Spotlight: People of the Whales (Part 1)

Over the next two posts, I would like to talk a bit about the Inupiat people of Barrow in Arctic Alaska and their close connection to one particular whale species- the bowhead whale (Balaena mysticetus). The bowhead whale has sustained the Inupiat for centuries, but Inupiaq life has been jeopardised by climate change, commercial hunting, and toxics which accumulate in the arctic.

A bowhead skull rests on the ice outside Barrow

The Inupiats call the bowhead whale 'agviq'. The animal is central to Inupiaq culture, permeating songs, stories, and ceremonies throughout the year. In fact, the Inupiaq creation story recounts how the very land they live upon was formed after the death of a bowhead whale, and the community often refer to themselves as  the 'People of the Whales'. Not only does the whale provide food during its migration past Barrow, but the celebrations associated with the biannual whale harvests contribute to social wellbeing in the harsh Arctic environment.

'No whale harvest, no music': Dr Sakakibara talks about her research on how the relationship between human and whale is changing

Bowheads can grow to about 60 ft., live to over 100 years old, and use their massive skulls (which account for up to 40% of their total body length) to break through thick layers of ice. In the spring, the bowhead migrates from the northern Bering Sea, where it overwinters, to its summering grounds in the Canadian Arctic. In Autumn, it moves westward past Barrow again. The Inupiat rely on sea ice to hunt during both these seasons, but mean temperature in the Arctic are rising faster than the global average and the ice is thinning. During her research on the Inupiat and climate change, Dr Sakakibara found that many Inupiat, and other indigenous neighbours in the region, agree that anthropogenic climate change is the main reason for changes in the physical and biological systems across the Arctic. Climate change severely threatens hunting practices, as indigenous whalers are forced to venture dangerously further into the ocean to pursue whales as they move further away from the warming coasts into colder waters.

Climate change is not the only threat to the Inupiat. Both natural processes and anthropogenic activities can release contaminants into the water, which may filter into the food chain. O'Hara et al. provide a review of contaminants found in bowhead whale tissues. The good news is that for now, bowhead whales mostly have low concentrations of contaminants such as metals, radionuclides, and organochlorines. However, oil extraction continues to take place along the bowhead's migration route, raising concerns over spills and future exposure of the whale to petroleum hydrocarbons. With up to 75% of Inupiat households in Barrow consuming whale meat, contaminants found in the bowhead whale could easily be transferred to the Native human population. Alternatively, if the Inupiat are deterred from eating traditional foods, such as whale and seal meat, it has been suggested that there may be a general decline in health due to dietary change.

Celebrating with a selfie 

The Inupiat and their proto-Inuit ancestors have sustainably hunted the whales for at least 2500 years, but in 1848, this all changed when Captain Thomas Roys discovered the bowhead population in the Arctic. An estimated 18,650 bowheads were killed during an era of commercial whaling in the Bering Sea from 1848 to 1910. In my next post, I will explore the effects that commercial whaling, and the subsequent classification of the bowhead as an endangered species, had on the Inupiat.