Whales are Dying
From Plastic Ingestion |
A ten-meter sperm whale washed up on the south coast of Spain. A necropsy found the cause of death to be intestinal blockage. Found in the young whale's stomach were 59 different types of plastic products weighing 37 pounds, which caused the whale to starve. Among the findings were two stretches of transparent plastic of the type used to build hot houses to shade tomatoes, plastic bags, two pots, 9 meters of rope, two stretches of hose, and a spray canister. Click on this link to see a video of a young Bryde's whale stranded on a beach in Cairns, dying from ingestion of plastic. Warning: graphic video. Plastic waste must be reduced. Single-use plastic bags are choking, suffocating or killing millions of birds, turtles and marine life every year
Save The Whales educates people to ban plastic bag use. Help by bringing your own reusable water bottle and coffee cup to work. Take reusable cloth bags to the grocery store. Always reduce, reuse, recycle.
Goal: If your city or county doesn't have a plan to deal with plastic bags, please get an initiative on the next ballot. |
Vaquita Makes Headway Help Us Make it All The Way
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, | Isabella with our Vaquita Model, Hope |
Because you signed petitions and made your voices heard we have gotten this far: Mexico took the gillnets out of the vaquita area in April 2015 for two years. It was a huge victory, but we need to make this permanent. Two years is not nearly enough for a species that has been so decimated to survive. Mexico will need to support the fishermen who are willing to use more sustainable methods of fishing than gillnets. It is essential for the survival of the vaquita and other marine species in the Sea of Cortez. If you want to help the vaquita, go to
https://www.change.org/p/make-the-gillnet-ban-permanent-to-save-the-vaquita and there are a number of suggestions for you. In addition to the the vaquita being incidental kill in fishermen's gillnets, the illegal fishery for totoaba began in 2012 which was a devastating blow to vaquita. The totoaba is an endangered fish whose swim bladder is used in China for an aphrodiasiac and they sell for thousands of dollars. Vaquita are also caught and drown in fishnets set for totoaba. The vaquita only gives birth every two years, unlike some other cetaceans, and doesn't reach reproductive age until 7. With such a low population there will be few breeding females. This is why 20 years and beyond are needed to reach population stability. Please give this matter your attention for the vaquita.
For a history and more information on the vaquita.
Whale Fest In Monterey
The recent WhaleFest in Monterey, California, on January 23 and 23 was held to celebrate the migration of gray whales throughout the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary. Every year the festival grows in attendance. Now in its sixth year, the festival features musical performances and educational displays. Save The Whales educated visitors about the vaquita. |
Eight Year Old Raises $1,000 for Save The Whales |
 Eva is 8 years old and, is a third grader from Leesburg, VA. She learned about blue whales when she was doing a reading comprehension test online and decided to do something to help them. With assistance from her mom, dad and brother, she created Eva Saves the Whales. She loves learning about the whales, and was interviewed by her local paper Loudoun Now.
Eva is an artist at heart who loves animals and has painted in acrylics since she was four.
She has entered many art shows and competitions. For Save The Whales, she designed a whale bracelet and necklace for Christmas sales and worked very hard to hit her goal of $1,000. She wants to be an artist when she grows up.
One day she hopes to see whales in real life. We hope she can too.
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We thank you for all your efforts.
  Maris Sidenstecker I Executive Director, Save The Whales 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization Voted Top-Rated NonProfit 2015
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