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Dolphins captured for captivity in Taiji. Image: Hans Peter Roth

Loved and killed – whales and dolphins in Japan

Protests and criticism from outside Japan in response to the slaughter of whales and dolphins...
Irrawaddy dolphin

Helping fishers protect dolphins in Sarawak, Borneo

Fishing nets are bad news for dolphins and porpoises, so we're working with local fishers...
Dolphin watching from Chanonry Point, Scotland. Image: WDC/Charlie Phillips

Discovering inner peace – whale and dolphin watching and mental wellbeing

Guest blog If you've ever seen whales or dolphins in the wild, you'll know that...
Whale tail

An ocean of hope

In a monumental, jaw-dropping demonstration of global community, the nations of the world made history...
The infamous killing cove at Taiji, Japan

Why the Taiji dolphin hunt can never be justified

Supporters of the dolphin slaughter in Japan argue that killing a few hundred dolphins every...
Image: Peter Linforth

Tracking whales from space will help us save them

Satellite technology holds one of the keys to 21st century whale conservation, so we're exploring...
Fishers' involvement is crucial. Image: WDC/JTF

When porpoises and people overlap

We're funding a project in Hong Kong that's working with fishing communities to help save...

Mindful conservation – why we need a new respect for nature

'We should look at whales and dolphins as the indigenous people of the seas -...

Mayday Monday!

MAYDAY: Despite recent baby boom, Southern Resident orca population still face uncertain future

Whale and Dolphin Conservation is currently working to expand critical habitat for Southern Resident Orcas. We are asking the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) to revise the current extent of designated critical habitat for the Southern Residents in the US to include their coastal wintering and foraging range NOW, instead of delaying until 2017 or later.

WDC supported a petition filed by the Center for Biological Diversity in 2014 to revise critical habitat to include the Southern Residents’ coastal range, and include sound as an essential feature of protected habitat. NMFS found the petition to be warranted and acknowledged the need to protect this vital winter foraging range, but delayed beginning the revision process until 2017.  NMFS has enough information to expand critical habitat, and delaying a revision takes time the Southern Residents simply don’t have.  Their recovery needs to be a high priority, and while NMFS has recognized the urgency of the situation, they are still delaying action.  Protecting the habitat of these endangered whales will help to address the multiple threats facing this population, and should not be postponed when enough information is available to take action now.

Every week from now through March, we will be posting information about the many threats preventing recovery of this unique population, and all the reasons why the current extent of critical habitat has not been enough to be an effective tool for conservation.

Don’t miss any of these weekly installments! Click to have Mayday Monday sent directly to your inbox and please sign our letter to NMFS urging them to make the Pacific Northwest coast a safer home for the Southern Residents NOW.