Greenpeace Tracks Whales From Space

Greenpeace tracks whales from space

Greenpeace today announced the launch of the "Great Whale Trail" *, a website which uses satellite tracking to show the migration of threatened humpback whales from their breeding grounds in the South Pacific to their feeding grounds in the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary.

The tracking project will produce vital scientific data on the whales' movements, habitat use and population structure. The website is also a window through which the public can follow their progress and learn more about the range of threats to marine life.

In stark contrast, under the guise of "scientific whaling", the Japanese whaling fleet intends to kill 935 minke whales, 50 endangered fin whales and 50 threatened humpback whales this year.

The inclusion of the larger fin and humpback whales means a four-fold increase in the overall weight of the whaling kill, in comparison to the smaller minke whales alone. The "Great Whale Trail" * non-lethal tracking programme is intended to show that whales don't need to die for science.

"In less than two months, the monitoring of the South Pacific whales has already generated valuable new scientific knowledge, and not a single whale has died in the process" said Greenpeace New Zealand's Oceans Campaigner Mike Hagler.

"Over the last 20 years of Japanese 'scientific research', thousands of whales have been killed, yet the quality and relevance of the scientific data to management is remarkably low. The tagging programme is producing real scientific results without firing a single harpoon."

Greenpeace fears that humpback whales from small, threatened populations in the South Pacific, where many countries have whale-watching industries, could be among those killed by the Japanese fleet.

"The whale meat which Japan brings back from the Southern Ocean provides virtually no income, whereas Pacific Island countries have developed whale watching into a multi-million dollar industry," said Mr Hagler. "The Japanese government's whaling programme is jeopardising the economies of whale-watching nations."

The "Great Whale Trail" * website also highlights the need for a global network of marine reserves which would provide over-exploited species with a chance of recovery.

Website http://www.greenpeace.org.nz/whale-trail

* The Great Whale Trail is a collaboration between Greenpeace and scientists working on humpback whales in the South Pacific. With financial support from Greenpeace, humpback whales from Rarotonga and New Caledonia have been satellite tagged by the Center for Cetacean Research and Opration Ctacs, respectively.

The whales' migration from their breeding areas in the South Pacific to the feeding grounds of the Southern Ocean is now being tracked in order to produce vital data on their movements, habitat use and population structure."

ENDS

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