Rare sei whale near Scotland

July 2011. Aerial photos taken by a Scottish paramedic of a large whale between Islay and Gigha off the west coast of Scotland have intrigued international scientists on both sides of the Atlantic. On balance they believe the sighting is most likely to be of a very rare Sei whale (Balaenoptera borealis): here.

September 2011. A whale has become stranded and died in the Humber Estuary close to Yorkshire Wildlife Trust’s Spurn nature reserve near Hull. The whale, which measures 10.1 metres in length, is currently unidentified although is thought to be a Sei whale: here.

Sei whale strands on Northumberland beach: here.

Pilot whales die after Highland beaching Scotland. BBC: here.

July 2011. The Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society (WDCS) has welcomed a decision by the US Secretary of Commerce which recommends a series of strong actions, including the possibility of trade sanctions, be imposed on Iceland over its commercial whaling and trade in whale products, and WDCS now calls on President Obama to back the Secretary’s bold stance: here.

This is a Dutch video about whales.

July 2011. In a major rescue of stranded whales in the Kyle of Durnes in the north west of Scotland, as many as 44 Pilot whales have been returned to open sea, though sadly, as many as 25 are thought to have died: here.

Was pollution responsible for mass stranding of pilot whales? Here.

ICELAND: New Push to Get Whales Off the Table: here.

Iceland won’t catch any fin whales this year: here.

September 2011: More than 100 tonnes of whale products from Iceland’s endangered Fin whales was exported in July – despite the pending threat of US trade sanctions: here.

In addition to echolocation, Guiana dolphins can sense the electric fields of their prey – the first time this has been seen in mammals: here.

Whales navigate ancient sea route for the first time in 10,000 years: here.

Shrinking ice said to reopen major Arctic passage for whales: here.

Conserving Thailand’s whales, dolphins and porpoises: here.

Teen solo sailor Laura Dekker asks Japan to stop whaling: here.

October 2011. The International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) is disappointed but not surprised that Japan’s whaling fleet is reportedly planning a return to Antarctica later this year to kill more whales for its dying market: here.