Hebridean sightings soar for harbour porpoises but plunge for basking sharks

Minke whale next to Silurian

Harbour porpoise sightings off Scotland’s west coast increased by 25 per cent in 2014 compared to the previous year while sightings of basking sharks unexpectedly fell by 33 per cent, during marine research expeditions carried out by Hebridean Whale and Dolphin Trust.

 

The charity’s extensive research also revealed dramatic evidence of a shark attack on a member of an endangered group of killer whales thought to be the UK’s only resident population of orca.

 

The latest studies were carried out in a research

First whale week festival spotlights western Scotland’s internationally important marine life

Minke whale in Hebridean waters / HWDT

A new annual week-long festival boosting the profile of The Hebrides as an internationally-important hotspot for whale spotting and conservation action will be launched on World Oceans Day on 8 June, in what is believed to be the first event of its kind in Scotland.

 

Humpback whales, orcas and bottlenose dolphins will take over Tobermory on the Isle of Mull between 8-15 June 2014, as conservation charity Hebridean Whale and Dolphin Trust (HWDT) celebrates its 20^th anniversary with its

Hebridean expeditions to study killer whales at risk of extinction

The ‘West Coast Community’ of killer whales
– at risk of extinction

With the United Kingdom’s only known resident population of killer whales at risk of imminent extinction, securing new information about this endangered group is one of the ambitions of a new season of marine research expeditions launched by Hebridean Whale and Dolphin Trust (HWDT) this month.

 

In its 20th anniversary year, HWDT is recruiting volunteers to work alongside marine scientists in surveys running from May to October, to gather crucial data on