 1.

Average gestation period: 11 months.

Range weaning age: 7 to 8 months.

Range age at sexual or reproductive maturity (female): 5 (high) years.

Range age at sexual or reproductive maturity (male): 5 (high) years.

Key Reproductive Features: iteroparous ; seasonal breeding ; gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate); viviparous

Average birth mass: 7000 g.

Average gestation period: 320 days.

Average number of offspring: 1.

Breeds in summer. Following a gestation of 10-11 months, a single calf is born between May and early August. Females breed each year. Young weaned in 8 months. In Bay of Fundy, sexually mature in 3-4 years (5-6 years in north Sea). Few live beyond 7-8 years.

Mating season takes place from June to August, and gestation lasts for 10-11 months. Calves average 75 cm in length at birth. Calves nurse for about 8 months.

Barcode of Life Data Systems (BOLDS) Stats
Public Records: 6
Specimens with Barcodes: 36
Species With Barcodes: 1

The following is a representative barcode sequence, the centroid of all available sequences for this species.

There are 6 barcode sequences available from BOLD and GenBank.  Below is a sequence of the barcode region Cytochrome oxidase subunit 1 (COI or COX1) from a member of the species.  See the BOLD taxonomy browser for more complete information about this specimen and other sequences.

Download FASTA File

Canada

Rounded National Status Rank: N4 - Apparently Secure

United States

Rounded National Status Rank: N4 - Apparently Secure

Year Assessed

Assessor/s

Reviewer/s

Contributor/s

Justification

History

• 1996
  Vulnerable

Year Assessed

Assessor/s

Reviewer/s

Justification

History

• 1996
  Vulnerable
• 1994
  Insufficiently Known
  (Groombridge 1994)
• 1990
  Insufficiently Known
  (IUCN 1990)
• 1988
  Insufficiently Known
  (IUCN Conservation Monitoring Centre 1988)

Although fishing of P. phocoena is now illegal in most areas, the species is still in danger. Deliberate and accidental deaths still occur because modern fishing nets are almost undetectable to porpoises. Since these nets are commonly used in nearshore areas, in the natural range of P. phocoena, they probably kill large numbers of porpoises. Various measures are being taken in the United States and other nations in an attempt to limit deaths of this kind. In addition to deaths related to fishing, porpoises also suffer from chemical and noise pollution. (Dollinger(1988), Johnston(1999), McWilliam(1999), Nowak(1999))

CITES: appendix ii

IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: critically endangered

Rounded Global Status Rank: G4 - Apparently Secure

Conservation Status
The IUCN Red List (2009) has the harbour porpoise listed as LC (least concern).The species is currently listed as CITES Appendix II.

Threats
Hunting and exploitation by humans, exposure to environmental contaminants and incidental capture in fishing nets are the main threats to the harbour porpoise (Jefferson et al, 2008).The European Union (EU) has adopted regulations to reduce the incidental catch of small cetaceans in nets in EU waters (IUCN, 2009). Regulations include restricting Baltic Sea drift net fisheries, mandatory use of acoustic deterrent devices in some EU gillnet fisheries in the North and Baltic Seas, and the use of onboard observers on vessels of over 15m in length (IUCN, 2009).The Natural History Museum, London, is part of a government-funded collaborative UK research group gathering data on strandings. These data help inform conservation policy makers at both UK and EU level (NHM strandings website, UKCSIP website). They are the most frequently stranded of all cetacean species in UK waters.

There is some serious concern over this species and incidental catch and entanglement in gill nets and other fishing gear. The Harbor Porpoise is hunted commercially by 1 country still, and this fishery is relatively small. This species is listed in CITES Appendix II.

Vulnerable.

Classified as Least Concern (LC) under the IUCN Red List (1). Listed on Annexes II and IV of the EC Habitats Directive, Appendix II of the Bern Convention, and North, Baltic and Black Sea and western North Atlantic populations are listed under Appendix II of the Bonn Convention (the Convention on Migratory Species). All cetaceans (whales and dolphins) are listed on Annex A of EU Council Regulation 338/97; they are therefore treated by the EU as if they are included in CITES Appendix I, so that commercial trade is prohibited, the species is also listed on Appendix II of CITES. Covered by the terms of the Agreement on the Conservation of Small Cetaceans of the Baltic and North Seas (ASCOBANS). In the UK all cetaceans are fully protected under Schedule 5 the Wildlife and Countryside Act, 1981 and the Wildlife (Northern Ireland) Order, 1985 (3).

Population

Population Trend

Population

Population Trend

Major Threats

Major Threats

Comments: Mortality due to entanglement and entrapment in commercial fishing gear may contribute to depletion of local populations in western Greenland, Gulf of St. Lawrence, Newfoundland, Bay of Fundy, and Gulf of Maine (Read and Gaskin 1988, Read et al. 1993, Caswell et al. 1998, NMFS 1999), as well as in other parts of the world (IUCN 1991). The average annual mortality estimate for 1992-1997 for U.S. Atlantic fisheries was 1,749 individuals (NMFS 1999). Bycatch in the Bay of Fundy in Canada was estimated at approximately 100-425 porpoises per year in the early 1990s (Trippel et al. 1996). Bycatch reduction efforts are in operation, and NMFS (1999) regarded these as sufficient to reduce the bycatch to sustainable levels. Habitat modification and environmental contaminants do not appear to be a significant threat in the Gulf of Maine/Bay of Fundy (NMFS 1999).

Since the 1940s, there is evidence of a decline in the numbers of this species in UK waters (3). The main threats are thought to include entanglement in fishing nets, chemical and noise pollution, hunting, boat traffic, and lack of food (5).

Conservation Actions

Conservation Actions

Management Requirements: Harbor porpoises in the Gulf of Maine and Bay of Fundy appear to comprise a relatively discrete population unit that can be managed as a separate stock (NMFS 1999).

Needs: Protection from excessive mortality in commercial fisheries is an important consideration (IUCN 1991, NMFS 1999); regulate and monitor fisheries to maintain bycatch at sustainable levels. January 1994). A variety of local stocks should be protected, since there seems to be relatively little gene flow among populations (Gao and Gaskin 1996).

A UK Biodiversity Action Plan priority species, the harbour porpoise is protected in UK waters by the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 and the Wildlife (Northern Ireland) Orders, 1985; it is illegal to intentionally kill, injure, or harass any cetacean (whale or dolphin) species in UK waters (3). The Agreement on the Conservation of Small Cetaceans in the Baltic and North Seas (ASCOBANS) has been signed by seven European countries, including the UK. Provision is made under this agreement to set up protected areas, promote research and monitoring, pollution control and increase public awareness (7). Increased awareness of this species may help to secure its future (2).

Taken heavily in various areas, the meat is used for human and animal consumption, and its oil is used in lamps and as a lubricant.

Comments: See IUCN (1991) for information on historical and present harvest; Greenland is the only country presently reporting large direct catches; use is mainly for human consumption; there is no longer a major commerical harvest, though resumption of commercial harvest may occur in Turkey (IUCN 1991).

Subpopulation Baltic Sea harbour porpoise : Critically Endangered (CR)

Least Concern (LC)