An international team of scientists led by British Antarctic Survey have published research today on using new technology to study mass stranding of whales from space and how the technology could be used to help protect populations.
The study, published in Frontiers in Marine Science, found that high-resolution satellite imagery could help build long-term cetacean (i.e., whales, dolphins and porpoises) stranding monitoring programs in remote regions and stranding networks globally. The team behind the study includes scientists from British Antarctic Survey, CEAZA (Center for Advanced Research in Arid Zones), Oceanswell and the University of Massey.
Whale strandings are becoming a critical ocean health issue and an increase in capacity to monitor and understand strandings is urgently required. The World Health Organisation recently announced their ‘One Health’ approach, which recognizes oceanic conditions that impact whales often affect the marine ecosystem, with potential ramifications for human health too. Leading marine mammal experts made whale stranding response one of three core goals of the World Marine Mammal Conference in 2019.
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