Port expansion and protections for whales part of BC and Alberta plan to expand country’s presence overseas

The governments of Canada and the province of Alberta will move forward on a major new oil pipeline after the pair announced a plan to ease concerns of British Columbia and First Nations on the Pacific coast.

Canada’s prime minister, Mark Carney, shuttled between British Columbia and Alberta on Thursday to announce more than C$150bn in new investments in both provinces, part of a broader project of reducing trade with the United States and expanding his country’s presence in overseas markets.

In one area 76% of fishing boats were followed, with baby dolphins learning the technique from their parents

Bottlenose dolphins in the Adriatic are increasingly following trawlers to scavenge for food, with baby dolphins learning the technique from their parents, a study has found.

“These days the easiest way to find [bottlenose dolphins] is to look for trawlers,” said Giovanni Bearzi, a co-author of the study and the president of Dolphin Biology and Conservation in Italy. “Many of them are followed by the dolphins that go to forage and scavenge in their wake.

Matriarchal groups in east and west exhibit distinct click patterns, used to form social structures

From “Howdy” to “G’day”, English – like other languages – is rich in dialects. Now researchers have found sperm whales on different sides of the Mediterranean show similar variations in their vocalisations.

Sperm whales communicate vocally using sequences of short clicks called codas. However, the rhythmic pattern of these clicks, known as the dialect, can differ between different matriarchal groups.

The reconstruction of the vaquita, whose numbers barely reach double figures in the wild, is designed to help research and conservation efforts

Scientists have created a digital reconstruction of the world’s most endangered marine mammal, preserving its anatomy in three dimensions to aid research and conservation efforts as the species teeters on the brink of extinction.

The project digitised the skeleton of a female vaquita, a small porpoise found only in Mexico’s northern Gulf of California, using a combination of medical imaging, ultra-high-resolution micro CT scans and photography.

Some remains found in Diamantina fracture zone date back more than 5m years and reveal species and ecosystems unknown to science

The oldest, deepest and most extensive whale graveyard yet discovered has been found in the south-eastern Indian Ocean, with fossils dating back more than 5m years.

Whale falls – the term for dead whales that sink to the ocean floor – are not uncommon, but most have been found at depths of less than 4km (2.5 miles). By contrast, the newly discovered necropolis reaches depths of more than 7km, and extends hundreds of miles across the sea floor.

Beluga whales, which Marineland threatened to euthanize in 2025, will be moved to sanctuaries in Spain or across US

Canada and an embattled marine park have reached a tentative deal on the future of 30 beluga whales, ending a saga that has captivated the public and angered animal rights groups.

The federal fisheries ministry announced this week that all of Marineland’s belugas would be shipped to either Spain or one of four locations in the US, ending whale captivity in Canada.

The nine-metre southern right whale, or tohorā in Māori, is the first of the species to have been recorded entangled in New Zealand waters

A whale that became entangled in a large fishing net and was dragging four buoys and 100 metres of rope behind its tail has been cut free after a complex multi-day rescue operation off the southern coast of New Zealand.

The nine-metre-long southern right whale, or tohorā in Māori, was first spotted by fishers on Saturday morning near the country’s southern island, Rakiura.

Understanding whale sounds could help prevent strikes from ships and even aid in search for extraterrestrial life

If you stand on certain shorelines and listen carefully you might just hear deep rumbling noises. Sharp-eared fishers, lighthouse keepers and sea kayakers have been haunted by these late-night sounds for centuries and now, for the first time, scientists have recorded these thrums and pinpointed them to humpback whales, proving that whales have a far larger vocabulary than previously thought.

Fred Sharpe from the Alaska Whale Foundation and his colleagues set up land-based microphones to tune in to the mysterious ocean noises. Tip-offs from Alaskan coastal communities helped to narrow down the best recording locations. Along with the previously documented trumpets, blows and shrieks that humpback whales make, the researchers recorded very low frequency rumbles, a bit like distant thunder, and new sounds including pizzle, howl and hooting noises. The night thrums travelled through the air and could be heard up to 6 miles (10km) away.

Researchers observed unavailable female dolphins – those that were older, or with calves – did not show the same avoidant behaviour

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Female dolphins identify males by their unique calls and keep track of their past behaviour, choosing to avoid the most aggressive males during mating season, new research suggests.

Bottlenose dolphin society is complex, and male and female dolphins often know each other for decades, said Prof Stephanie King, an expert in animal behaviour at the University of Bristol.

Rush to develop fossil fuel infrastructure in Canada collides with laws meant to protect endangered species

Environmental groups in Canada fear endangered orcas could become a casualty of Mark Carney’s push for a new oil pipeline, as the rush to develop fossil fuel infrastructure collides with laws meant to protect threatened species.

The decades-long tragedy of the critically endangered southern resident orcas has become emblematic of an ecosystem in crisis. But fishermen, whale-watching companies and the marine transport industry have long feuded over who bears the most blame.

Humpback stranded on sandbank was unlikely to survive, experts had said, recommending it be left to die in peace

The German authorities have defended their decision to allow a risky rescue attempt of a stranded whale to go ahead, despite experts warning it was “inadvisable” because the animal was hurt and unlikely to survive.

The saga of the whale, known as Timmy, had gripped Germany since the beached humpback was spotted stranded on Timmendorfer beach, a sandbank in shallow waters near the coast, nearly two months ago.

When two BBFs on vacay decide to break into a water park with a dishy guy, there are a limited number of jump scares waiting for them

Sharks have had plenty of airtime in horror/thriller movies, so on some level it’s refreshing when a film points the finger in a different aquatic direction: step (or swim) forward, the killer whale. Unfortunately Ceto, the cetacean villain of the piece, isn’t enough of a presence here to make the film much more than briefly diverting – it never approaches the terror of a serious landmark movie such as Jaws, nor the ridiculous deliciousness of a silly but thrilling movie like Deep Blue Sea. For the most part, it’s actually a relationship drama between two BFFs, albeit two BFFs stranded on a rock in their bikinis and hoping not to be eaten.

Maddie (Virginia Gardner) is introduced as a waitress/cellist with big ambitions for her musical career, until a robbery at her diner robs her of her hearing and also dream man, Chad (Isaac Crawley). A year later, she’s recuperating on a restorative vacay with college friend Trish (Mel Jarnson), a beautiful social media influencer studying gene editing for her PhD. Apparently, killer whale Ceto is something of a touchstone for Maddie and Chad, and Maddie is cross to discover that Trish has planned for Maddie to visit Ceto in captivity at a waterpark. However, after the girls meet Josh (Mitchell Hope) and get drunk, the trio agree to break into the waterpark to say howdy.

With the help of citizen scientists, researchers studying rare humpback ‘jaw-gaping’ believe the move could be a social display

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Off the coast of Western Australia, a humpback whale is “pirouetting”, sweeping its pectoral fins through the water, its massive jaw hanging wide open. Surrounded by companions, the animal isn’t lunging for a meal: rather, it is putting on a mysterious behavioural display.

This underwater ballet, captured on camera by an onlooker and shared online, is one of the clearest examples of a rarely documented phenomenon known as “gaping”.

Calf was transported by water-filled barge in operation deemed ‘inadvisable’ because of low chance of survival

Rescuers have released a young humpback whale that became a national sensation after it was beached in shallow waters off the coast in Germany, although marine experts have said its chances of survival are low.

The whale, variously nicknamed Timmy or Hope, was released into the North Sea off Denmark after being transported there in a water-filled barge by rescuers.

Month-long mission to save animal in Baltic sea off Germany has attracted national frenzy

• Timmy the whale rescue attempt begins off coast of Germany – in pictures

Attempts to rescue a young humpback whale stranded in shallow waters off the Baltic coast in Germany have been criticised by the International Whaling Commission (IWC) as “inadvisable”.

The 10 metre-long whale, variously nicknamed Timmy or Hope, swam on to a sandbank more than a month ago and its health deteriorated as it repeatedly became stranded. Hopes were raised on Tuesday when divers helped the mammal on to a flooded barge. By Wednesday, the barge, pulled by a tug boat, had reached Danish waters as it headed towards the North Sea.

A rescue operation to transport a young male humpback to deeper waters in the North Sea after it became stranded in the Baltic Sea off Lübeck a month ago is under way. The whale’s ordeal has gripped Germany but there are concerns it may be too fatigued and sick to survive

• Stranded whale swims on to barge in German rescue attempt

Rescuers hope to move young male humpback from Baltic to North Sea after being stranded for a month near Lübeck

Rescuers trying to save a stranded humpback whale off Germany’s Baltic coast have coaxed the mammal on to a barge in the hope the vessel can take it to safety in deeper waters.

Amid intense media attention, the high-stakes rescue mission, funded by two multi-millionaires, is being watched by hundreds of onlookers, many of whom are camped nearby to monitor the spectacle.

Millionaire funded operation called ‘pure animal cruelty’ after environment minister sent threats on social media

Final preparations are reportedly under way for a millionaire-funded plan to tow a sickly humpback whale into the North Sea.

The 12-tonne whale, nicknamed Timmy, has been stranded on the Baltic Sea coastline for almost a month. A barge resembling a giant steel aquarium will attempt to transport Timmy 400km (248 miles) towards the North Sea, and then hopefully back to the Atlantic Ocean from where it is believed to have arrived.

Even as we empathise with these intelligent animals, our relentless push for resources kills them in their thousands, just as whalers once hunted them to the brink of extinction

For weeks now, a humpback whale has been trying to die. Entangled in ropes, it had wandered into the shallow Baltic Sea. Unable to feed, it is now subject to extreme dehydration, since whales satisfy their thirst through the fish they eat.

In such a parlous situation, the whale’s last resort was to strand itself on Poel Island, in the Bay of Wismar. Sadly, it has been a slow death. Beached whales die because they are crushed by their own weight. The German humpback’s agony may have been prolonged because it lay in shallow water and was thus only partly submerged.

Critics say efforts to rescue the animal, nicknamed Timmy, unlikely to succeed and could lead to further harm

A last-ditch effort to rescue a wayward whale that has transfixed Germans for weeks has begun in the Baltic Sea despite criticism it has little chance of success and could further harm the 12-tonne creature.

The male humpback whale was first spotted last month near Timmendorfer Strand on the northern coast of Germany, giving rise to its nickname Timmy. It has repeatedly become stranded and then freed itself after human assistance but it is now stranded again, with rescuers saying it is fighting a losing battle for its life.