19491
Open
SC/68D/E/12
State of the Cetacean Environment Report (SOCER) 2022
Editors: M. Stachowitsch, N.A. Rose and E.C.M. Parsons
IWC
Several resolutions of the International Whaling Commission, including Resolutions 1997-7 (IWC, 1998) and 1998-5 (IWC, 1999), directed the Scientific Committee to provide regular updates on environmental matters that affect cetaceans. Resolution 2000-7 (IWC, 2001) welcomed the concept of the State of the Cetacean Environment Report (SOCER) and requested the annual submission of this report to the Commission. The first full SOCER (Stachowitsch et al., 2003) was presented in 2003 and subsequent editions initiated and continued a cycle of focusing on the following regions: Atlantic Ocean, Pacific Ocean, Arctic and Antarctic Oceans, Indian Ocean, and Mediterranean and Black Seas. Each SOCER also includes a Global section addressing the newest information that applies generally to the cetacean environment. The 2022 SOCER features the Arctic and Antarctic Oceans, summarising key papers and articles published from ca. 2020 through 2022 to date. This year?s regional SOCER represents the third year of the current cycle, which will be combined in a second 5-year compendium (2020: Atlantic Ocean through 2024: Mediterranean and Black Seas; see first 5-year compendium at https://iwc.int/socer-report) to present to the Commissioners at IWC/70.