The National Marine Mammal Laboratory (NMML) conducts research on marine mammals important to the mission of the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) and the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), with particular attention to issues related to marine mammals off the coasts of Alaska, Washington, Oregon, and California. Research projects focus on ecology and behavior, population dynamics, life history, and status and trends.  Information is provided to various domestic and international organizations to assist in developing rational and appropriate management regimes for marine resources under NOAA's jurisdiction. These organizations include the NMFS Alaska and Northwest Regional Offices, the NMFS Office of Protected Resources, the North Pacific Fisheries Management Council, the International Whaling Commission, and the Arctic Council. 

Research conducted by NMML utilizes a variety of methods and tools to obtain needed information. Determination of status and trends of marine mammal populations requires information on abundance, stock structure, mortality and net productivity. To obtain these data, censuses are carried out from ships, aircraft and on land. Radio and satellite-linked telemetry is utilized to determine movements and migrations, critical feeding areas and depths, and other behavioral data. Sophisticated analyses and modeling are carried out to determine necessary population parameters. Research programs are carried out cooperatively with many other federal, state and private sector collaborators.

• 2007 Steller Sea Lion Survey Results
  
• Northern Fur Seal Research
  
• Satellite Tagging Humpbacks in the South Pacific: Windows on the Whales' World
  
• Bogoslof Island Northern Fur Seal Research
  
• Steller Sea Lion Pup Survey
  
• Resight Surveys for Branded Steller Sea Lions
  
• Beluga Whales in Northern Cook Inlet, Alaska, August 2007
  
• Harbor Seal Census in Southeast Alaska
  
• Tests of New Sampling Technique to Track Harbor Seal Populations in Alaska Fjords
  
• The Dynamics of Hookworm Disease in Northern Fur Seals
  
• Steller Sea Lion Research
  
• Northern Fur Seal Update
  
• Cook Inlet Beluga Survey, June 2007
  
• Abundance and Distribution Surveys for Ice Seals Aboard the USCG Healy and the Oscar Dyson, 10 April - 18 June 2007
  
• Telemetry of Ice Seals Captured During the USCG Healy and Oscar Dyson Research Cruises in the Eastern Bering Sea
  
• Marine Science in Alaska Symposium
  
• Northern Fur Seal Research Update
  
• Gray Whale Census in 2006/07
  
• Beluga Conference in Valencia, Spain
  
• Winter Whale Surveys in Kodiak, Alaska
  
• Polar Ecosystems Program Prepares for Ice Seal Research Cruises
  
• Workshops to Identify Critical Information Gaps About Marine Mammals in Areas of Interest to the Oil/Gas Industry
  
• Evaluation of Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) for Cetacean Monitoring
  
• Outreach and Education (orca whale curriculum for grade schools)
  
• Winter Behavior Studies of Young Northern Fur Seals
  
• Habitat Use and Seasonal Movements of Bearded Seals in Kotzebue Sound
  
• Workshops and Meetings
  
• Decline of Beluga Whales in Cook Inlet
  
• Satellite Telemetry Describes First Migratory Movement of South Pacific Humpback Whales to Their Feeding Grounds
  
• Field Work (Granite Canyon gray whale census)
  
• San Miguel Island Field Work
  
• Disappearing Right Whales and the Secrets of Soviet Whaling
  
• August 2006 Survey of Belugas in Cook Inlet
  
• Recent Work on Steller Sea Lions and Northern Fur Seals
  
• Researchers Census Harbor Seals in the Gulf of Alaska
  
• Scientific Successes Amidst Court Ruling
  
• Washington Gray Whale Surveys
  
• International Whaling Commission Comprehensive Assessment of Southern Hemisphere Humpback Whales
  
• Ice Seal Operations
  
• Research Findings
  
• Kachemak Bay Science Conference
  
• Bowhead Whale Workshop II
  
• Humpback Whale Studies (SPLASH Project) in Baja California
  
• Final Report Issued on Harbor Seal Disturbance in Disenchantment Bay
  
• Additional National Marine Mammal Laboratory quaterly reports

• FRITZ, L., M. LYNN, E. KUNISCH, and K. SWEENEY. 2008. Aerial, ship, and land-based surveys of Steller sea lions (Eumetopias jubatus) in Alaska, June and July 2005-2007. U. S. Dep. Commer., NOAA Tech. Memo., NMFS-AFSC-183, 70 p. (.pdf, 4.73 MB).  Online.
  
• ANGLISS, R. P., and R. B. OUTLAW. 2008. Alaska marine mammal stock assessments, 2007. U. S. Dep. Commer., NOAA Tech. Memo., NMFS-AFSC-180, 252 p. (.pdf, 11 MB)  Online.
  
• HOBBS, R. C., K. E. W. SHELDEN, D. J. RUGH, and S. A. NORMAN. 2008. 2008 status review and extinction risk assessment of Cook Inlet belugas (Delphinapterus leucas). AFSC Processed Rep. 2008-02, 116 p. Alaska Fish. Sci. Cent., NOAA, Natl. Mar. Fish. Serv., 7600 Sand Point Way NE, Seattle WA 98115. (.pdf, 3.62MB)  Online.
  
• MACKEY, B. L., J. W. DURBAN, S. J. MIDDLEMAS, and P. M. THOMPSON. 2008. A Bayesian estimate of harbour seal survival using sparse photo-identification data. J. Zool. 274:8-27. 
  
• HOLMES, E. E., L. W. FRITZ, A. E. YORK, and K. SWEENEY. 2007. Age structured modeling reveals long-term declines in the natality of western Steller sea lions. Ecol. Appl. 17(8):2214-2232. 
  
• WARD, E. J., R. HILBORN, R. G. TOWELL, and L. GERBER. 2007. A state-space mixture approach for estimating catastrophic events in time series data. Can. J. Fish. Aquat. Sci. 64:899-910. 
  
• Ver HOEF, J. M., and J. K. JANSEN. 2007. Space-time zero-inflated count models of harbor seals. Environmetrics 18:697-712. 
  
• Ver HOEF, J. M., and P. L. BOVENG. 2007. Quasi-Poisson vs. negative binomial regression: How should we model overdispersed count data? Ecology 88:2766-2772. 
  
Additional National Marine Mammal Laboratory Publications

• Spring Diet of Ribbon and Spotted Seals in the Bering Sea
  By:  HEATHER L. ZIEL, MICHAEL F. CAMERON, PETER L. BOVENG
  Conference:  Alaska Marine Science Symposium, Anchorage, AK, Jan 2008
  (2008 poster, .pdf, 1.8MB)   Online.
  
• Densities of Seals in the Pack Ice of the Bering Sea
  By:  ERIN E. MORELAND, MICHAEL F. CAMERON, PETER L. BOVENG
  Conference:  Alaska Marine Science Symposium, Anchorage, AK, Jan 2008
  (2008 poster, .pdf, 309KB)   Online.
  
• Bowhead Whale Feeding Behavior as Evidenced in Aerial Photography
  By:  JULIE A. MOCKLIN, DAVID J. RUGH, SUE E. MOORE, KENNETH J. RAEDEKE, ROBYN P. ANGLISS, WILLIAM R. KOSKI
  Conference:  Alaska Marine Science Symposium, Anchorage, AK, Jan 2008
  (2008 poster, .pdf, 559KB)   Online.
  
• Multi-Year Aerial Surveys Using Photogrammetry to Estimate the Abundance of Harbor Seals in Glacial Ice Habitats
  By:  LUCIANA O. SANTOS, MICHAEL F. CAMERON, JOHN L. BENGTSON, PETER L. BOVENG
  Conference:  Alaska Marine Science Symposium, Anchorage, AK, Jan 2008
  (2008 poster, .pdf, 1.84MB)   Online.
  
• One Dot at a Time: Counting Alaska’s Harbor Seals
  By:  KYMBERLY M. YANO, JOSH M. LONDON, RAY B. OUTLAW
  Conference:  Alaska Marine Science Symposium, Anchorage, AK, Jan 2008
  (2008 poster, .pdf, 3.66MB)   Online.
  
• Estimating Capture and Handling Mortality Risk to Endangered Juvenile Steller Sea Lions (Eumetopias jubatus)
  By:  BRIAN FADELY, JEREMY STERLING, LOWELL FRITZ, MICHELLE LANDER, MICHAEL REHBERG, DEVIN JOHNSON, LORRIE REA, TOM GELATT
  Conference:  Alaska Marine Science Symposium, Anchorage, AK, Jan 2008
  (2008 poster, .pdf, 990KB)   Online.
  
• Cetacean Habitats and Behavior Offshore Northwestern Alaska: Comparisons Across Two Decades
  By:  SUE E. MOORE, J. C. "CRAIG" GEORGE, CARIN J. ASHJIAN
  Conference:  Alaska Marine Science Symposium, Anchorage, AK, Jan 2008
  (2008 poster, .pdf, 5.38MB)   Online.
  
• Effects of Research Disturbance on Behavior and Attendance of Steller Sea Lions (Eumetopias jubatus) at a Rookery in Alaska
  By:  LOWELL W. FRITZ, ERIN KUNISCH, KATHRYN CHUMBLEY, and DEVIN JOHNSON
  Conference:  Alaska Marine Science Symposium, Anchorage, AK, Jan 2008
  (2008 poster, .pdf, 4.5MB)   Online.
  
Additional National Marine Mammal Laboratory Posters