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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...

Stop the River Dolphin Slaughter: WDC presents Brazilian Public Prosecution Service with 176,599 signatures

WDC is working with Rafael da Silva Rocha, of the Brazilian Public Prosecution Service, and other partners in Brazil to stop the brutal slaughter of Amazon River dolphins, known locally as ‘botos’. Thank you to everyone who signed our letter of support to Rafael. Our Brazilian colleague Sannie Brum (from the Piagacu Institute in Brazil) presented Rafael with 176,599 signatures along with messages of support for his work.  In some areas of the Brazilian Amazon, river dolphins are illegally killed and used as bait in the piracatinga fishery. 

Piracatinga is a type of catfish and a new law (January 2015) has been passed banning catching them commercially, but in areas as remote as these it will be incredibly hard to police and enforce. This deliberate killing is the biggest threat to river dolphins in Brazil. The new law banning of the commercail piracatinga fishery is an attempt to reduce the demand for boto carcasses. WDC is working with Sannie and the Piagacu Institute to develop projects that will engage local people in protecting the dolphins who share their Amazon home, and the support you have shown Rafael and others trying to make a difference is extremely important to their efforts.

Find out more about river dolphins.