The Whale Sanctuary Blog

Release of First Orcas and Belugas from “Whale Jail” Raises Growing Concerns

Serious questions are being raised about the care of the orcas and beluga whales who are being returned to the ...

Posted June 27, 2019 in For the Media, News

Jean-Michel Cousteau and Whale Sanctuary Project Team on Returning Whales to Ocean

Russia has begun the process of returning the whales that were illegally captured last year back to the area where ...

Posted June 26, 2019 in For the Media, News

Effects of Chronic Stress on Captive Orcas

A new paper demonstrates that the poor well-being and high mortality rates of orcas (killer whales) in captive facilities can ...

Posted June 25, 2019 in For the Media, News

Russia Begins Transport of Whales for Return to the Ocean

Russia has begun the process of returning to ocean waters the 10 orcas and 87 beluga whales who were captured ...

Posted June 20, 2019 in For the Media, News

Jean-Michel Cousteau’s Letter to President Putin

Letter from Jean-Michel Cousteau to President Putin regarding the 97 orcas and beluga whales who were captured in order to ...

Posted June 17, 2019 in For the Media, News

Canada Bans Captivity of Whales, Dolphins and Porpoises

The House of Commons voted overwhelmingly in favor of Bill S-203, the Ending the Captivity of Whales and Dolphins Act. ...

Posted June 10, 2019 in For the Media, News

Russian Ministry Presses for Summer Release of Captive Whales

Russia’s Minister of Natural Resources & the Environment says plans are now moving ahead to return the captive orcas and ...

Posted June 7, 2019 in For the Media, News

Whale Aid Russia Begins Stage Two

We have completed the first stage of our work on behalf of the 10 orcas and 87 beluga whales who ...

Posted May 17, 2019 in News

Plan to Immediately Release Orcas in Srednyaya Bay Should Not Be Adopted

The Jean-Michel Cousteau / Whale Sanctuary Project team does not support the new plan, announced by Russian authorities on May ...

Posted May 16, 2019 in For the Media, News

Recommendations for Release of Orcas and Belugas from Srednyaya Bay

The Russian government is currently assessing recommendations for rehab and release of the 97 orcas and beluga whales who were ...

Posted May 14, 2019 in For the Media, News

The Global Deal for Nature

The Global Deal for Nature is the first undertaking that’s backed by the most up-to-date science to establish science-based conservation ...

Posted April 27, 2019 in News

Russian Consilium Mirrors Assessment of Whale Sanctuary Team

Announcement from Russian institute VNIRO mirrors assessment of Whale Sanctuary Project team that all orcas and belugas in captivity at ...

Posted April 25, 2019 in News

Report on Orcas and Belugas Held in Srednyaya Bay

Executive summary of the report to the Russian Government regarding the 10 orcas and 87 belugas being held in sea ...

Posted April 24, 2019 in For the Media, News

From the Sea of Okhotsk

In the summer of 2004, two young beluga whales, Skyla and Orion, were captured, packed into crates and loaded onto ...

Posted April 22, 2019 in News, Opinion

Russian Governor Signs Agreement to Free Captive Whales

The Russian government has affirmed that the 10 orcas and 87 beluga whales being held captive at the “whale jail” ...

Posted April 10, 2019 in News

Whale Jail: From Global Outcry to International Cooperation

What began as a global outcry has evolved into a work of international cooperation. Yesterday, in Moscow, people of many ...

Posted April 5, 2019 in News

Press Conference in Moscow – Full Video

Two videos from today’s news conference with the Whale Sanctuary Project at the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment in ...

Posted April 4, 2019 in News

Whale Aid – Russia: News Release

The Whale Sanctuary Project issued the following news release this morning: WHALE AID – RUSSIA! Russia invites Whale Sanctuary Project ...

Posted April 4, 2019 in For the Media

Russia Invites Whale Sanctuary Project to Visit Whale Jail

The Russian government has invited the Whale Sanctuary Project to visit the illegal “whale jail” on Russia’s Far East coast, ...

Posted April 2, 2019 in News

Russia Issues Formal Invitation to Visit “Whale Jail”

The Whale Sanctuary Project has brought together a team of experts, led by oceanographer Jean-Michel Cousteau, to visit the notorious ...

Posted March 29, 2019 in For the Media, News

Expert Team Prepares to Visit Notorious “Whale Jail”

The Whale Sanctuary Project is organizing a team of experts from non-profits and other NGO’s to go to Srednyaya Bay ...

Posted March 19, 2019 in For the Media, News

The Whale Jail in Srednyaya Bay

The Whale Sanctuary Project is organizing a team of experts to go to Russia and assess the condition of 10 ...

Posted March 19, 2019 in News

Jean-Michel Cousteau Pens a Letter to President Putin

The four signatories spearheaded the return of the orca Keiko to his home waters in the 1990s. They offer the ...

Posted March 19, 2019 in News

34 Marine Mammal Biologists Urge Release of Whales

Donate now to help the whales A group of prominent marine mammal scientists from around the world has written a ...

Posted March 19, 2019 in News

Global Citizens Urge Release of “Whale Jail” Orcas & Belugas

A group of prominent global citizens signed a letter to Russian President Vladimir Putin encouraging the government to release 10 ...

Posted March 19, 2019 in News

The Case Against Keeping Whales & Dolphins Captive

In their report “The Case Against Marine Mammals in Captivity,” Naomi Rose and Chris Parsons lay out in plain English ...

Posted March 14, 2019 in News

“Enthusiasm Abounds” at Nova Scotia Meetings

In Nova Scotia, people are forming local committees to explore how they can collaborate with the Whale Sanctuary Project and ...

Posted March 2, 2019 in News

Dolphinaris Closes – What’s Next For the Dolphins?

In the two years since the grand opening of Dolphinaris Arizona, half of its eight dolphins have met untimely deaths. ...

Posted February 28, 2019 in News

Groups Prepare for Wild Orca Medical Assessment

The Whale Sanctuary Project is working as part of a coalition of experts in the Pacific Northwest to assess the ...

Posted February 19, 2019 in News

News Conference & Public Meetings in Nova Scotia

“We believe there is the perfect community that shares our vision," Charles Vinick told reporters at Whale Sanctuary Project news ...

Posted January 29, 2019 in News

News Release in Nova Scotia

The Whale Sanctuary Project is holding a series of public information meetings over the next 10 days to identify communities ...

Posted January 29, 2019 in For the Media, News

Extinction – What if They Know?

Because of orcas’ close family bonds, their complex intelligence and their advanced level of self and situational awareness, the Southern ...

Posted January 8, 2019 in News

Judge Issues First-Ever Habeas Corpus Order for an Elephant

A New York State judge has issued a "habeas corpus" writ on behalf of Happy, an elephant at the Bronx ...

Posted December 10, 2018 in News

Canadian Bill S-203 Passes in Senate. Now Goes to House.

It took almost three years, 17 hearings, 40 witnesses (including six experts from the Whale Sanctuary Project), and countless attempts ...

Posted October 24, 2018 in News

Location, Location, Location!

The three main considerations that go into evaluating a possible site for a seaside sanctuary for whales. In a very ...

Posted October 15, 2018 in News

The World’s Most Intelligent Species?

We’ve known for a long time that whales and dolphins are intelligent and socially complex animals with large brains that ...

Posted October 15, 2018 in Learn More, News