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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 -...
A dolphin called Arnie with a shell

Dolphins catch fish using giant shell tools

In Shark Bay, Australia, two groups of dolphins have figured out how to use tools...
Common dolphins at surface

Did you know that dolphins have unique personalities?

We all have personalities, and between the work Christmas party and your family get-together, perhaps...
Leaping harbour porpoise

The power of harbour porpoise poo

We know we need to save the whale to save the world. Now we are...
Holly. Image: Miray Campbell

Meet Holly, she’s an incredible orca leader

Let me tell you the story of an awe-inspiring orca with a fascinating family story...
Humpback whale. Image: Christopher Swann

A story about whales and humans

As well as working for WDC, I write books for young people. Stories; about the...
Risso's dolphin at surface

My lucky number – 13 years studying amazing Risso’s dolphins

Everything we learn about the Risso's dolphins off the coast of Scotland amazes us and...
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  • Create healthy seas
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Port River dolphins

New report reveals 100,000 dolphins and small whales hunted every year

When you hear the words ‘dolphin hunts’ it’s likely that you think of Japan or...

Minke whale hunts stop in Iceland

Iceland’s commercial hunt of minke whales has ended for this year. The common minke whale is the...

Icelandic whalers breach international law and kill iconic, protected whale by mistake

Icelandic whalers out hunting fin whales for the first time in three years appear to...

Doubts remain after Icelandic Marine Institute claims slaughtered whale was a hybrid not a blue

Experts remain sceptical of initial test results issued by the Icelandic Marine Institute, which indicate...

Japan set to resume commercial whaling

Reports from Japan suggest that the government they will formally propose plans to resume commercial...

End the whale hunts! Icelandic fin whaler isolated as public mood shifts

Here’s a sight I hoped never again to witness. A boat being scrubbed and repainted...

Australian Government to block Japanese whaling proposal

Japanese Government officials have reportedly confirmed that they will propose the resumption of commercial whaling...

Pregnant whales once again a target for Japanese whalers

Figures from Japan's whaling expedition to Antarctica during the 2017/18 austral summer have revealed that...

Did Icelandic whalers really kill a blue whale?

*Warning - this blog contains an image that you may find upsetting* They say a...

SOS alert for whales off Norway!

I have to admit to bitter disappointment when I arrived in Tromsø, northern Norway, a...

Norway's whaling season begins

April 1st saw the start of the whaling season in Norway. Despite a widely-accepted international moratorium...

Norway increases whaling quota despite declining demand

Norway's government has announced an increase in the number of minke whales that can be...

Canada needs help to End Captivity

Coming in the wake of recent efforts to end the cruel practice of captivity for whales, dolphins, and porpoises in North America, a bill currently in Canada’s Senate, S-203 (the Ending the Captivity of Whales and Dolphins Act), would phase out captivity of whales, dolphins, and porpoises in the entire country, with the exception of rescue and rehabilitation to return them to the wild.  This effort is even more important now, following the death of Chester the false killer whale at the Vancouver Aquarium, leaving Helen, a Pacific white-sided dolphin, as the only individual still held at the Aquarium.

In Canada, Ontario has passed a law to phase out orca captivity, and the Vancouver Park Board in British Columbia has banned whale and dolphin captivity at the Vancouver Aquarium.  While individual provinces and states have been taking steps to end the practice of holding whales and dolphins for entertainment in North America, both the U.S. and Canada have yet to pass nationwide laws addressing whale and dolphin captivity.  In response to growing public opposition to captivity and an increasing awareness of the intelligence and complex social structures of whales and dolphins, many countries, including France, are taking steps to end or phase out captivity.

After being studied and developed for a year, S-203 was introduced to Canada’s Senate this year by Senator Murray Sinclair of Manitoba, and passed out of the Committee on Fisheries and Oceans this October.  It must now pass a third reading and a vote in the Senate before proceeding to the House of Commons and possibly becoming law next year.

A vote has been delayed because of concerns from Conservative lawmakers, which the bill’s coalition of supporters say have been addressed.  Environmental groups in Canada are asking for help in a social media campaign to ensure a reading and a vote before the Senate breaks for the holidays, and to thank Senator Sinclair for his support and for being a voice for captive marine mammals in Canada.  Canadians are encouraged to reach out to their Senators to educate them about the cruelty of captivity and ask them to vote on S-203, and to use social media to put pressure on politicians before Christmas.

The campaign is scheduled for December 5th and 6th, and will be linked by the tags #BillS203 and #cdnpoli.  You can read more about the development and progress of S-203 and the effort to end captivity for whales and dolphins in Canada here: “Bill S-203 Has the Power to End Whale and Dolphin Captivity in Canada”; and Canadian citizens can find out how to get involved here.