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Dolphin in Brazil helping with fishing illustration

Dolphins and fishermen working together

Kidzone - quick links Fun Facts Curious kids Blogs Fantastic fundraisers Gallery Splish and Splash...
Gray whale (eschrichtius robustus) Gray whale in Ojo de liebre lagoon Baja California.

Why we’re walking for whales to save the world

We've got enormous ambitions when it comes to fighting climate breakdown, and so two members...
Dolphins with keepers in the new Windsor Safari Park. Image: PA Images/Alamy Stock Photo

Three decades on from UK’s last dolphin show, what needs to change?

The UK hasn't had captive whales and dolphins on display for 30 years, but it's...
Fishers' involvement is crucial. Image: WDC/JTF

When porpoises and people overlap

We're funding a project in Hong Kong that's working with fishing communities to help save...
Whale evolution cover

How did whales end up living in the ocean?

Kidzone - quick links Fun Facts Curious kids Blogs Fantastic fundraisers Gallery Splish and Splash...
Fishers chatting

Scottish fishers working with us to reduce risks to whales

Small changes to fishing gear could make a big difference to whales around Scotland, and...

Mindful conservation – why we need a new respect for nature

'We should look at whales and dolphins as the indigenous people of the seas -...
tins of whale meat

How Japan’s whaling industry is trying to convince people to eat whales

Japan's hunters kill hundreds of whales every year despite the fact that hardly anyone in...

Snow White Whales

Moby Dick may be the most famous white whale, but belugas are the true snowy natives of the sea.  They don’t always have their strikingly bright skin shade, however.  Belugas are born dark blueish or brownish gray, and gradually lighten as they age, until they are the solid white that they’re famous for.  Even then, they keep some of the darker pigment around the very edges of their flukes and flippers.  Their bright white appearance is an adaptation that helps them blend in among the arctic ice, giving them a little extra protection from predators’ eyes. 

Baby belugas in captivity are still born with their dark coloring, but captive breeding attempts have been largely unsuccessful, and most babies don’t survive to develop their famous beluga coloring.  The dwindling captive population is the main impetus behind this effort to import wild belugas.  The Georgia Aquarium wants to import these wild belugas to maintain the captive population of belugas in the US; they’re taking 18 individuals away from the only life they’ve known – in the wild, wide ocean – and putting them in tanks, all in the name of genetic diversity.  Prior to this effort, there have been no attempts to import wild whales and dolphins into captivity for 20 years.  Taking these belugas out of the wild is not a conservation issue – 18 healthy individuals are being removed from their homes and family groups; some of the belugas were so young when they were taken, they may have still been nursing.  These belugas should never know captivity after experiencing normal life in the wild, and their babies shouldn’t be born in tanks, where they have a very low chance of survival.

For this week’s sponsor, we’re telling Microsoft, a company that strives to incorporate their environmental principles into their business relationships, that we don’t want these wild belugas to know life inside a tank.  Tell them: “Microsoft, you want to be a leader in environmental responsibility – putting wild whales in captivity is not responsible! Don’t support the Georgia Aquarium’s effort to import wild Russian belugas!

Thanks for helping belugas stay safe and free, and see you next week for your next beluga fun fact!