29 Oct 2024

Image: Gilles Lagne/Pixabay   In a new study published in the journal Royal Society Open Science, an international team sampled 34 groups of short-beaked and long-beaked common dolphins amounting to thousands of individuals, in experiments where simulated as well as operational military sonars were activated in carefully controlled conditions — or deliberately not played in […]

13 Aug 2024

In a recently published paper titled ‘Narwhal, beluga and bowhead whale responses to marine vessel traffic: A systematic map’ researchers looked at interactions between increases in marine vessel traffic and how Arctic whales respond to marine vessels and vessel-associated activities. Exposure to human activity Arctic whales (bowhead, narwhal, and beluga) have historically been shielded from […]

13 Aug 2024

As the international shipping industry continues to explore measures to conserve and protect underwater life, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) is proposing the future monitoring of Underwater Radiated Noise (URN), which may lead to the establishment of thresholds combined with long-term monitoring requirements for certain regions. Far reaching impacts Underwater noise from ships can significantly […]

20 Jun 2023

The Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS) released a landmark report aimed at addressing a major threat to marine species: noise pollution. Noise pollution is known to cause significant disturbance to marine wildlife, including migratory species protected under CMS such as whales and dolphins (and their prey). Such impacts can […]

31 Jan 2023

New legislation is being introduced to crack down on the dangerous misuse of watercraft such as jet skis, with the Maritime and Coastguard Agency being granted more powers to prosecute perpetrators of accidents. The new law will come into force on 31 March 2023, before the busy summer period and will enable watercraft users to […]

26 Jul 2022

New research published in the peer-reviewed journal Science examines the potential for underwater noise pollution from seabed mining operations, which could affect the understudied species that live in the deep sea—the largest habitat on Earth. The study by scientists from Oceans Initiative, the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST) in Japan, Curtin University in […]