Posts by Danny Groves
200 pilot whales killed in latest Faroese slaughter
More than 200 pilot whales have been slaughtered in Sandagerði (Torshavn) in the Faroe Islands. The long-finned pilot whales were driven onto the ‘whaling beach’ and brutally killed. The hunt, is just one of many that take place every year on the Islands, where pilot whales, as well as other whale and dolphin species are…
Read More148 more fin whales killed in waters around Iceland
The Icelandic fin whaling season has now ended with a final, grim tally of 148 whales killed since June. These hunts were the first in Icelandic waters for four years when, in 2018, 146 fin whales were killed, including at least two rare blue whale/fin whale hybrids and a dozen pregnant females. Since 2006, the company responsible…
Read MoreHundreds of whales killed as Norwegian hunt season ends
The end of the whaling season in Norway has been announced with 580 minke whales killed by 13 whaling vessels in just under six months. Norway’s minister of fisheries had set a quota (number that can be killed) of 917 whales for this season. Thankfully that number was not reached but this was still the…
Read MoreThird orca death in 18 months at theme park
Loro Parque tourist attraction in Tenerife, Spain has announced the death of Kohana, a 20-year-old orca transferred to the facility from SeaWorld in the US in 2006. Kohana is the third orca who has died at the facility within 18 months after Skyla (17 years old) died in March 2021, and Ula (three years old),…
Read MoreBeluga move plans postponed after service boat sinks
Plans to return beluga whales, Little White and Little Grey to their sea sanctuary in Iceland have now had to be postponed due to an unprecedented incident, which happened in the bay last week. The main support and diving contractor’s boat sank in Klettsvik Bay just hours before the whales were due to move, resulting…
Read MoreElusive whale seen alive for the first time
Using DNA evidence, scientists have been able to officially confirm the first live sightings of the Sato’s beaked whale. Up to now the only Sato’s whales seen have been the few that have washed up dead and some unconfirmed reports from whale hunters. As a result, we know very little about their lives, habits, where…
Read MoreReview into Faroes dolphin massacre fails to ban hunts and sets high kill quota
A long-awaited review by the Faroese government into the disturbing and cruel massacre of over 1400 Atlantic white-sided dolphins in 2021 has potentially made the situation worse. The country’s Ministry of Fisheries has failed to ban the cruel hunts and, instead, proposed an annual catch limit of 500 dolphins on a provisional basis for 2022…
Read MoreIcelandic whalers kill first fin whales in four years
As feared, whale hunters in Iceland have killed at least two fin whales, the first to be killed in four years. Hopes remain that the cruel practice will end in 2023 after the country’s Fisheries Minister, Svandís Svavarsdóttir cast doubt over its future a few weeks ago, saying that there is now little justification for authorizing…
Read MorePumps and conveyor belts. How could more whales help save us?
Collecting humpback whale poo © Sarah Mastroni 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,…
Read MoreUkraine invasion may have triggered dolphin deaths
Following reports a few weeks ago that military dolphins were being used by Russia as part of its invasion of Ukraine, it now seems that more dolphins may have been casualties in the ongoing war. Scientists think that the increase in noise pollution caused by Russian naval activity in the northern Black Sea could be…
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