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New developments in marine conservation in Africa
Namibia has established a six-member marine conservation team that has rescued more than 600 sea lions entangled in fishing nets by 2025. The team uses scissors, nets and other tools to carry out emergency rescues along the coast, while promoting beach cleanups and garbage collection. Scientists warn that microplastic concentrations in Namibian waters have reached…
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Chinese acoustic technology helps global cetacean conservation
2025 In April, the passive acoustic monitoring technology developed by China for the Yangtze finless porpoise was applied for the first time to protect the Irrawaddy dolphin in the Mekong River in Cambodia, where it was found that shipping noise caused a 40% decrease in the dolphin’s success rate of predation by tracking the distribution…
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Arctic Cetacean Health Early Warning System Launched
The EU-UNEP co-funded Arctic Pollution Monitoring Project (APMP) was launched on March 27, focusing on persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in beluga and narwhal whales. Preliminary data show that concentrations of POPs in the Arctic have reached 10 times the global average, and that some beluga whale populations have suffered a 20% decline in reproduction rates…
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Microplastic Pollution Threatens Global Food Security
Research released in March by Stanford University shows that blue whales ingest about 10 million microplastics a day through their krill diets, and sperm whales, which have the highest concentration of microplastics in their bodies, are at risk of immune system damage from feeding on deep-sea cephalopods. According to another study, microplastics can reduce the…
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U.S. Navy Requests Increase in Number of Permits for Accidental Whale Strikes
The U.S. Navy, in response to numerous whale strikes by vessels off the coast of Southern California in recent years, is requesting an increase in the cap on the number of accidental injuries to marine mammals allowed under the government’s agreement to increase the maximum number of whales accidentally “taken” from 3 to 5 before…
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Iceland’s Whaling Industry Successfully Transforms into Ecotourism
The Icelandic government has forced traditional whaling companies to transform their business by increasing taxes and fines. Over the past five years, whaling costs have risen by 60%, and companies are turning to whale watching tourism. Whale-watching tourism generates more than $120 million in annual revenue, more than double that of the whaling industry. Whale…
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Bubble screens protect North Sea porpoises
Bubble screens are being used in the North Sea to protect porpoises from wind farm noise, previously used to contain oil spills, and now playing a new role in marine life protection.
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South African Coastal Whales Threatened by Oil Exploration
Shell’s plans to conduct underwater explosions for new oil and gas exploration activities during the peak mating season of whales off South Africa’s “wild coast” pose a serious threat to local marine life such as whales
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World Wildlife Day Focuses on Bryde’s Whale Conservation
World Wildlife Day is celebrated on March 3 every year, and 2025 will also mark the 50th anniversary of the entry into force of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). 2024, Guardian of the Wilderness, in conjunction with the Guangxi Academy of Sciences and other organizations and…
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Plastic-laden sperm whale carcass found on German beach
February 24, 2011 – The carcass of a young male sperm whale, measuring 14.3 meters in length and weighing 10 to 15 tons, was found on a beach on the German island of Sylt. Initial examination revealed a large amount of plastic in the whale’s stomach, and the cause of death has yet to be…