IUCN – SSC Cetacean Specialist Group

Endangered

11 Sep 2018

Ten Updated Baleen Whale Red List Assessments Published in July 2018

Assessments or reassessments of 10 cetacean species, subspecies or populations were published on the IUCN Red List in July 2018. This is in addition to the 19 new assessments that were published in November 2017. The updated assessments were all baleen whales, and included the...

03 Feb 2018

Arabian Sea humpback whale tagged off the coast of Oman crosses to India!

In November 2017, a research team led by the Environment Society of Oman (ESO) and Five Oceans Environmental Services placed a satellite tag on a humpback whale in the Gulf of Masirah, Oman. First observed, photographed, and biopsied close to the same site in October...

15 Dec 2017

2017 Cetacean Red List Update

Assessments or reassessments of 19 cetacean species, subspecies and populations were published on the IUCN Red List in 2017. These included all four species of humpback dolphin, the Irrawaddy dolphin, two species of finless porpoise, the South Asian River dolphin, the beluga, the narwhal, and...

19 Jun 2017

Initiative to save Taiwanese white dolphins from extinction

Taiwanese white dolphins (Sousa chinensis taiwanensis) live in shallow nearshore waters along the west coast of Taiwan (= eastern Taiwan Strait). Researchers from Taiwan and elsewhere have been studying this small and declining population (currently < 75 individuals) since its discovery in 2002 (Wang et...

08 May 2017

Lost Indus dolphins in the Beas River, India

Indus River dolphins (Platanista gangetica minor) inhabit the Indus River system of Pakistan and India. Over the last 150 years, numerous irrigation barrages (gated dams) that divert river water into canals have been constructed in this system. As a result, the range of Indus dolphins...

03 Mar 2017

New Infographic from Arabian Sea Whale Network

After months of planning, the Arabian Sea Whale Network (ASWN) has finalized an infographic designed to raise awareness of the unique nature of Arabian Sea humpback whales and the urgent conservation challenges they face. The infographic is intended for dissemination to a wide range of stakeholders,...

23 Jan 2017

Progress on Chinese White Dolphin (CWD) Research and Conservation Initiative

The project previously described (see 29 June 2016 news item) has proceeded as planned over the past half-year. A stakeholder workshop organized by Ocean Park Conservation Foundation Hong Kong (OPCFHK) took place in Hong Kong on 10-13 January 2017. More than 55 participants, including fishermen,...

15 Aug 2016

Collaboration on humpback dolphin (Sousa plumbea) research and conservation in South and East Africa

Humpback dolphins in the Indian Ocean were recently recognised as a distinct species (Sousa plumbea) that occurs in coastal waters from South Africa to India. The species occurs in very near-shore habitat, generally in water less than 30 m deep and typically less than 2...

08 Jun 2016

IUCN Letter to the Indian Minister of Environment – Concern over the impact of India’s National Waterways Act on Ganges River dolphins

In early April attention was drawn to India's National Waterways Act 2016, which calls for massive reconfiguration of the Ganges and Brahmaputra river systems into inland waterways to facilitate transport cargo, coal, and industrial raw materials and to support tourism development. Given the serious implications...

20 Apr 2015

Conservation of the Arabian Sea Humpback Whale

[caption id="attachment_1958" align="alignright" width="3589"] A humpback whale named ‘Chomp’ breaches off the Dhofar coast of Southern Oman. A male, Chomp is a team favourite, having been encountered widely along the coast of Oman for almost 15 years (Darryl MacDonald/ESO)[/caption] The humpback whale population in the Arabian...

Endangered

Ten Updated Baleen Whale Red List Assessments Published in July 2018

Arabian Sea humpback whale tagged off the coast of Oman crosses to India!

2017 Cetacean Red List Update

Initiative to save Taiwanese white dolphins from extinction

Lost Indus dolphins in the Beas River, India

New Infographic from Arabian Sea Whale Network

Progress on Chinese White Dolphin (CWD) Research and Conservation Initiative

Collaboration on humpback dolphin (Sousa plumbea) research and conservation in South and East Africa

IUCN Letter to the Indian Minister of Environment – Concern over the impact of India’s National Waterways Act on Ganges River dolphins

Conservation of the Arabian Sea Humpback Whale

5th Asian Marine Mammal Stranding Network Symposium in Singapore

A global strategy to combat cetacean and other marine megafauna bycatch in the growing trade for fish maw (swim bladders)

The National Park and the Environmental Protection Area of Albardão: A New Outlook for the Franciscana and other Threatened Species in Brazil

Vaquita in the spotlight

🚨The Indianapolis Zoo Uproar Conservation Challenge presented by T-Fiber is here! 🚨

Gephyreus Project NewsLetter

HuDoNet releases Network Action Plan for the Indian Ocean humpback dolphin

Joint visual and acoustic survey finds vaquitas surviving and reproducing, mostly in and near the sanctuary

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IUCN – SSC Cetacean Specialist Group

LATEST UPDATES FROM BLUESKY

Latest Post

5th Asian Marine Mammal Stranding Network Symposium in Singapore

A global strategy to combat cetacean and other marine megafauna bycatch in the growing trade for fish maw (swim bladders)

The National Park and the Environmental Protection Area of Albardão: A New Outlook for the Franciscana and other Threatened Species in Brazil