Heartbreak and practical action – the horror of the Taiji dolphin hunts and one Japanese activist’s determination
Back in November, I shared my heartache at the drama unfolding in the waters off Taiji, Japan, where around 25 fishers were undertaking their annual slaughter and capture of small whales and dolphins. Thankfully, this hunt season has now ended but not without the loss of 687 souls – 547 destined for the dinner plate…
Read MoreRobotic dolphins – an alternative for the captive dolphin industry?
A deceptively realistic robotic dolphin, made headlines recently, causing people to ask whether robots like this could provide an alternative to the cruelty of keeping dolphins in tanks for human entertainment? It’s an interesting question so let’s explore… The realistic looking robot dolphin © Edge Innovations Your donation will help us end dolphin captivity by…
Read MoreBelugas take little steps to new life in sanctuary home
Our project with the SEA LIFE Trust to move two beluga whales, Little White and Little Grey, from captivity in China to the world’s first whale sanctuary in Iceland has taken some significant steps forward. We’re calling this phase ‘Little Steps’, because that’s what we and the whales are taking. The whales made good progress…
Read MoreBeluga Whale Sanctuary winter update
Whilst we are thrilled at the progress that beluga whales, Little White and Little Grey have made in adapting to a more natural environment in the ocean sanctuary in last few weeks, as the Icelandic winter storm season approaches the care team looking after Little White and Little Grey have decided to go ahead and…
Read MoreWill we ever see an end to whale and dolphin captures in Russia?
The infamous whale jail on Russia’s Far East coast stands empty. Between late summer 2018 and November 2019, more than 100 wild-caught beluga whales and orcas were held in tiny, crowded pens awaiting sale to overseas aquaria. As winter set in, ice began to cover the enclosures and a worldwide effort surfaced to raise awareness…
Read MoreSuccess! France to ban whales and dolphins in marine parks
WDC’s continued campaigning to end the keeping of whales and dolphins in captive facilities for human entertainment has received a big boost with the announcement by the French environment minister that the country will bring an end to this cruel practice. Barbara Pompili, France’s minister of ecological transition, revealed this week that a gradual ban…
Read MoreSuccessful campaigning starts at home – how WDC supports grassroots end captivity campaigners
For the last 20 years, I’ve been leading Whale and Dolphin Conservation’s work to end the capture, trade and keeping of whales, dolphins and porpoises in captivity. When I started in my role, back in 1998, the UK no longer had any captive dolphin attractions and so my work has always been international. What we’ve…
Read MoreHow has the world changed for whale and dolphin protection?
A veteran conservationist looks back… I’m Dr Mike Bossley and I’ve been engaged in research, conservation and education for the past 50 years. I’ve worked with and for WDC, Whale and Dolphin Conservation for about 25 of those years, having headed-up Greenpeace Australia in the late 1970s and early 80s. Although technically semi-retired, here I…
Read MoreBeluga sanctuary update
Update: 1st July 2020 We have been working to relocate belugas, Little Grey and Little White from their landside care facilities to their sea sanctuary care pools at Klettsvik Bay this week – which we had planned for Friday. However, our vets have confirmed that both Little Grey and Little White have a very mild…
Read MoreHow we’re helping to keep orcas safe from capture in Russia
In 1999, we helped open up whale research in Russia, building a photo-ID catalogue of orcas as well as a Russian team to study them. We called this the Far East Russia Orca Project, or FEROP, and it’s still going strong today. FEROP has trained a generation of young students in photo-ID, acoustic recording and…
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