Group items tagged

The Hellenic Trench is core habitat for the eastern Mediterranean sperm whale sub-population, which is believed to number no more than two to three hundred individuals. The Mediterranean sperm whale population is listed as "Endangered" by the IUCN and is at risk mainly from driftnet entanglement and ship strikes. Major shipping routes running on or very close to the 1000 m depth contour along the Hellenic Trench are causing an unsustainable number of ship-strikes with sperm whales.

Transportation and warmer ocean temperatures could play a role.

Flying marlin injures two in Aussie boating incident.

"ScUber" launches submarine trips to Great Barrier Reef.

Le 25 juillet 2020, un cargo japonais a heurté un récif sur la côte sud-est de l'île Maurice : des tonnes de pétrole se sont échappées des soutes du navire dans les récifs coralliens, les lagons aux eaux turquoises et les écosystèmes uniques de l'île nation.

A new study confirms that the Gulf of St. Lawrence is an important habitat for a large proportion of the endangered North Atlantic right whale population.

Introduction: The Scotia Sea and Antarctic Peninsula are warming rapidly and changes in species distribution are expected. In predicting habitat shifts and considering appropriate management strategies for marine predators, a community-level understanding of how these predators are distributed is desirable. Acquiring such data, particularly in remote areas, is often problematic given the cost associated with the operation of research vessels. Here we use cruise vessels as sampling platforms to explore seabird distribution relative to habitat characteristics.

Pacific Harbour Porpoise (Phocoena phocoena vomerina) occupy a large range throughout coastal waters of British Columbia. Despite their wide distribution, they remain largely data-deficient regarding abundance and population trends, and as such are listed as Special Concern under the Species At Risk Act. Harbour porpoises are also particularly sensitive to disturbance, especially vessel-related acoustic disturbance. Large aggregations of harbour porpoise have been documented in waters around the entrance to the Port of Prince Rupert during the winter months, however little is known about the annual fine-scale activity of this species in this highly trafficked area. In this multi-year study, we used a combination of land-based visual surveys and passive acoustic monitoring (PAM) devices (C-PODs and F-PODs) to address data gaps regarding density, diel patterns, and seasonality of harbour porpoise around Prince Rupert. Echolocation activity was detected during 96% of the 1086 C-POD deployment days and 100% of the 727 F-POD deployment days, with 86% of visual surveys recording harbour porpoise presence. We detected strong seasonal and diel trends in activity, with echolocation peaks between April and June and during the hours of darkness throughout the year. There was a notable increase in daytime activity of harbour porpoise between January and March, which coincides with the months of large aggregation observations. This study indicates that despite the constant presence of large vessels, harbour porpoise continue to persist within waters surrounding Prince Rupert. This suggests the area is an important habitat for this species and also may indicate some extent of acclimatization to localized disturbance.