WHALES AHOY - DARWIN DAILY

For these baleen whales, hunting requires little more than treading water

Nov 09, 2017 (SPX)

This report of "tread-water feeding" in Bryde's whales is the first to show a passive feeding behavior in baleen whales, the researchers say. "Previously, all s...

Mexico captures rare vaquita porpoise in bid to save species

Nov 05, 2017 (AFP)

The vaquita, the world's smallest porpoise, has been pushed to the brink of extinction by illegal gillnet fishing and there are just 30 left in the wild. The Me...

Far from harpoons, whales star in Iceland ecotourism boom

Oct 26, 2017 (AFP)

"Minke whale at two o'clock, about 200 metres out!" shouts Spanish tour guide Alberto Alejandro, microphone in hand as a boat of whale watchers cruises slowly u...

Whales, dolphins form 'human-like' societies and cultures, scientists say

Oct 16, 2017 (UPI)

As detailed in the new paper, the social lives of whales and dolphins check many of the same boxes that make human societies so unique. They live among family a...

Scientists study whale's blow hole microbes with the help of a drone

Oct 10, 2017 (UPI)

Researchers with the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution used a custom-built drone to collect blow samples, the moist breath exhaled by whales, from 17 humpbac...

Japan kills 177 whales in Pacific campaign: government

Sep 26, 2017 (AFP)

Three ships which left port in June returned with 43 minke whales and 134 sei whales, the number stipulated beforehand, according to the country's fisheries age...

Cuban dolphins get helicopter ride to safety from Irma

Sep 08, 2017 (AFP)

Wrapped in moist towels, the six male dolphins from the "Cable Esqui" center on Cayo Guillermo were placed on foam mattresses in a helicopter on Thursday and fl...

Tracking down the whale-shark highway

Aug 31, 2017 (SPX)

MBARI biological oceanographer John Ryan recently worked with biologists who have been tracking whale sharks in the Eastern Tropical Pacific Ocean. They discove...

Ancient whales were fierce predators, not filter feeders

Aug 30, 2017 (UPI)

Whales haven't always been predominantly filter feeders. Baleen whales -- the world's preeminent filter feeders and the largest mammals in the world -- used to ...

Sea Shepherd pulls plug on Japan whale hunt

Aug 29, 2017 (AFP)

The organisation has waged an often violent 12-year high-seas battle against whaling in the Southern Ocean, claiming success for saving thousands of the giant m...

Mexico helped push porpoise to brink of extinction: activists

Aug 29, 2017 (AFP)

While Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto has embarked on a much-vaunted campaign to save the estimated 30 vaquitas that remain -- winning the backing of Holly...

Unusual spike in whale deaths in Canada, US sparks probe

Aug 25, 2017 (AFP)

Thirteen of the massive, bus-sized marine mammals have been found dead this year, a large number considering the entire population numbers just 450-500, said ex...

Post-whaling recovery of Southern Hemisphere

Aug 22, 2017 (SPX)

University of Queensland and CSIRO PhD student Viv Tulloch, affiliated with the ARC Centre of Excellence for Environmental Decisions, said this was the first ti...

Scientists measure whales' aversion to noise pollution

Aug 17, 2017 (UPI)

Researchers at the University of Queensland in Australia wanted to find out if "ramp-up sequences" allow whales to acclimate to foreign noise. Ramp-up sequences...

Canada orders reduced ship speeds to prevent right whale deaths

Aug 11, 2017 (AFP)

The speed limit was capped at 10 knots (11.5 miles, 18.5 kilometers) per hour -- about half the average current speeds -- in areas where whales have been report...

Activists sound alarm over Russia's whale trade

Aug 03, 2017 (AFP)

"Don't forget us, bitch!" shouts one of its captors onboard the ship as the animal is deposited next to three more belugas and rows of other sea mammals such as...

Canada will use 'all resources' to protect right whales

Aug 03, 2017 (AFP)

The North Atlantic right whale, which is much larger than a humpback or a gray whale, is one of the most endangered whale species, with only about 500 of them l...

Whales learn songs the same way humans do

Jul 25, 2017 (UPI)

When researchers in Australia analyzed the singing patterns among humpback whale populations, they found evidence that young whales acquire communication skills...

Canada halts snow crab fishing after deaths of imperiled whales

Jul 21, 2017 (AFP)

Eight Right whales have been found dead in the Gulf over the past month, the latest on Tuesday, Fisheries and Ocean Canada said. The department said it was clos...

Ancient South Carolina whale yields secrets to filter feeding's origins

Jul 03, 2017 (SPX)

The findings shed light on a long-standing debate about whether the first baleen whales were toothless suction feeders or toothed whales that used their teeth l...