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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 -...
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  • Create healthy seas
  • End captivity
  • Prevent deaths in nets
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Minke whale hunts stop in Iceland

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

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...

Did Icelandic whalers really kill a blue whale?

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

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...

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...

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...

Norway's whaling season begins

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

SOS alert for whales off Norway!

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

Icelandic fin whale hunting to resume

Iceland’s only fin whaling company, Hvalur hf,  announced today that it will resume fin whaling...

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.