Posts by Danny Groves
Record breaker Riptide the orca swims from Iceland to Lebanon
A male orca, commonly known as Riptide, has been spotted in waters around Beirut, Lebanon, on February 19th and 20th after completing what is thought to be a record breaking journey. Riptide belongs to an Icelandic pod of orcas that has notably been travelling unprecedented distances over the past year. It is believed his journey…
Read MoreWhalers turn whale watchers
WDC and the Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Environment Fund are celebrating the launch of two boats that will be dedicated to whale and wildlife watching tours. The two vessels will operate out of Barrouallie, a place that had been known for the taking of pilot whales, orcas and some species of dolphins. However, since 2014,…
Read MoreStunning new whale watching venue to be built in Norway
New plans to open a land-based whale watching attraction in Norway will promote the amazing opportunities to see whales in Norway. As a bonus, this could also help change the opinions of some Norwegians who still support whaling in the region. The stunning looking building will sit right on the shore around 300km (~185…
Read MoreAre right whales ‘whispering’ to avoid predators?
A new study published in the journal Biology Letters, has revealed that North Atlantic right whales alter their calls to their young in order to protect them from predators. Normally right whales use an “up call”, rising ‘whoop’ sound to communicate with each other. According to the latest research, right whale mothers will ‘whisper’ to their…
Read MoreFinancial worth of whales revealed
Policymakers and economists at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have placed a substantial value on the benefits of having healthy whales in the ocean. The report looks at the economic benefits whales provide to industries such as ecotourism, and also the environmental benefits (such as how much carbon they remove from the atmosphere by absorbing…
Read MoreSeaWorld parts company with another CEO
Troubled marine park operator, SeaWorld has parted company with yet another CEO. Gus Antorcha, who had been with SeaWorld for less than seven months has resigned following internal disagreements over decision making. Antorcha replaced Joel Manby, who was named CEO in 2015, who also stepped down last year. SeaWorld has faced a public backlash following the release…
Read MoreAntibiotic resistance in dolphins mirrors trend seen in humans
Samples collected from dolphins by scientists over a 12 year period indicate that dolphins may be mirroring the trend in human resistance to antibiotic drugs. Researchers looked at the samples from bottlenose dolphins living in the Indian River Lagoon in Florida between 2003 and 2015 and found that nearly 90% of the 733 samples taken…
Read MoreCanada to move two captive belugas to theme park in Spain
Two captive beluga whales are to be moved from the Marineland theme park in Canada to a Spanish facility, despite the Canadian government recently banning live imports and exports of these marine mammals, and the capture of wild whales, dolphins and porpoises for aquaria. The Canadian Fisheries Minister approved the permits for the move under exceptions…
Read MoreHuge success for WDC campaign as Virgin Holidays ends SeaWorld trips
Virgin Holidays has announced that it is to stop selling tickets to SeaWorld as part of a move to cut links with facilities that hold whales and dolphins in captivity for entertainment. The announcement represents a huge success for WDC’s ongoing campaign to stop tour operators promoting and supporting the captivity industry, a campaign that…
Read MoreHow you fly two beluga whales home to the ocean
Ahead of the relocation of Little White and Little Grey to the world’s first open water sanctuary for belugas, we gave international media the opportunity to discover how this epic 6,000-mile journey will be delivered to plan, and speak to some of the expert team involved in making this as comfortable a journey as possible…
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