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This dead right whale calf had injuries consistent with a vessel strike, including fresh propeller cuts on its back and head, broken ribs, and bruising. Photo: FWC/Tucker Joenz, NOAA Fisheries permit #18786

Emergency Right Whale Petition Seeks Overdue Protections From Vessel Strikes

This dead right whale calf had injuries consistent with a vessel strike, including fresh propeller...
Icelandic hunting vessels in port

Whaling boat kept in port after more hunt cruelty exposed

Icelandic whale hunting fleet One of the whaling boats involved in the latest hunts in...
Commerson's dolphin

New Important Marine Mammal Areas added to global ocean conservation list

Commerson's dolphin Experts from a number of countries have mapped out a new set of...
Fin whale shot with two harpoons

Whalers kill just days after Iceland’s hunt suspension is lifted

Whalers in Iceland have claimed their first victims since the lifting (just a few days...

US Protection Sought for Depleted Beluga Whale Stock

In response to the ongoing threats to beluga populations in Russia, WDC, along with the Animal Welfare Institute, Cetacean Society International, and Earth Island Institute has filed a petition with the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) to designate the Sakhalin Bay-Amur River stock of beluga whales in the Sea of Okhotsk as depleted under the US Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA).

Subjected to intense levels of historical hunting, these belugas have yet to recover and face serious ongoing threats, most notably from annual live captures for public display. Around 30 belugas are captured annually to be shipped abroad. At least 320 belugas have been captured for export from Russia between 1990 and 2012. From 2008-2010 there were 63 exported to China alone.

If successful, a depleted designation under the US MMPA for the Sakhalin-Amur beluga whale stock will encourage the United States and foreign governments, conservation organizations, the scientific community, and funding institutions to support research and conservation efforts to help recover these belugas and protect their habitat.

Press release can be found here.