Posts Tagged ‘scottishmpa’
EU takes action against UK government over failure to protect porpoises
The UK government is to face action by the European court of justice for failing to provide safe habitats for harbour porpoises. The European commission decision comes just days after the announcement that a new conservation area has been set up by the Scottish government to help protect the harbour porpoise off its western coastline. However,…
Read MoreVictory for harbour porpoise protection in Scotland
A new conservation area has been set up in waters off the west of Scotland to help protect the harbour porpoise. One of the smallest creatures in the ‘whale and dolphin family’, WDC has been campaigning to get protection for the porpoise for many years because their numbers have been falling due to issues with…
Read MoreNew Scottish porpoise MPA is great! But more work to be done…
WDC is delighted that the first Scottish harbour porpoise Special Area of Conservation in the Inner Hebrides and the Minches has been designated by Cabinet Secretary for Environment, Roseanna Cunningham. This is a tremendous campaign success for us and we’d like to thank the thousands of WDC supporters who got involved and urged the Scottish…
Read MoreScratching the surface: Risso’s dolphin fieldwork at Lewis, Scotland
A guest blog by Dr Caroline Weir, who joined WDC in the field in Scotland this month. The waters surrounding the Eye Peninsula near Stornoway on the north-east coast of Lewis have long been known to be one of the most important regions in the UK for Risso’s dolphins. I first observed Risso’s dolphins in…
Read MorePorpoiseful protection?
WDC warmly welcome the news that JNCC, Defra, Natural England, Natural Resources Wales, Welsh Government and Department of Environment, Northern Ireland are taking an important step towards designating five harbour porpoise Special Areas of Conservation! Big congratulations to all the agencies involved. But almost 20 years on from our first call for porpoise Special Areas…
Read MoreWe got Lucky – will the Risso’s and porpoises get lucky too?
We’ve had a short but very successful field season with some really amazing encounters here off the North East of Lewis. Just last Monday we had a bumper sighting of a HUMPBACK WHALE! Our team of local Shorewatchers have also had a bumper year of sightings from the Tiumpan Head lighthouse headland that makes up…
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