Wild Cetacean News

birdsandbats said:
Maybe this means that Gray Whales can return to the Atlantic?
Click to expand...

Would be nice. Unfortunately, out of 3 individuals spotted in last 2 decades, all vanished within short time. The last one was seen starved close to death near Malorca in May this year. The whales would first need to learn new Atlantic travel routes between breeding and feeding places before they can establish here.
 
Backlash against 'frightening' tests on whales

An international group of scientists has called on Norway to halt plans for acoustic experiments on minke whales.

They say the process of capturing the animals and subjecting them to noise will be "stressful and frightening".

The project, the largest of its kind ever attempted, is due to begin any day now.

The Norwegian authorities say the aim is to get a better understanding of the levels of noise pollution that whales can hear.

https://www-bbc-com.cdn.ampproject.org/c/s/www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-57432290.amp
 
Drone cameras record social lives of killer whales

"A new study led by the University of Exeter and the Center for Whale Research suggests killer whales may socialise with each other based on age and gender, with younger whales and females more sociable than other groups.

The research used drone cameras to study one pod of southern resident killer whales off the US coast of Washington State, in the Pacific Ocean.

Around 10 hours of footage was captured over 10 days."

Drone cameras record social lives of killer whales
 
Southern right whales urgently need your help

WDC is excited to be supporting a new conservation project that needs urgent funding to help protect endangered southern right whales and their habitat.

As they recover from near extinction from whaling, they need protection inside critical calving and nursery grounds, several of which are found around Australia's coastline.

Human development continues to increase along our coasts. Key threats to the whales include vessel disturbance, underwater noise disturbance, vessel strike and entanglement.

The Federal and State Government has recently approved pile driving and construction of the Granite Island Causeway in Encounter Bay, a key habitat during whale season (May-November).

Southern right whales urgently need your help - Whale & Dolphin Conservation Australia
 
U.S. Urges Fishing Reform to Save North Atlantic Right Whales

U.S. commercial fishing practices must change to prevent the extinction of North Atlantic right whales, the administration of President Joe Biden said on Thursday, as it prepares a list of new regulations to prevent whale entanglements in lobster and crab gear.

The scientific assessment from the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration’s fisheries unit is a milestone in finalizing a handful of proposed reforms of commercial fishermen mainly intended to reduce the amount of vertical rope in whale habitat.

U.S. Urges Fishing Reform to Save North Atlantic Right Whales
 
Great video from the Washington State Department of Fish & Wildlife engaging the public and discussing boating regulations in local waters and how they protect the federally endangered southern resident orcas.

 
Critically-endangered North Pacific Right Whale spotted in B.C. waters

Scientists and conservationists are celebrating the rare sighting of a North Pacific Right Whale on British Columbia’s coast.

Fisheries and Oceans Canada researchers spotted the whale, part of a population listed as critically endangered, off the west coast of Haida Gwaii this week.

https://globalnews-ca.cdn.ampprojec...acific-right-whale-spotted-in-b-c-waters/amp/
 
North Pacific right whale makes rare appearance off B.C.'s coast

Jared Towers and James Pilkington had been out on the water off Haida Gwaii for nearly two weeks on a hunch they might find the rarest whales of them all.

The marine mammal scientists from the Department of Fisheries and Oceans were observing humpbacks and orcas, but on the final day, they made contact with a North Pacific right whale, one of only 50 known to remain and only the fourth confirmed sighting of the species in Canadian waters over the past 70 years.

North Pacific right whale makes rare appearance off B.C.'s coast
 
16 Shipping Lines Slow Down to Protect Blue Whales and Blue Skies

Partners in an initiative to cut air pollution and protect endangered whales announced results from the 2020 program and recognized the shipping companies that successfully participated, reducing speeds to 10 knots or less in the San Francisco Bay Area and the Southern California region. The program’s Southern California region extends from Point Arguello (in Santa Barbara County) to waters near Dana Point (by the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach).

The voluntary incentive program, called “Protecting Blue Whales and Blue Skies,” ran May 15, 2020 through November 15, 2020.

Shipping companies receive recognition and financial awards based on the percent of distance traveled by their vessels through the Vessel Speed Reduction (VSR) zones at 10 knots or less and with an average speed of 12 knots or less. The 10-knot target complements the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) requests for all vessels (300 gross tons or larger) to slow down during the months of peak endangered blue, humpback, and fin whale abundance to protect these whales from ship strikes.

Ship strikes are a major threat to whales globally and to the recovery of endangered blue, fin, and humpback whales in California waters. Reducing the risk of ship strikes is a major priority of NOAA’s, including NOAA’s West Coast national marine sanctuaries. Observed and documented deaths totaled 49 endangered whales from 2007-2020, and likely represent only a small fraction of the total number of ship strikes taking place annually.

16 Shipping Lines Slow Down to Protect Blue Whales and Blue Skies
 
Dolphin social 'personalities' last a lifetime

Behavioral traits (sometimes personality) are common across species, but there is little known about their persistence over a lifetime. We found that individual dolphins have social traits that last over decades and form a syndrome comparable to the human extroversion-introversion axis.

Nature Portfolio Ecology & Evolution Community
 
New evidence of menopause in killer whales

Scientists have found new evidence of menopause in killer whales - raising fascinating questions about how and why it evolved.

Most animals breed throughout their lives. Only humans and four whale species are known to experience menopause, and scientists have long been puzzled about why this occurs.

Killer whales are a diverse species made up of multiple separate ecotypes (different types within a species) across the world's oceans that differ in their prey specialisation and patterns of social behaviour.

Previous studies have found menopause in an ecotype called "resident" killer whales whose social structure appears to favour "grandmothering" (females using their energy and knowledge to help their offspring and grand-offspring, rather than competing to breed themselves).

New evidence of menopause in killer whales
 
Growing underwater noise in the Arctic puts whales and other animals at risk

Until recently, the Arctic Ocean's ice cover made it a natural “acoustic refuge” for marine animals for much of the year. Many marine animals, including narwhals, belugas, and bowhead whales, rely on clicks, whistles, songs and other noises to locate food, raise calves, and find mates for survival.

But melting sea ice has led to expanded shipping routes and increased oil and gas exploration in the Arctic. As a result of new shipping routes, the type and amount of noise underwater has significantly changed, and that traffic is expected to quadruple by 2025.

Growing underwater noise in the Arctic puts whales and other animals at risk
 
‘Mismanaged to death’: Mexico opens up sole vaquita habitat to fishing
  • The Mexican government has eradicated a “no tolerance” zone in the Upper Gulf of California meant to protect the critically endangered vaquita porpoise.
  • The former refuge will now be open for fishing and there will be minimal monitoring and enforcement of illegal activity, experts say.
  • Conservationists say this move will certainly lead to the extinction of the vaquita, whose numbers have recently dwindled down to about nine.
The Mexican government will no longer protect the habitat of the critically endangered vaquita in the Upper Gulf of California, but has opened the area up to fishing, according to a news report. It’s estimated that there are only about nine vaquitas left in the world.

The vaquita (Phocoena sinus), a bathtub-sized porpoise endemic to the Sea of Cortez in Mexico’s Upper Gulf of California, has experienced a sharp population decline in the two past two decades, mainly due to illegal gillnet fishing for the critically endangered totoaba (Totoaba macdonaldi).

https://news-mongabay-com.cdn.amppr...opens-up-sole-vaquita-habitat-to-fishing/amp/
 
UngulateNerd92 said:
‘Mismanaged to death’: Mexico opens up sole vaquita habitat to fishing
  • The Mexican government has eradicated a “no tolerance” zone in the Upper Gulf of California meant to protect the critically endangered vaquita porpoise.
  • The former refuge will now be open for fishing and there will be minimal monitoring and enforcement of illegal activity, experts say.
  • Conservationists say this move will certainly lead to the extinction of the vaquita, whose numbers have recently dwindled down to about nine.
The Mexican government will no longer protect the habitat of the critically endangered vaquita in the Upper Gulf of California, but has opened the area up to fishing, according to a news report. It’s estimated that there are only about nine vaquitas left in the world.

The vaquita (Phocoena sinus), a bathtub-sized porpoise endemic to the Sea of Cortez in Mexico’s Upper Gulf of California, has experienced a sharp population decline in the two past two decades, mainly due to illegal gillnet fishing for the critically endangered totoaba (Totoaba macdonaldi).

https://news-mongabay-com.cdn.amppr...opens-up-sole-vaquita-habitat-to-fishing/amp/
Click to expand...
Well, I and many others already were under the assumption that the vaquita was beyond saving. This is it, it seems. A very sad day for sure. :(
 
UngulateNerd92 said:
‘Mismanaged to death’: Mexico opens up sole vaquita habitat to fishing
  • The Mexican government has eradicated a “no tolerance” zone in the Upper Gulf of California meant to protect the critically endangered vaquita porpoise.
  • The former refuge will now be open for fishing and there will be minimal monitoring and enforcement of illegal activity, experts say.
  • Conservationists say this move will certainly lead to the extinction of the vaquita, whose numbers have recently dwindled down to about nine.
The Mexican government will no longer protect the habitat of the critically endangered vaquita in the Upper Gulf of California, but has opened the area up to fishing, according to a news report. It’s estimated that there are only about nine vaquitas left in the world.

The vaquita (Phocoena sinus), a bathtub-sized porpoise endemic to the Sea of Cortez in Mexico’s Upper Gulf of California, has experienced a sharp population decline in the two past two decades, mainly due to illegal gillnet fishing for the critically endangered totoaba (Totoaba macdonaldi).

https://news-mongabay-com.cdn.amppr...opens-up-sole-vaquita-habitat-to-fishing/amp/
Click to expand...
This makes me terribly sad and angry. Of course I don´t want any species become extinct, but cetaceans are my favourite group of animals, and can´t believe I´m going to see two of them dissapear forever...
 
UngulateNerd92 said:
‘Mismanaged to death’: Mexico opens up sole vaquita habitat to fishing
  • The Mexican government has eradicated a “no tolerance” zone in the Upper Gulf of California meant to protect the critically endangered vaquita porpoise.
  • The former refuge will now be open for fishing and there will be minimal monitoring and enforcement of illegal activity, experts say.
  • Conservationists say this move will certainly lead to the extinction of the vaquita, whose numbers have recently dwindled down to about nine.
The Mexican government will no longer protect the habitat of the critically endangered vaquita in the Upper Gulf of California, but has opened the area up to fishing, according to a news report. It’s estimated that there are only about nine vaquitas left in the world.

The vaquita (Phocoena sinus), a bathtub-sized porpoise endemic to the Sea of Cortez in Mexico’s Upper Gulf of California, has experienced a sharp population decline in the two past two decades, mainly due to illegal gillnet fishing for the critically endangered totoaba (Totoaba macdonaldi).

https://news-mongabay-com.cdn.amppr...opens-up-sole-vaquita-habitat-to-fishing/amp/
Click to expand...

It's hard to say for sure but I strongly suspect that this is in response to the "sea shepherd" situation and the ugly conlict that arose and escalated during their stay there.

If so it just makes me think that paradoxically sea shepherd did more damage to the prospect of the vaquita in this critical phase than anyone else.
 
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If you see something, say something: why scientists need your help to spot blue whales off Australia’s east coast

Blue whales, the largest animals to ever live, are surprisingly elusive.

They’re bigger than the biggest dinosaur ever was, capable of growing over 30 metres long and can weigh over 100 tonnes — almost as long as a 737 plane and as heavy as 40 elephants. They also have one of the loudest voices, and can talk to each other hundreds of kilometres across the sea.

Why, then, are they so difficult to find in some parts off Australia?

My new research paper recorded only six verified sightings of the pygmy blue whale off Sydney in the last 18 years. Two of these occurred just last year. This blue whale subspecies is known to mostly occur along Australia’s west coast.

Rare sightings like these are important because pygmy blue whales are a “data deficient” animal. Every opportunity we have to learn about them is crucial to help us better protect them.

If you see something, say something: why scientists need your help to spot blue whales off Australia’s east coast
 
UngulateNerd92 said:
‘Mismanaged to death’: Mexico opens up sole vaquita habitat to fishing
  • The Mexican government has eradicated a “no tolerance” zone in the Upper Gulf of California meant to protect the critically endangered vaquita porpoise.
  • The former refuge will now be open for fishing and there will be minimal monitoring and enforcement of illegal activity, experts say.
  • Conservationists say this move will certainly lead to the extinction of the vaquita, whose numbers have recently dwindled down to about nine.
The Mexican government will no longer protect the habitat of the critically endangered vaquita in the Upper Gulf of California, but has opened the area up to fishing, according to a news report. It’s estimated that there are only about nine vaquitas left in the world.

The vaquita (Phocoena sinus), a bathtub-sized porpoise endemic to the Sea of Cortez in Mexico’s Upper Gulf of California, has experienced a sharp population decline in the two past two decades, mainly due to illegal gillnet fishing for the critically endangered totoaba (Totoaba macdonaldi).

https://news-mongabay-com.cdn.amppr...opens-up-sole-vaquita-habitat-to-fishing/amp/
Click to expand...
Imagine proposing gill netting for Govt. or fishermen, it would understandably create an outrage with immediate effect.

I can only shudder in incredulous disbelief at the lack of ethics and morality at play here.
 
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