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Marine biologist Nancy Black pleads not guilty to illegally feeding killer whales

Government alleges she offered gray whale blubber to orcas in Monterey Bay and lied to prosecutors about a humpback whale encounter.

By John PlattMon, Feb 13 2012 at 12:18 PM EST
 4

Orca killer whale Monterey Photo: Chiara Abbate/Flickr
Monterey Bay marine biologist Nancy Black faces up to 25 years in prison and half a million dollars in fines under charges that she violated the Marine Mammal Protection Act.
 
The charges stem from a 2004 photo allegedly showing Black — co-owner of Monterey Bay Whale Watch and an occasional television host — offering gray whale blubber to orcas (also known as killer whales) as she tried to get video of the whales feeding.
 
Black has pled "not guilty" to the charges, saying she was not feeding the killer whales. She says the orcas in 2004 had already killed the gray whale and she was merely trying to film them feeding.
 
As the Monterey County Herald reported, Black "poked a line through the thin, torn edge of a piece of blubber to keep it floating nearby. With a video camera on the end of a pole, she captured the underwater feeding when an orca snatched the food and shared it with others in the pod." She says it was the first time that any scientist had captured footage of killer whales feeding underwater, and that she never profited from the footage.
 
The U.S. Justice Department charges that by using a line and pole, Black potentially changed the orcas' natural behavior, a violation of the Marine Mammals Protection Act.
 
Ironically, orcas are protected under the MMPA in no small part due to the efforts of Black. While working as an investigator for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in 2000, she discovered that orcas in the Pacific Northwest were probably migrating to Monterey Bay because the northern Chinook salmon they feed on were disappearing.
 
More serious than the orca-feeding charges are allegations that Black "harassed" a humpback whale in 2005 by taking her boat too close to the animal. Federal investigators asked for and received Black's footage from that day, but allege it was edited prior to their receiving it. Black told the Herald that the only changes were the removal of "dead water shots" that showed no whales. She says this is a common practice for her videos, which she sells to her whale-watching customers after their trips.
 
Black's attorney Lawrence Biegel described the humpback encounter to the Daily Mail in January: "She was out whale-watching with a full complement of passengers and spotted a humpback whale. It was a friendly whale, which loves to come up close to a boat and breach and frolic. There's video of this, which she turned over, of this whale doing exactly that, literally going from one side of the boat to another."
 
A Causes.com site set up by friend Jim Scarff seeks donations for Black's legal defense, which she told him are costing her "life's savings."
 
Monterey Bay is one of 13 national marine sanctuaries in the United States.
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Related Topics: Marine Life, Oceans, Whaling

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anonymous
Dr. Betty Jarman 03/02/2012 20:59 PM

We have been out with Nancy many times over the years and have never witnessed any such infractions. We have enjoyed waiting quietly as a "friendly" approached the boat (usually an adolescent) to play by diving and going back and forth under the boat. Anyone who has been to Maui knows how common this behavior is. I also know that competition in Monterey can be very cutthroat so be sure to consider the sources of information.

anonymous
Billy 02/16/2012 04:35 AM

Up to 25 years in prison and half a million dollar fine for potentially feeding an animal? What in the world is going on nowadays? It's not like she's out there hunting and killing all the killer whales out there. Millions of people have done worse and have gotten away without being punished at all or a much more lenient sentence. Nancy Black does not deserve this and especially should not be made to spend her entire life savings on an attorney to defend herself against such an outrageous.... More

anonymous
Michelle 02/15/2012 22:25 PM

I agree 100% with Captain Heidi Tiura.. I have seen on multiple occassions over the years, Nancy Black not following rules for researchers and more importantly for whale watch boats. I have seen her harass, change animals behaviors, cut off whales making them change direction, approach whales well within 20 feet. She has no respect for our marine life and its about time someone is doing something about it. She deserves this punishment 100%. Further more, I have seen Monterey Bay Whale Watch.... More

anonymous
Captain Heidi Tiura 02/14/2012 10:27 AM

In the decade+ I was a competitor of Nancy's on the bay, I saw a lot of bad behavior by her and her operators.
Consider the strength of an orca's jaws. I have seen them tear a sea lion in half with one rip between two animals. What are the chances the orca Nancy was chumming for might have resulted in breaking the line and blubber free to then be consumed? Anyone know what happens when line is ingested and reaches the bowels?
Nancy has shown a pattern of abuse on the bay and is getting what she.... More

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