Whales, Dolphins get new home in the Mediterranean

The first whale and dolphin sanctuary in the Mediterranean Sea was created last month in what scientists and conservationists alike are hailing as a huge step in the right direction. Ministers of the Environment of Italy, France and Monaco signed a treaty in Rome on Nov. 25, designating an area twice the size of Switzerland as a safe haven for marine mammals.

The new sanctuary lies between the French Cote d'Azur, Monaco, the Ligurian coast of Italy and the islands of Corsica and Sardinia. At more than 32,000 square miles, it will be the largest marine protected area in the Mediterranean.

Thirteen different whales and dolphins live in the sanctuary area, and seven can be seen there year-round. These are pilot whales, fin whales, sperm whales, common dolphins, striped dolphins bottlenose dolphins and Risso's dolphins.

The new sanctuary is the result of a 10-year effort led by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), Europe Conservation and other marine mammal protection groups. As part of the event in Rome, the new sanctuary was designated a Gift to the Earth under the WWF's Living Planet campaign.

The treaty creating the whale and dolphin sanctuary commits France, Italy and Monaco to coordinate monitoring activities and to intensify efforts against both land based and marine sources of pollution. The three countries will coordinate research programs and public awareness campaigns about the marine mammals and their environment.

"This is the first time in the Northern Hemisphere that several countries have established a marine protected area which includes international waters," said Dr. Claude Martin, the WWF's director-general. "It is a true reason to celebrate." According to Martin, the three countries will enforce the existing international ban on drift net fishing, as well as a new ban on offshore boating competitions. Martin added that the countries will work together to establish new supervisory guidelines for whale-watching activities.

The new protected area is the most important feeding ground for whales and dolphins. Here the number of dolpins and whales is two to four times higher than in the rest of the Mediterranean Sea. The nutritionally rich Ligurian Sea is inhabited by some 2,000 whales and between 25,000 and 45,000 dolphins during the summer months.

"The whales in the Mediterranean may not be under threat from Japanese hunters as in other parts of the world," said Luca Sabatini, director of the Italian wing of Europe Conservation. "But there are plenty of other threats in the shape of pollution, fishing and other offshore activities."

Go To Page: 1 2

Articles in this Topic    Discussions in this Topic