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World’s whales and dolphins face extinction\

Nearly a quarter of the world’s whale and dolphin species are known to be threatened with extinction, according to the newly released cetacean update of the IUCN Red List. And for many others, a question mark still hangs over their heads.

However, the IUCN has moved the humpback whale from the category of Vulnerable to Least Concern, in a move that has been criticised by WDCS, the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society. Moving this species to the category of Least Concern means that it is considered to be at low risk of extinction, however, the IUCN has apparently failed to take into consideration the very real factor of climate change affecting this species.

Mark Simmonds, Director of Science for WDCS said: “We expect that many of the ocean’s great whales, including the humpback whale, will be affected by the changes in the seas caused by climate change, and particularly those found in polar regions. In fact, most of the world’s great whales feed in polar regions where climate-driven changes are now happening swiftly.”

“The IUCN has taken the affects of climate change into consideration in the case of the polar bear, and the same now needs to be done with the humpback whale and other whale species.”

Climate change can affect the distributions of whales, with the potential for a cascade of effects such as exposure to new diseases, competition with other species and changes in prey populations. As local conditions change, populations of krill, which Antarctic great whales depend on for food, may decline.

Protection from hunting has led to an increase in the population of both humpback whales and also southern right whales, which have both been moved to the category of Least Concern. However, overall almost a quarter of cetacean species are considered threatened with extinction, and of those more than 10% are listed as Endangered or Critically Endangered, which are the highest categories of threat.

And the real situation could be much worse than this, as more than half the cetacean species are classed as Data Deficient, which means that future research into these animals needs to be a priority, as it is a real possibility that more species could be in danger.

With less whale hunting over recent decades, accidental killing in fishing gear has become the main threat to whales and dolphins, but these animals are also threatened by manmade underwater noise, chemical pollution, climate change and there are still thousands of animals hunted each year.

Mark Simmonds added: “With so many threats facing the world’s whales and dolphins it is essential that the IUCN Red List is accurate in its category listings, so that we can ensure appropriate protection measures are put in place. Taking into account real and current threats such as climate change is the only way that this can be achieved.”

Species currently listed as Critically Endangered:

Svaalbard-Barents Sea bowhead whale (subpopulation)
Antarctic blue whale (subspecies)
Mauis dolphin (subspecies)
Cook Inlet beluga whale (subpopulation)
Northwest Pacific grey whale (subpopulation)
Chile-Peru right whale (subpopulation)
Northeast Pacific right whale
Baiji (possibly extinct)
Ayeyarwady River Irrawaddy dolphin (subpopulation)
Mahakam River Irrawaddy dolphin (subpopulation)
Mekong River Irrawaddy dolphin (subpopulation)
Songkhla Lake Irrawaddy dolphin (subpopulation)
Baltic Sea Harbour Porpoise (subpopulation)
Vaquita
Eastern Taiwan Strait humpback dolphin (subpopulation)
Species currently listed as Endangered:
Okhotsk Sea bowhead whale (subpopulation)
Sei whale
Blue whale
Fin whale
Hectors dolphin
Mediterranean common dolphin (subpopulation)
North Atlantic right whale
North Pacific right whale
Arabian Sea humpback whale (subpopulation)
Oceania humpback whale (subpopulation)
Yangtze finless porpoise (subspecies)
Black Sea harbour porpoise (sunspecies)
South Asian river dolphin
Ganges dolphin
Indus River dolphin (subspecies)
Black Sea bottlenose dolphin (subspecies)
Species currently listed as Data Deficient:
Antarctic minke whale
Brydes whale complex
Pygmy blue whale (subspecies)
Omuras whale
Arnouxs beaked whale
Bairds beaked whale
Pygmy right whale
Commersons dolphin
Heavisides dolphin
Long-beaked common dolphin
Pygmy killer whale
Short-finned pilot whale
Long-finned pilot whale
Northern bottlenose whale
Tropical bottlenose whale
Boto
Pygmy sperm whale
Dwarf sperm whale
Peales dolphin
Dusky dolphin
Southern right whale dolphin
Sowerbys beaked whale
Andrews beaked whale
Hubbs beaked whale
Blainvilles beaked whale
Gervais beaked whale
Ginkgo-toothed beaked whale
Grays beaked whale
Hectors beaked whale
Strap-toothed whale
Trues beaked whale
Perrins beaked whale
Pygmy beaked whale
Stejnegers beaked whale
Spade-toothed whale
Killer whale
Spectacled porpoise
Burmeisters porpoise
False killer whale
Tucaxi
Clymene dolphin
Atlantic spotted dolphin
Spinner dolphin
Shepherds beaked whale
Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphin

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