Transient Bigg’s Orca Mixing It Up

A group of Democratic senators says the U.S. should audit the job Canada is doing to protect endangered whales, but the Canadian government and some U.S. scientists are reacting coolly to the idea.

The senators, led by Sen. Edward Markey of Massachusetts, cite the dire status of North Atlantic right whales as a reason to put some pressure on Canada. The right whales number only about 450 and suffered through a year of 17 deaths in 2017, and 12 of the deaths were in Canada.

The senators said in an April 25 letter to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration that the agency should conduct a review of Canada’s right whale conservation standards, and consider prohibitions on some Canadian seafood imports if they are too weak. The U.S. imported more than $3.3 billion worth of Canadian seafood in 2017.

“Determining as quickly as possible whether Canada’s fishermen are being held to the same level of accountability as those in America is a critical step for taking swift action to protect this treasured species,” Markey said….
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When dolphins dive deep to search for prey, their respiration stops. Their heartbeat slows. Yet they are still able to power all of the functions they need to hunt. No one is entirely sure how they do it, because no one has ever been able to measure their blood oxygenation levels during these deep dives. It’s a logistically complex challenge; how do you attach a sensor to a massive sea-dwelling creature without doing harm? The rudimentary data that researchers have gathered so far has come from heart rate monitors bound to dolphins’ bodies with thick, wide neoprene straps-dolphin girdles, essentially.
This spring, Duke researchers tackled that challenge, designing sensors that they hoped would be able to better collect more of that vital information….
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Scientists who placed high-tech listening instruments in the Cook Strait believe they’ve picked up the sounds of a little-understood and rarely sighted species of whale.

Niwa scientists confirmed the presence of the yet-to-be identified beaked whales by analysing underwater acoustic data collected during two six-month deployments of six passive acoustic moorings.

In the first project of its kind in New Zealand waters, the moorings recorded the entire underwater soundscape of the region, including sounds produced by marine mammals.

One of the aims of the project, just featured in the latest issue of the Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, was to learn more about the presence and distribution of whales and dolphins in the region….
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"The idea has existed for many years, and in the last decade some rehabilitation projects have used temporary sanctuaries for rescued wild cetaceans and captive cetaceans," says Walker. A seaside sanctuary will be more natural for the cetaceans in them in so many ways: acoustically, water quality-wise, and in terms of other species (plant and animal) sharing the enclosure with them….
"In these last few years, however, public perception has drastically changed regarding cetaceans in zoos and aquariums and, as a result, projects to create permanent seaside sanctuaries are being developed for individual animals that will undoubtedly need them in the near future.
"It’s a very exciting period for whale and dolphin lovers."…
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The freedivers – exploring the waters off Mexico’s Baja California Peninsula with Pelagic Safari – came across the pod of killer whales and were granted with a bucket-list encounter, as the whales hung around for photos and videos…
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Its name gives it away – the False Killer Whale is not a whale, it’s actually a dolphin and it’s found in tropical waters around the world, including off the Australian coast.

Yet the species is becoming increasingly rare and US scientists monitoring the false killer whale in Hawaiian waters are classifying it as endangered – they’ve found just 150 dolphins in their studies.

Now researchers in the Northern Territory are tagging and tracking false killer whales for the first time to better understand their movements and habitat in Australia….
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With fewer than 100 individuals left in the wild …Taiwanese humpback dolphins are threatened by gillnet fishing, pollution, boat traffic and development along Taiwan’s densely populated west coast, including the proposed construction of large wind farms. An endangered listing will enable the U.S. to provide technical expertise and resources to support Taiwan in conserving the rare dolphin.
The Endangered Species Act will help enable the United States to provide the resources needed to help protect and conserve this imperiled population. We are grateful that the National Marine Fisheries Service recognized the need to take immediate action.”…
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Footage has emerged of kayakers in Kaikōura being joined by a massive pod of dolphins.
The Dusky dolphins appear to click happily as they swarm around each other in the delightful video, filmed by Ian Trafford.
The pod put on a show for photographer Mr Trafford, who stopped to marvel at the mammals jumping in the air, with the serene Kaikōura landscape in the background….
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The event starting later this month forms part of UK Orca Watch, an initiative that provides information to the foundation’s national database.

Anna Jemmett, Sea Watch regional co-ordinator, said: “For me, Orca Watch Week is about involving people and allowing them to experience something they never though they could be part of.

“It is about collecting vital data for the protection and conservation of orcas and other local cetacean species, and it is about sharing this magical event with people from all other the country and have fun all together.”…
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