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Ocean Noise: Top news

A Hidden Refuge: Blue Whale Migrations and the Costa Rican Thermal Dome

Blue whales are the largest animals on Earth, but their numbers were decimated by commercial whaling. Now, as blue and other whales recover, efforts are underway to protect special places used by the whales. One such place is the Costa Rica Thermal Dome, where blue whales congregate to mate and give birth.
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Tahlequah’s Story

Poor Tahlequah! A female orca swimming with the Southern Resident group off Seattle, she is famous for carrying the body of her dead calf around for weeks in 2018. Recently, she was spotted with yet another dead baby orca, doubling her grief and depriving the endangered population of another baby orca.
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Video: The Deadly Danger of Mining the Ocean Floor

With our oceans suffering from onshore pollution, oil drilling, and acidification associated with global warming, do we really need to add mining the seabed?
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Twelve Years After the Gulf Spill, Dolphins Still Hurting

Even after twelve years, dolphins are still dying in the Gulf of Mexico from the massive oil spill caused by the explosion of the Deepwater Horizon drilling platform. Yet, some in Congress, like Senator Joe Manchin, continue to push for offshore oil drilling.
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Gutting Environmental Laws for Oil is Ba-a-a-c-c-c-k!

With high gas prices, it is no surprise that the oil and gas industry are taking advantage to push extreme legislation to bypass environmental and health rules to favor streamlining drilling and pipeline projects. Senator Joe Manchin is back proposing to offer such amendments to must-pass Congressional legislation.
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The Arctic Circle: A Battle Between Fossil Fuels and Environmental Justice

The fight in the US Congress continues over whether or not to approve new leases for oil and gas drilling on public lands and offshore waters. Indigenous people are often shunted aside, and marine mammals suffer from noise, oil spills, and global warming.
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A Tribute to Pacific Northwest Orcas
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Photo Credit: Mark J. Palmer, IMMP

A great and moving tribute to the endangered orcas of the Pacific Northwest, "Spirits of the Coast" is a book for every orca lover.
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Campaign Top News

International Marine Mammal Project >
  • From pushing for sanctuaries for Wikie & Keijo and 30 beluga whales, to opposing attempts to gut the Endangered Species and Marine Mammal Protection Acts, to protecting wetlands in the Barataria basin, the International Marine Mammal Project has accomplished a great deal in 2025 for whales and dolphins.
  • What is it like being a student intern at the International Marine Mammal Project? An internship can be life-changing for a student. Our intern Jillian talks about her experience with IMMP.
  • From battling the whaling industry in Japan and Iceland, to exposing the continued slaughter of dolphins in Taiji, Japan, to saving the lives of tens of thousands of dolphins annually through Dolphin Safe tuna, the International Marine Mammal Project has accomplished a lot in 2024.
Save Japan Dolphins >
  • The Taiji dolphin drive hunts have again ended, killing hundreds of dolphins for meat after removing "show quality" animals for a miserable life in captivity. Numbers were slightly higher this year for slaughter, although historically low compared to recent years.
  • Three species of dolphins have been captured and slaughtered over the past month as the bloody Taiji dolphin drive hunts continue. Most of the dolphins you see in these photos are now dead. The hunts end on March 1st, but six months later, they will begin again.
  • A former dolphin trainer explains the damage done by dolphin and small whale captures in Taiji, Japan. Learn the facts about how the aquarium industry sources wild dolphins for a lifetime of misery in small concrete tanks.
Dolphin + Whale Project >
  • With only 380 individual whales remaining, the North Atlantic right whale population will decline if the killing of whales continues. Here's the story of two right whales, Division and Porcia's calf, both victims of our modern society, too much in a hurry.
  • Congress is considering passing HR 1897, legislation to comprehensively gut the federal Endangered Species Act, our most important wildlife law. You can help by urging your members of the House to vote NO on HR 1897.
  • In 2024, 95 large whales were reported entangled during the year. As many as 10 to 20 times as many whales may have been entangled and sunk, never to be recorded. Here is the story of these tragic entanglements in plastic fishing gear.
Keiko Whale Rescue >
  • Like most cetaceans, beluga whales do poorly in captivity. Many are now kept in aquariums around the world -- some get stranded once the aquarium or park goes broke and shuts down. Learn about the beluga whale, and why it is a bad idea to keep them in small concrete tanks.
  • We are deeply saddened at the death of orca whale Tokitae. Calls for her release were denied for decades and it’s shameful that she never got a chance to go home.
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    Tokitae (also known as Lolita) has died. Photo Credit: Dr. Ingrid Visser, Orca Research Trust

  • 30 years ago, the movie "Free Willy" was a huge hit. The plight of its orca star, Keiko, touched the public along with the moving story. Read how the International Marine Mammal Project took that spark of concern and returned Keiko to his home waters. SeaWorld and other captive dolphin parks would never be the same!
Dolphin Safe Fishing >
  • Every year, we estimate that the Dolphin Safe label on tuna cans saves the lives of 90,000 dolphins annually in the Eastern Tropical Pacific Ocean, and many more in other oceans of the world. You, as a consumer, should know how the Dolphin Safe label works to protect dolphins in global tuna fisheries.
  • A new Marine Mammal Protection Act has been proposed for the Philippines, with strong support from our IMMP Philippines office, with the support of Representative Co. Read about this new legislation to protect endangered species like the Irrawaddy dolphin and other Filipino whales and dolphins.
  • Trixie Concepcion heads up our active office for dolphins in the Philippines. A major tuna fishing nation, plus an island nation with many local cetaceans, provides opportunities for Trixie and her staff to tackle major environmental issues in that country and the Western Pacific Ocean.
Freeing Orca Whales from Captivity >
  • The orcas Wikie and her son Keijo are still trapped in Marineland in France. Marineland wants the orcas to go to Loro Parque Zoo, an aquarium in Spain with one of the worst records of captive orca deaths. IMMP is urging the French government to instead retire Wikie and Keijo to a seaside sanctuary in Nova Scotia.
  • Captivity in small concrete aquarium tanks is hard and often fatal for whales and dolphins. Dr. Lori Marino and her colleagues have laid out the issues for cetaceans in captivity in a new scientific article, building a powerful scientific case for ending captivity for whales and dolphins.
  • Four captive orcas died in their concrete tanks in 2025, never to see or feel the ocean ever again. This tragic death march will continue until all captive cetaceans are retired to seaside sanctuaries. Learn about Katina, Kshamenk, Earth, and Kamea -- all dead.
Freeing Wikie & Keijo >

Topics

Angel - Bans, Legislation - Belugas - Biden Administration - Captivity Industry - Cetacean Habitat - China - Climate Change - Covid-19 - Demonstrations - Dolphin And Whale Trade - Dolphin Safe Tuna - Dolphins - Dugong - Earth Day - Entanglement - Grey Whales - Grindadrap - Iceland - International Whaling Commission - Japan - Keiko - Lawsuit - Marine National Monuments - Navy, Military - Norway - Offshore Oil & Oil Spills - Orcas - Philippines - Pilot Whales - Plastic Pollution - Pollution - Rehabilitation, Release - Russia - Sanctuaries - Science - Seaworld - Slaughter - Solomon Islands - Taiji, Japan - Trump Administration - Tuna Industry - Vaquita - Whales - Whaling - Mystic Aquarium - Marineland - Seals & Sea Lions - Marine Protected Areas - Sperm Whale - Sea Otter - Lolita - Tokitae - Miami Seaquarium - Latin America - Ship Strikes - Ocean Noise - Salmon - Blue Whale - Fin Whale - Right Whale - Us Marine Mammal Protection Act - Environment - Minke Whale - Humpback Whale - Gray Whale - Mexico - Endangered Species Act