November 2007
Our expert: Mark Simmonds (BSc 1980), International Director of Science for WDCS, the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society.
There are some special challenges associated with the conservation of whales and dolphins (collectively known as cetaceans), but securing public sympathy is typically not one of them. Cetaceans, particularly dolphins, are widely appreciated. However, as the UK’s overweight pet population testifies, it is easy to kill with kindness if there is a basic lack of understanding of an animal’s needs.
Most of us know very little about the marine environment beyond the beauty, diversity and scale conveyed by natural history programmes. It is understandable then that many of us mistakenly view the sea as a vast, homogenous body in which it should be possible for animals as intelligent as cetaceans to just move away from any threats. However, cetaceans have specific habitat requirements which make this impossible, including those with ranges that expose them to threats across international boundaries. As a result, activities such as fisheries, leisure and commercial boat traffic, marine industry (including fossil fuel exploration and extraction), and military sonar can have significant impact on particular populations. Not to mention the pervasive impact of climate change.
Ultimately, saving the whales and dolphins requires: a sound knowledge of their biology; the political will to save them (possibly at the expense of some marine industrial development); national, and international, legislation to underpin conservation plans (with adequate enforcement mechanisms); and a healthy marine environment. The best way to ensure that there is a political will to prioritise cetacean conservation is to harness the undoubted public enthusiasm and goodwill. Policy makers have a duty to respond to public concerns.
As a concerned individual, you can:
In the end the whales and dolphins will only survive if the human race wakes up to problems that they are facing and really works hard to keep them around.