A Vigil for Maui's and Hector's Dolphins

30th October 2014 and Dr Barbara Maas and Dr Liz Slooten, Champions of the smallest and one of the most threatened sub-species of dolphin, the Maui’s Dolphin, came to New Zealand House in London to hand over a petition of over 156,000 signatures to the New Zealand High Commission. From an estimated 1800 40 years ago, today there are only 50 Maui’s Dolphins left and they are only found around the North Island of New Zealand. While there are more Hector’s Dolphins (the other sub-species which are only found around the South Island of New Zealand) they too are in need of urgent protection. Both are at severe risk of entanglement in set-net fishing gear. The Maui’s Dolphin in particular is on the edge of extinction. 

Morgan, and mini Maui's and the Petition

What do they need? Full and complete protection from harmful fishing methods across their range. The world’s leading independent scientists, including those from the International Whaling Commission, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), the Society for Marine Mammalogy, and World Cetacean Alliance partners including Dr Maas herself, all agree. So do 156,523 members of the public. People who do not want to see this small, charismatic, endemic and unique dolphin disappear; People who want future generations to be able to see these dolphins, wild and free. 

Our little Morgan feels the same. With WCA partners Rachael Barber and Isabelle Sikora, Morgan joined a small but dedicated group of Maui’s and Hector’s Dolphins advocates to watch as Dr Maas and Dr Slooten handed over the results of this petition. 

Then with the red buses, taxis and general London traffic rumbling behind us, we handed out leaflets and cheered every honk for Maui’s and Hector’s Dolphin. 

Find out more about Hector’s and Maui’s Dolphin and the campaign to protect them at www.hectorsdolphin.com or the Hector’s and Maui’s Dolphin SOS Facebook page www.facebook.com/groups/hectorsandmauissos. Why not follow them on Twitter @HectorsMauisSOS, and let’s make as much noise for these the Hobbits of the Sea. 

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A Ship of Discovery

The US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Okeanos Explorer, ‘America’s Ship for Ocean Exploration’ is the only federally funded US ship dedicated to explore our ocean. Why? Because the ocean is 95% unexplored, unseen and unknown, and yet humans rely heavily on its natural resources. To understand, manage and protect the ocean and its resources NOAA believes it is important to explore, understand, discover, inform and educate. Our little Morgan thinks so too. This ship of discovery is packed with a huge variety of sensors and systems, from multi-beam sonar for high resolution mapping of the seafloor down to 6,000 m to plankton sampling kit and Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROVs) that can collect samples. This telepresence-enabled ship not only sends live images and data to scientists onshore, but also streams seafloor images and interviews from sea into classrooms, newsrooms and living rooms. 

This week our little Morgan joined Patricia Sullivan and Paul DiGangi from WCA partner Cetacean Society International, at a workshop at the University of Rhode Island Graduate School of Oceanography provided by NOAA on this wonderful exploration vessel. 

Morgan at the University of Rhode Island

Over the course of the workshop Morgan learned about Exploration vs. Research, the ships telespresence, multi beam mapping, water column investigations, underwater robots, wet maps, Conductivity Temperature Depth (CTD) sensors and image analysis. Morgan participated in experiences such as water quality testing, creating a robot with hydraulics, understanding fractals (a never-ending pattern; infinitely complex patterns that are self-similar across different scales) and the notion of the increase in complexity the deeper we study the ocean. 

Testing water quality

The visit culminated in a tour of the command centre for Okeanos where Morgan saw archived video footage of live exploration of the sea floor from around the globe! 

Workshop over there was time to enjoy a little of the beach, soaking up the New England autumn sunshine before heading on to Connecticut with Patti, ready for her next adventure....

Loving the New England coastline

In the meanwhile why not check out NOAA's website for the Okeanos Explorer and Cetacean Society International. Why not check out more photos from Morgan's adventure on her Facebook page.

Iceland - Land of Ice and Fire... and Whales!

Venturing north from the Bay of Biscay our little Morgan heads to the land of ice and fire, and the waters of whales, Iceland. With WCA partner Suzanne Rogers our little Morgan set about exploring this island in the north of the Atlantic. Her tour included a visit to the Blue Lagoon, hot springs and geysirs whose spouts of water remind Morgan of those giant Blue Whales in the Azores. 

An Icelandic geysir

A few overnight stops in wild, rugged, beautiful, mountainous places Morgan and her friends arrive in Husavik, the whale watching capital of Iceland. With many whale watching companies operating here, Morgan was careful to chose a responsible, ethical company and went with North Sailing. There are no laws regulating whale watching here, and guidelines are voluntary. In an increasingly competitive industry not all whale watching companies operate responsibly with some actively chasing whales and getting too close. Sadly our little Morgan even saw some of this behaviour while out on her trip, while her boat kept a distance another boat raced in too close. Still Morgan, onboard a Schooner, was keen to get out there and try to see some whales responsibly. The signs were good, the crew had heard reports the those mighty Blue Whales were in the area and heading out to that bay Morgan and her friends were not disappointed with a group of five or six whales letting them hang out with them! With a lingering trace of snow and ice on mountains behind it was a magic moment for Morgan to meet these giants again. Heading back to shore and they saw a Minke Whale fully breach five times!

Iceland's magical scenery

Subsequent trips out from Husavik encountered more Minke Whales, a Humpback Whale and even many Harbour Porpoise – usually so difficult to see because they are small, fast and don’t show much of their body above water but the sea conditions allowed great viewing of these the smallest species of cetacean (whales, dolphins and porpoises) in the North Atlantic.

For our little Morgan seeing Minke Whales brings mixed feelings as they are still hunted in Iceland. Indeed in Reykjavik (Iceland’s capital city) the whaling ships share a harbour with the whale watching boats and just a few days previously a German tourist had made international news by chaining himself to a whaling ship in protest against Iceland’s whaling activity. It is difficult not to be concerned that the whales Morgan and her friends saw might not survive the whaling season and to wonder whether getting used to whale watching boats puts them in more danger from the whaling ships. Overall it is considered best to support the whale watching industry to prove that whales are worth more alive than dead. Astoundingly it is the tourists that are driving the demand for whale meat – most of the whale meat consumed in Iceland is by tourists, sometimes the very same people who go whale watching! A campaign by the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) called Meet Us Don’t Eat Us aims to raise awareness about the issues regarding eating whales and also to encourage tourists to support whale friendly restaurants. The campaign is very visible not just in Reykjavik but also in Husavik.

Once in Reykjavik our little Morgan couldn’t resist the chance to go whale watching again, and heading out with Elding – a tour company with a firm focus on education and concern for the animals. They also have a whale centre ingeniously created in a converted ship through which tourists must pass to reach the whale watching vessel. It contains cetacean skeletons and information about the animals and their plight. On the trip Morgan once again saw Minke Whales and enjoyed the very informative commentary, which also highlighted environmental issues and the health of the oceans as well as that of individual animals.

Elding's Science Officers

For Morgan one of the best parts of whale watching (apart from seeing whales!) is the other passengers – exchanging tales of previous whale watching trips with fellow whale enthusiasts and being there when some people see a whale in the wild for the very first time. On one trip our little Morgan met the Wildlife Society of Manchester University, a truly passionate group of students and alumni – with such future cetacean advocates the future certainly looks bright.

After ten days amazing days it was time for our little Morgan to plan her next adventure but a little part of her is still happily gazing out to sea looking for whales off the beautiful coast of Iceland.

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Ocean Giants in the Azores

The Azores, a group of nine volcanic islands in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by deep water and smack bang in the pathway of migration routes of some of the largest creatures on our planet. The people of the Azores have a strong affinity with the sea, and whales in particular, having hunted particularly sperm whales right up until the early 1980s. But this was not mass scale, explosive harpoon hunting, this was a few men, in small boats, using oar and sail to chase these leviathans and hand-thrown harpoons to capture them. Since then boats have gone out in search of whales, not to capture them but to watch them, and the Azores is now known as one of the best places on Earth to watch whales and dolphins.

A mighty fin whale surfaces near our little Morgan. Image: Joao Quaresma

Over 24 species have been recorded, with many being resident year round including dolphins like common and bottlenose dolphins, but even groups of young and female sperm whales. Between April and June however sees the seasonal migration through these waters of true ocean giants, humpback, fin, sei and the mighty blue whale. Each of which has suffered dramatic declines due to whaling.

Reports from whale watch operators in the Azores, including many partners of the WCA, is that this is year is one of the most abundant in terms of baleen whales (whales like blue, sei, fin and humpback that have no teeth but bristly plates called baleen that hang from the top jaw and filter food from the water). Out little Morgan was keen to find out more and see these incredible animals up close and personal.

So joining Helen Bailey, Ruth and Mike Jones our little Morgan set out on an adventure with Amanda Stafford’s Whale and Dolphin Connection, and went whale watching from the island of Pico with Espaco Talassa, one of the original whale watching companies that not only takes passengers out to see these creatures but collects data on sightings and individuals through photo identification techniques.

Morgan, Helen and Rachel

Amanda, Rachel and our little Morgan

Zooming across the ocean on fast RIB against a background of splendid mountains, day after day Morgan’s group came across whale after whale and dolphin after dolphin. The water swirled a greenish blue colour, thick with microscopic plants called phytoplankton and feeding on these are tiny animals called zooplankton. Together these form the basis of the entire ocean food chain, feeding fish, squids, dolphins and whales.

Everyday there were blue whales, surfacing with powerful blows, lifting their giant tail flukes high into the air. There were mixed groups of fin and blue whales, and dolphins surfing the waves the whales created. Curious fin whales hanging around the boat, meandering around it and gliding under and alongside, so close that Morgan and everyone got caught by their smelly, wet breath. Then there were whales that powered through the water, almost clearing the surface, doing a kind of mini-breach and surfing over the top of each other. Next there were humpback whales, hanging out with sperm whales and their calves, hanging out with fin whales, curiously approaching the slowly moving boat, diving underneath boat and waves, lifting their flukes with a curtain of water dripping along the trailing edge. Amongst all this giant whale action there were dolphins, from common to bottlenose, striped to Risso’s.

A true ocean giant - the blue whale

What an incredible experience for our little Morgan and everyone onboard, watching and learning about these incredible animals, up close and personal, and importantly in the wild.   

Thanks to Whale and Dolphin Connection for taking little Morgan on a fantastic adventure in the Azores.

Discovering Penzance

The catamaran cut through the waters off the west Cornish coast, carrying a group of excited passengers, their expert guides and our little Morgan. With the sails up the impact on the marine environment through which it glides is reduced. The diverse and varied coastline of West Cornwall, with its wide, golden beaches and dramatic cliffs, is matches by its diverse and varied marine life. From minke whales to common, bottlenose and Risso’s dolphin, not to mention those harbour porpoise, to seals, sharks, sunfish, and a multitude of seabirds. Morgan is onboard Marine Discovery Penzance’s Shearwater II as they explore the marine wildlife off the coast of this corner of south west England.

Marine Discovery Penzance is a member of Whale Watch International, a partnership of whale watch operators committed to a sustainable future for whale and dolphin watching. They operate with a code of conduct when watching marine wildlife, collect plastic, work with leading marine charities and collect research during their trips including collecting effort based sightings data and conducting photo-ID on the dolphins, seals and sharks encountered.

Morgan and WCA Malcolm in the
Marine Discovery Penzance office

As our little Morgan learned, collecting data helps us improve our knowledge and understanding of our marine environment and its creatures which in turn helps to conserve and protect them. As a wildlife watching company Marine Discovery Penzance is in a perfect position to collect data as they are out on the water pretty much every day (weather allowing!). In recognition of their all their work and they way they conduct their operations, Marine Discovery Penzance won the prestigious Responsible Whale and Dolphin Watch Operator of the Year in 2013! So Morgan couldn’t have been in better hands to experience what this marine environment had to offer.

Onboard the Shearwater II

On Morgan’s trip the group was treated with views of harbour porpoise, grey seals, loads of seabirds and giant basking sharks! While not a whale or dolphin, basking sharks are an incredible part of the UK’s marine environment. The second largest fish in the world they can reach up to 11 m in length (that’s the length of a double decker bus!). They are seen very often off Cornwall, and the west coast of the UK right up to Scotland, during the summer months. These big fish feed on tiny tiny zooplankton (little animals in the water) which during the summer are often found concentrated in surface waters around headlands. Following its food to the surface waters means these sharks are easily seen. Unlike whales and dolphins which must surface to breathe air, basking sharks take oxygen from the water through their gills. Opening their massive mouths the sharks filter their food from the water also over their gills, they filter about 2000 cubic meters of water an hour – the same volume of water it takes to fill an Olympic-size swimming pool!

Basking shark

Our little Morgan watches with excitement, along with everyone else, as a shark swims by, its large dorsal fin slicing through the water followed by the tip of its tail fin. Her trip today has taught her there is so much varied and wonderful wildlife in our oceans, all of which need our help and protection. 

Find out more about Marine Discovery Penzance here, and find other responsible whale watching companies at the Whale Watch International website. 

Strumble Head Survey

Easter weekend, the sun was out (well mostly) and Morgan was off on a new adventure in Pembrokeshire, West Wales, joining WCA partner Malcolm Barradell and the charity Sea Trust for a harbour porpoise survey at Strumble Head. Sea Trust is a community interest company based in Fishguard surveying whales and dolphins in the seas off Pembrokeshire. The company runs boat based surveys, as well as conducted surveys from the ferry between Fishguard and Ireland, in addition to conducting land based surveys from Strumble Head.

Morgan at Strumble Head

Beyond the surveys and research Sea Trust run regular activities with local school children and events to raise awareness of local issues affecting marine life within Welsh coastal waters. In addition Sea Trust, in association with Pembrokeshire College runs Wildlife Observer Wales training courses, ranging from Seabird Observing for Beginners, Whale and Dolphin Observing for Beginners to Seabird and Cetacean Monitoring courses. A fantastic way for people of all ages and interest to get involved.

Bank Holiday Monday and our little Morgan was taking part in an organised land based survey mainly for harbour porpoise, the smallest species of cetacean (whales, dolphins and porpoises) inhabiting European waters. Harbour porpoise are widely distributed around the UK coast, with their near shore distribution bringing them into close contact with human activities, in particular high numbers of harbour porpoise are caught each year in fishing nets as bycatch, levels that are not sustainable at a population level. Strumble Head attracts large numbers of harbour porpoise in part due to the strong tides providing super feeding habitat. Sea Trust continues to work in order to establish the area as a marine protected area. 

Scanning for cetaceans

Today for Morgan and all the others busily scanning the racing water off the headland it was not just the harbour porpoises that turned up, but a group of very active Risso’s dolphin! With their blunt, rounded heads, tall sickle shaped dorsal fin and their bodies heavily scarred with white scratches the Risso’s were unmistakable. Pembrokeshire forms one hotspot for Risso’s dolphin around the UK and the species is regularly seen during such watches especially during winter periods. Just another indication of the importance of this beautiful little corner of Wales. 

Breaching Risso's Dolphin!

Find out more about Sea Trust at www.seatrust.org.uk and find out more about the WCA at www.worldcetaceanalliance.org.

Stop the Orca Circus

The World Cetacean Alliance and many other charities and individuals believe that keeping whales and dolphins in captivity for entertainment is morally and ethically wrong. Our little Morgan feels the same. The heartbreak suffered by Morgan who instead of being returned to the waters off Norway where her family is found, was sent to Loro Parque to live her days in what is basically a bath tub, is shared by many other Orca’s. To date 19 of the 53 Orca’s in captivity were wild caught, from Lolita taken from the waters of Puget Sound off Washington State in 1970 to Narnia and six other Orca taken from Russian waters in 2012 and 2013. Then there is Tilikum, taken from Iceland in 1983, involved in the deaths of three people and the focus of the film Blackfish. Since 1961 at least 144 Orca have been taken into captivity from the wild, 87% are dead. Of the 33 Orca’s born in captivity and have since died they survived an average of 4.5 years (source: WDC The Fate of CaptiveOrcas in 2014). And that is just for Orca, not considering the other dolphins kept in captivity and performing to entertain, from belugas to bottlenose dolphins.

There are a number of campaigns, demonstrations and petitions calling on companies like SeaWorld that hold captive whales and dolphins to set them free or to retire them to sea pens. Such campaigns, petitions and movies like Blackfish show the power of people. The more people that stand up and say ‘No, this is wrong’ the more likely organisations like SeaWorld will and have to listen. And it is working. Concerts being cancelled at SeaWorld where revenue is down, a bill proposed to end killer whale shows in California, Sir Richard Branson’s engagement process looking at captive whales and dolphins – to name but a few.

To keep the momentum going The World Cetacean Alliance and Responsible Travel have launched a new campaign called Say No to Orca Circuses. We at Follow Free Morgan have signed the petition and would encourage everyone who believes as we do, that keeping whales and dolphins in captivity for entertainment is wrong, to do the same.

So stand up with our little Morgan, be part of the movement and help make Orca’s and all dolphins performing for public entertainment history.   

Sign the petition and find out more www.responsibletravel.com/stop-orca-circus

Signing the petition! #NoOrcaCircus

Morgan at WhaleFest 2014

And so after the excitement, passion and euphoria of the release of the life-sized inflatable Orca called Morgan, our little Morgan was off to WhaleFest 2014.

The world’s biggest festival celebrating whales and dolphins, this year’s event was raising money for the World Cetacean Alliance and the Long Swim to Freedom campaign raising awareness of Morgan the Orca held in Loro Parque and the fight to save the Maui’s dolphins.

Never had our little Morgan been somewhere with so many people who are as passionate about whales and dolphins as she is. There was virtual whale watching, where you could actually go whale watching in the Azores without even leaving the Hilton Hotel! There was a submarine experience that took you underwater around the world. Experts and artefacts let you get up close to bones, skulls, plankton and even a real narwhal tusk! An inflatable life-sized humpback whale, based on a real humpback whale named Nile that lives off the coast of the USA which you could actually go inside! Face painting, crafts, activity books, stories read by the authors, shark activities and informative short talks in spouting off…

Nile the life-sized inflatable humpback whale

On an incredible main stage with a screen big enough to fill a house, experts gave inspiring talks on whales and dolphins; from orca researcher and champion of the ‘Free Morgan’ campaign Dr Ingrid Visser, orca captivity expert Dr Naomi Rose, ex-SeaWorld trainer Samantha Berg, champion of New Zealand’s Maui’s and Hector’s dolphins Dr Barbara Maas to Will Travers and Virginia McKenna from the Born Free Foundation. Alongside these were style Guru Gok Wan, Miranda Krestovnikoff from the One Show, Rob Piley producer of the recent BBC Spy in the Pod, and his spy-cams, the very popular Steve Backshall from the BBC’s Deadly 60 and an incredible traditional Maori haka from Ngāti Rānana.

BBC's Spy in the Pod on the WhaleFest Main Stage

Surrounding all these going’s on, intermixed with all the activity, bustle and fun were exhibitor stands of whale watching companies, charities and Non-Government Organisations (NGOs) from around the world. From Canada, to the Azores, to Antarctica there were glossy brochures, beautiful pictures and stunning videos. Charities like the Free Morgan Foundation, NABU International (with their focus on Maui’s dolphins), International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) and Born Free Foundation, to UK based ones like Sea Watch Foundation and ORCA. There were representatives from the WCA and Whale Watch International, a global partnership of responsible whale watching companies.

From the issues of bycatch to plastics in our ocean and everything in between WhaleFest truly was a celebration and a success with over £10,000 raised for the WCA and the Long Swim to Freedom campaign.

And then when it felt like things could not get any better there was the cake. But not just any cake, a choccywoccydodah cake! With thick layers of white chocolate moulded into the shape of a whale, orca and dolphin. It was simply delicious and bets of all the most important people of WhaleFest got to eat it. The volunteers. 

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