Whales : No mass strandings since sonar ban (Canary islands, Spain)

May 21th, 2013. Scientists from Institute of Animal Health at University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria and SECAC led by Dr. Antonio Fernández have published conclusions on cetacean strandings´research done during the last 9 years. Causes of stranding and death have been investigated on each stranded whale and dolphin in the Canary Islands.

Prompt political action may have resulted in a remarkable conservation success for whales and dolphins. The Canary Islands used to be a hotspot for mass strandings, but there have been no mass beachings since the Spanish government imposed a moratorium on naval exercises in these waters in 2004.

Naval sonar operations have long been implicated in mass strandings, particularly of beaked whales (R. Filadelfo et al. Aquat. Mamm. 35, 435–444; 2009). In 2002, the stranding of 14 beaked whales in the Canary Islands was linked to the use of mid-frequency naval sonar in the area (P. D. Jepson et al. Nature 425, 575–576; 2003). In 2004, four Cuvier’s beaked whales (Ziphius cavirostris) were stranded there after an international naval exercise (A. Fernández et al. J. Mar. Sci. Res. Dev. 2, 2; 2012).

These events prompted the Spanish moratorium and led the European Parliament to issue a non-binding resolution in 2004 to stop the deployment of high-intensity sonar until the completion of a global assessment of its cumulative effects on marine life.

Citation : Whales: No mass strandings since sonar ban

Antonio Fernández, Manuel Arbelo, Vidal Martín

Nature 497, 317 (16 May 2013), doi:10.1038/497317d