Large whales were driven to the edge of extinction by commercial whaling, but despite now being protected in most parts of the world, new threats have emerged to threaten their recovery. Vessel strike is one of the biggest issues they face in 2025 and urgent action is needed to save them.
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Globally, shipping traffic is expected to triple by 2050 and each year, more and more vessels are sailing through important whale hotspots. We know that when whales and shipping traffic overlap, the result is vessel strikes that are one of the biggest threat facing large whales in 2025. Finding a way to reduce the number of collisions is vital - the recovery of populations decimated by commercial whaling is under threat by ship strikes and so it is urgent for us to find a solution.
ORCA are one of the leading organisations globally working with the shipping industry to actively reduce the number of collisions, and we have a unique opportunity to work onboard large ships in risk areas to understand the way that whales and ships interact. Alongside our well established training programme, we plan to spend summer 2025 studying large whales in Alaska to identify how they respond to large ships and what action the ship can take to avoid a vessel strike.
