On November 21 of this year, a federal judge rejected the state of Alaska’s 2010 lawsuit that tried to strip Endangered Species Act protections for Cook Inlet beluga whales. The judge decided that the best available science supports the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s determination that Cook Inlet beluga whales are in danger of extinction. While hunting was initially considered the cause of the significant decline of belugas in the Inlet, the population has continued to decline after hunting ceased in 1999.

The Alaska Center for the Environment, the Center for Biological Diversity, Cook Inletkeeper, Defenders of Wildlife, the Natural Resources Defense Council, and the North Gulf Oceanic Society, represented by Trustees for Alaska, intervened in the lawsuit to defend the beluga listing against the state’s attack.

Once numbering 1,300, there are now only 300 to 400 Cook Inlet belugas. This diminished population faces many threats. Cook Inlet, which borders the city of Anchorage, is the most populated and fastest-growing watershed in Alaska, and it is subject to significant offshore oil and gas development in beluga habitat. Additionally, the proposed billion-dollar Knik Arm Bridge will directly affect the belugas, and port expansion and a proposed giant coal mine and coal-export dock would also destroy key beluga habitat.

While there are four other beluga whale populations in Alaska, Cook Inlet belugas are a genetically unique and geographically isolated population of whales that live in Alaska’s Cook Inlet. The whale’s population decline has been so severe that in 2006 the International Union for Conservation of Nature placed the Cook Inlet beluga on its “red list” of endangered species. The U.S. Marine Mammal Commission repeatedly requested that the Fisheries Service list the species under the Endangered Species Act. The whales were finally listed as an endangered species in 2008.

“The Cook Inlet belugas are an iconic species in Alaska and it is now absolutely essential that we protect them and their habitat if the population is to survive,” said Taryn Kiekow, staff attorney with NRDC.

The Natural Resources Defense Council explains that the Cook Inlet belugas live in one of the most heavily populated and fastest growing regions in Alaska.  As a result, the belugas’ health and habitat is threatened by human-caused pollution and development.

The beluga population has been separated from other belugas by the Alaska Peninsula for generations, and is now a genetically distinct population.

According to Bloomberg Businessweek, the state of Alaska argues that the beluga whales don’t need to be listed as endangered because the population in the Cook Inlet has stabilized and conservation efforts already in place are working.  Conservation groups are calling the government’s bluff however, by pointing out that in the late 1970’s the Cook Inlet beluga population was estimated at 1300, while it currently stands at only 321 whales.

The National Marine Fisheries Service conducted a review in 2008 that determined the belugas will go extinct if nothing changes.  Thus, they are in desperate need of the extra protection that endangered status provides.  However, Alaskan state officials maintain that the endangered listing will have a negative impact on the ongoing $750 million project to expand the Port of Anchorage where the products and goods for about 80% of Alaskans arrive, according to Bloomberg Businessweek.  Alaska is a state that is world-renowned for its beauty and biodiversity.  Let’s hope that the government will come to realize that the most valuable Alaskan assets are wilderness and wildlife.

(c) Alison Sheepway / WWF-Canada

Among NGO’s, the World Wildlife Fund’s Panda Bear is likely the best known logo/mascot.  Chosen in 1961 when WWF was started, the panda was selected in honor of Chi Chi, who lived at the London Zoo and was the only giant panda in the Western world at that time.  You can see how WWF’s logo changed through the years on their website.  The Panda’s most recent appearance was lounging in a chair on Ottawa’s Parliament Hill as part of the G8/G20 Global Day of Action, urging world leaders to act on climate change at the G8/G20 summit that is scheduled for Ontario later this month.

Other mascots also carry important messages, such as the blue drop that supports water conservation for the Whatcom Water Alliance.  The Alliance is a regional group in Washington state that promotes water conservation by coordinating public information and related conservation activities.  It rains a lot in the Pacific Northwest – so the mascot is named Wayne Drop!  He has an online photo gallery of his time at Discovery Days.

Just north of the border, the Vancouver Aquarium has a beluga whale mascot named Bee Bop.  The Aquarium is proud to be home to several beluga whales, and offer visitors a chance to get close to them.  A Beluga Encounter is an interactive experience that offers a view into beluga communication, while visiting the animals in the behind-the-scenes marine mammal habitat.

Mascots sometimes party together.  Gordo, the Royal Ontario Museum’s dino mascot, and the Toronto Zoo’s Explorer Bear joined Toronto Public Library’s Dewey Decimal mascot in a public appearance  together earlier this Spring.  They were announcing the expansion of the popular Sun Life Financial Museum + Arts Pass Program (MAP).

Overseas, mascots can be found in a wide range of animals including gazelles, parrots, cockatoos and other mostly attractive species.  The value of flagship species and adorable mascots would make this article too long, so suffice it to say that Time Magazine got it right on in their recent article about why Madagascar needs a mascot.

Do you have a favorite mascot that you’d like everyone to know about?