One day last July, a newborn humpback whale calf lay motionless on the seafloor, just a kilometre off Australia’s Gold Coast. The encounter was captured through underwater video. For more than an hour, the mother repeatedly returned to the same spot, gently touching the calf with her head and pectoral fin and resting beside it […]
Tag: pilot whales
Rare footage shows whales working together to support mother and her newborn – video
Scientists have managed to film a sperm whale giving birth while other female whales worked together to support the mother and her newborn. A team from Project Ceti, an international effort seeking to understand how whales communicate, was in a boat near a pod of 11 whales off the coast of the Caribbean island of Dominica on […]
Mass pilot whale stranding in Indonesia raises questions about ocean health
Villagers in central Indonesia rescued 34 short-finned pilot whales following a mass stranding on March 9, but despite their overnight efforts were unable to save 21 others. Mongabay Indonesia’s Ebed De Rosary reports that residents first discovered the pod in the shallow waters off Deranitan village, in East Nusa Tenggara province, at approximately 3:30 p.m. […]
10 fastest swimmers in the ocean, including one animal that can accelerate to nearly 80MPH quicker than a Porsche
Some species in the ocean live their lives at a breakneck pace – at least, when they need to. Whether it’s to catch their dinner or avoid becoming dinner, many animals can swim incredibly quickly. But which are the fastest? Of course, it’s almost impossible to know exactly how fast a fish can swim, as […]
Good Samaritans Stripped Down to Briefs to Rescue 3 Stranded Whales on Canadian Beach (WATCH)
Time was running out when Mark Rankin and Grant Cameron arrived on a Nova Scotia Beach earlier this week. After apparently swimming too close to shore, three pilot whales were found stranded at 9 a.m., with low tide quickly approaching. If the two friends didn’t intervene soon, the whales might never have a chance. One […]
Dozens of Whales Saved by Locals After Mass Stranding on Icelandic Beach
From a country that’s typically in the news for hurting whales comes the story of a mass-stranding event with a happy ending. Around 60 pilot whales, known locally as grindhvalur, were found stranded on Ólafsfjörður beach last Sunday. Locals and emergency crews rushed to the remote area in a desperate effort to save the mammals, […]
Iceland Pauses Fin Whale Slaughter—but the Fight Isn’t Over
This summer, Iceland’s only whaling company has halted its fin whale hunt, citing lack of demand in Japan. While it’s a rare moment of relief, it’s not a victory—Japan, Norway, and Iceland remain the only countries still conducting legal commercial whaling. Under the false banner of tradition and science, whales are still being killed—and the […]
Pregnant Pilot Whales and Calves Slaughtered in Faroe Islands Hunt
LEYNAR, FAROE ISLANDS – Sea Shepherd has confirmed the death toll from yesterday’s pilot whale hunt in the Faroe Islands (known as the Grindadráp, or “Grind”) has reached 246 individuals, far surpassing the whalers’ initial estimate of 100. Among them were at least 30 pregnant females, whose unborn calves were left to suffocate inside their […]