You’ll never forget your first killer whale sighting; in fact, you’ll probably never forget any killer whale sighting, especially when it happens in local waters; and for good reason. They are a species that have a unique ability to leave even the most neutral observer lost for words. I’ve been fortunate enough to have seen
Irish Basking Shark 2022 Season is underway There is a natural order as to how species of marine megafauna appear each year. Whilst always allowing for occasional outliers, the season generally starts slowly, building to a peak and then sightings taper off, till they’ve largely all left, presumably for pastures anew. The basking shark Cetorhinus
For thousands of years, whales, dolphins, and porpoises (cetaceans) have played an essential role in human culture and mythology. The ancient Greeks and Romans celebrated these sentient animals through storytelling, art, and poetry in which they represented intelligence and kindness. Held in high esteem, dolphins were closely linked with the gods. The sun god Apollo,
The IWDG would like to clarify our opinion on recent whale strandings of deep-diving whale species. Currently the IWDG cannot call this a UME – an Unusual Mortality Event. It is important to report all stranded cetaceans to the IWDG so we can identify any unusual trends. Deep-diving species, such as Cuvier’s beaked and sperm
‘Fair Seas’ campaign demanding fifteen-fold increase in Ireland’s Marine Protected Areas The IWDG are delighted to be part of the Fair Seas MPA campaign launched today. We are joining leading national environmental groups to launch a new campaign to rapidly expand Marine Protected Areas in Irish Waters. The Fair Seas campaign is calling for at
The IWDG made two requests to government in relation to planned and ongoing military Russian exercises outside the EEZ. we received no acknowledgment of either letter nor evidence that our concerns were raised. This is disappointing. we present both letters here to keep interested parties abreast of our efforts to protect Irish whales and dolphins
The IWDG support the recent call by the ISWFO and the IFPEA for a 10 year moratorium on military exercises within the Irish EEZ. The IWDG support fishers right to work without feeling threatened by military exercises, additionally such a moratorium would also greatly reduce the threat these exercises pose to whales and dolphins. While
Article by Dave Wall, Conservation Officer with the IWDG Between August and September 2018 more than 70 dead Cuvier’s and Sowerby’s beaked whales and Northern Bottlenose whales, washed ashore on the Atlantic coasts of Ireland and Scotland. All of the animals were in an advanced state of decomposition, indicating they had died offshore and spent
The IWDG has written to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Simon Coveney, to express concern over the potential impact on whales and dolphins of the proposed military exercise off southwest Ireland. Military exercises, especially when using active sonar, are known to have a potentially huge impact on marine mammals, especially deep-diving species. There have been
IWDG is very sad to hear of the passing of Don Cotton. Don was press-ganged into being the Chair of the IWDG when it was formed in December 1990. He brought instant credibility to our new group and ensured we maintained high scientific values and ambitions from the very start. Although Don was an