WHALE and dolphin sightings will be recorded on a ferry route from Dorset to Cherbourg for the first time this year.

Survey teams from the conservation charity ORCA will be stationed aboard Brittany Ferries’ Barfleur service from April.

Working from the bridge of the vessel, the team will monitor and record sightings of whales, dolphins, and porpoises, noting their size, location, and direction of travel.

One survey will be carried out every month between April and September, and the data collected will support conservation work and feed into reporting obligations for governments under the EU Habitats Directive.

Lucy Babey, head of science and conservation at ORCA, said the research carried out between Poole and Cherbourg will “add to our really good coverage of the English Channel”.

“ORCA has been conducting surveys for 20 years on vessels – we’ve been working with Brittany Ferries for 20 years, which is brilliant. We have a very strong working relationship with them. There are numerous significant and emerging threats to whales and dolphins. We need to know what’s going on with cetacean populations and build up a much better picture of their activities.”

She added: “This is the first time we’ve done a route from Poole. There’s a lot to find out about what species are in the Channel, which is what makes it exciting. We’ve seen whale and dolphin populations really close to the shoreline on other Channel routes.

“The water is shallow so we also expect to see harbour porpoises – the smallest and the most common species of porpoise in UK waters.

“We’re also going to try and find out about bottlenose dolphins, which have been spotted in Poole Harbour, common dolphins, and minke whales.”

ORCA recently published its first ‘The State of European Cetaceans’ report, which is the culmination of 10 years’ worth of sightings and data collected during the 376 surveys on ferries and cruise ships.

As well as identifying marine areas and species that are of greatest importance, the research will also help to prevent ship strikes of cetaceans.

Nigel Wonnacott, head of communications at Brittany Ferries, said the company was “proud” of its association with ORCA.

“We have a responsibility to be good stewards of the sea – it’s not just about taking passengers from A to B – and Poole and Cherbourg are wildlife rich areas” he said.

“ORCA do fantastic work, and we as a company want to do our bit to protect the environment and these beautiful creatures of the sea.

“Clearly we don’t want to get into a collision with anything at sea, particularly whales, and so having the research teams on board has helped us to spot animals in advance and take evasive action.”

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