Pumps and conveyor belts. How could more whales help save us?
We are excited to announce backing for two ground-breaking research projects to assess the little understood impact whales have on marine productivity and carbon capture. The projects, run by scientists from US and UK universities, will explore the extent to which whales transfer vital nutrients as they feed, defecate and migrate. The Alaska Whale Pump…
Read More50-Year Vision launched to save whales and dolphins from extinction
WDC has joined the world’s leading wildlife protection and conservation organisations urging the 88 member countries of the International Whaling Commission (IWC – the body that regulates whaling) to adopt a new 50-Year Vision to save whales, dolphins and porpoises from extinction in the face of increasing ocean threats. The vision document has been launched…
Read MoreSuccess! Court stops US government attempt to block whale protection lawsuit
A federal court in the US has dismissed attempts by Joe Biden’s administration to halt a lawsuit against the government filed by WDC and other groups, which seeks to create stronger rules to protect rare North Atlantic right whales from collisions with ships. Together with Defenders of Wildlife, Humane Society of the US, Center for Biological Diversity…
Read MoreCan space technology tell us how many whales there are?
One of the world’s leading professional services firms, Deloitte has joined with WDC in a bid to explore how space technology can tell us more about whales, and how to protect them. This exciting project is part of Deloitte’s Gravity Challenge, a global programme that encourages corporates, entrepreneurs and universities to use innovative space technology to…
Read MoreWDC joins group legal action to force protection for endangered North Atlantic right whales
Conservation groups in the US, including WDC have sued the National Marine Fisheries Service (the US federal agency responsible for the stewardship of national marine resources) for failing to respond to two rule making petitions to protect critically endangered right whales from being run over and killed by ships and boats in US waters. The…
Read MoreNew blue whale population discovered
A previously unknown population of blue whales has been found living in the Indian Ocean after researchers picked up and recorded an unrecognised song travelling hundreds of miles through the sea. Blue whale vocalisations are very low and can reach other whales through the water up to 500 miles away, but each population has their…
Read MoreLatest endangered species list confirms all freshwater dolphins face battle to avoid extinction
A dolphin found in the Amazon river, the tucuxi, has been classed as endangered on the latest Red List issued by the IUCN (International Union for the Conservation for Nature) – the body that assesses the survival prospects of plants, animals and fungi. This latest classification for the tucuxi now means that all the world’s…
Read MoreAre orcas behind a drop in great white shark numbers?
A drop in the numbers of great white sharks in the coastal waters around South Africa could be due attacks by orcas according to a new government report. The report suggests that the orcas are killing sharks and eating their livers, which has led to the disappearance of great whites from the waters of False…
Read MoreWDC scientists join call for global action to protect whales and dolphins from extinction
Scientists from Whale and Dolphin Conservation, along with over 250 other experts from 40 countries, have signed on to an open letter calling for action to urgently address the precarious situation of many populations of whales, dolphins and porpoises, (collectively ‘cetaceans’) many of which face extinction threats due to harmful human activity such as incidental…
Read MoreWe’ve won protection for Māui and Hector’s dolphins, but is it enough?
After decades of our campaigning, the New Zealand government has finally released the Threat Management Plan (TMP) for the Māui and Hector’s dolphins who live only around this country’s shores. It’s more protection than these dolphins have ever had before and we are grateful to the New Zealand government for pushing hard for these changes,…
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