The gray whale is the focus of research projects anticipating its eventual return to European waters after an absence of a half-millennium. Youri van den Hurk is preparing for a possible big welcome-home event—the return of the gray whale to European waters after an absence of about 500 years. The gray whale disappeared from the […]
Tag: marine mammals
Baby seals to get ‘smashed to death’ in harrowing scenes for new Frozen Planet series
Baby seals will be seen getting smashed to death in the new series of Frozen Planet later this week, meaning harrowing scenes are set to air on our screens very soon. Eleven years in the making, Sir David Attenborough, 96, will be at the helm of Frozen Planet II when it catapults onto our television […]
Interesting Facts About One of the Ocean’s Smartest Animals: Sea Otters
Sea otters are a popular marine mammal, with live camera feeds and plush toys aplenty. This adorable species has been slowly recovering after their population dipped dangerously low due to demand for their fur. This is good news, as sea otters are truly a unique breed that benefits our environment. Here are some interesting tidbits […]
Dugongs (Related to Manatees) Declared Functionally Extinct in China
The human imagination once transformed dugongs into mermaids. But now, human activity is pushing the gentle marine mammals into the realm of the imagination in a more sinister way. A new study published in Royal Society Open Science Wednesday found that the dugong (dugong dugon) is “functionally extinct” in Chinese waters. “The likely disappearance of […]
Whales and walruses: our cruel fascination with stranded sealife
In the light of the sad and disputatious fate of Freya, a displaced walrus who had the misfortune to choose Norway as the last stop on her misbegotten tour of Europe (having gone from Northumberland to the Netherlands, where latterly she dozed on a moored navy submarine and raised speculation that she might be making […]
Deep-sea mining could cause noise pollution radiating 500 kilometers across the ocean and harmful to marine mammals
According to scientists, projected deep-sea mining might cause noise pollution that would radiate through the ocean for hundreds of kilometers, generating a “cylinder of sound” that would go from the surface to the sea bed. One mine’s noise alone could travel 500km (more than 300 miles) in calm weather, according to research by scientists from […]
Dolphins Use New York Harbor as a Feeding Ground, Study Finds
When you think of the New York Harbor, you might imagine boats, skyscrapers, a noisy traffic on the nearby streets of NYC. What you may not expect to find are dolphins. But according to a newly released study from Wildlife Conservation Society, the New York Harbor is a popular feeding ground for bottlenose dolphins from […]
Without a hunting ban, there is high chance that narwhals will become extinct in Greenland by 2025
Since he was a child, Hammeken Danielsen has been hunting narwhals. He and his father would cruise through the fjords of Greenland in a tiny speedboat, equipped with rifles and harpoons and clothed in polar-bear fur trousers and sealskin boots to keep warm in the cold. Danielsen, aged 33, is a licensed hunter in Ittoqqortoormiit, […]