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Whale watching is the practice of observing whales and other cetaceans in their natural habitat. Whales are watched most commonly for recreation (cf. bird watching) but the activity can also be for scientific or educational reasons. Whilst individuals do organize private trips, whale watching is primarily a commercial activity, estimated to be worth up to $1billion per annum worldwide to whale watching operations and their local communities. The size and rapid growth of the whale watching industry has led to complex and unconcluded debates with the whaling industry about the best use of whales as a natural resource.

Contents 1 History 2 Regulation 3 Locations 3.1 Northeast Atlantic 3.2 Northeast Pacific 3.3 Southwest Pacific 3.4 Northwest Atlantic 3.5 Southwest Atlantic 3.6 Africa 3.7 Southeast Indian 4 Whaling and whale watching 5 Conservation aspects 6 Orca calls off Washington 7 References 8 External links

Whale watching as an organized activity dates back to 1950 when the Cabrillo National Monument in San Diego was declared a public spot for the observation of Gray Whales. In 1955 the first water-based whale watching commenced in the same area, charging customers $1 per trip to view the whales at closer quarters. The spectacle proved popular, attracting 10,000 visitors in its first year and many more in subsequent years. The industry spread throughout the western coast of the United States over the following decade.

In 1971 the Montreal Zoological Society commenced the first commercial whale watching activity on the eastern side of North America, offering trips in the St. Lawrence River to view Fin and Beluga Whales.

In the late 1970s the industry mushroomed in size thanks to operations in New England. By 1985 more visitors watched whales from New England than California. The rapid growth in this area has been attributed to the relatively dense population of Humpback Whales, whose acrobatic behaviour such as breaching (jumping out of the water) and tail-slapping was an obvious crowd-pleaser, and the close proximity of whale populations to the large cities on the east coast of the US.

Throughout the 1980s and 1990s whale watching spread throughout the world. In 1998 Erich Hoyt carried out the largest systematic study of whale watching yet undertaken and concluded that whale watching trips were now available in 87 countries around the world, with over 9 million participants generating an income to whale watcher operators and supporting infrastructure (such as accommodation, restaurants and souvenirs) of over one billion dollars. His estimate for 2000 was for 11.3m participants spending $1.475bn, representing a five-fold increase over the decade.

Whale watching is of particular importance to developing countries as coastal communities start to profit directly from the whales' presence, significantly adding to popular support for the full protection of these animals from any resumption of commercial whaling.

Environmental campaigners, concerned by what they consider the "quick-buck" mentality of some boat owners, continue to strongly urge all whale watcher operators to contribute to local regulations governing whale watching (no international standard set of regulations exist because of the huge variety of species and populations). Common rules include:

• Minimize speed/"No wake" speed
• Avoid sudden turns
• Minimize noise
• Do not pursue, encircle or come in between whales
• Approach animals from angles where they won't be taken by surprise
• Consider cumulative impact - minimize number of boats at any one time/per day
• Do not coerce dolphins into bow-riding.
• Do not allow swimming with dolphins. This last rule is more contentious and is often disregarded in, for example, the Caribbean.

(Source: WDCS)

Almost all popular whale watching regions now have such regulations. Campaigners hope that a combination of peer pressure, the economic benefit of being advertised and promoted by ethical tourism operators and operators' own passion for marine wildlife forces them to adhere to such regulations.

Around the world, whale watching can be had in various locations and climates. By area, they are:

Much of Europe is surrounded by water. Tidal straits, inlets, lagoons, and varying water temperatures, make it ideal for various species to live here from the Arctic Circle to the warm waters off of Greece. Whales are seen in good numbers off the coast of Great Britain, Ireland, Iceland, Scandinavia, Spain, and France. Commercial car ferries crossing the Bay of Biscay from Britain and Ireland to Spain and France often pass by animals as large as blue whales and as small as pods of harbor porpoise and land based tours of these waters are not unheard of. In Northern Norway, Orcas are observed in Vestfjord, Tysfjord and Ofotfjord in Nordland as the herring gathers in the fjords to stay over the winter as well as being observed off the Lofoten islands during the summer. At Andenes on Andøya in Vesterålen, sperm whales can be observed all year round, although whale watching trips are only offered from May till September. The continental shelf [Eggakanten] and deep water where the sperm whales congregate, is very close to shore, beginning only 7000m from the Andenes harbour. Also, in the middle of the Northeast Atlantic , in the Azores Arquipelago whale watching can be easily done. The most common whale in the region is the sperm whale, especially groups of females with calves.

On the West Coast of the United States and Canada, excellent whale watching can be found in Alaska (summer), British Columbia, and the San Juan Islands/Puget Sound in Washington, where pods of orca are sometimes visible from shore. In California good whalewatching can be found in spring, summer, and fall at the Farallon Islands off San Francisco, Monterey Bay, the usual suspects including humpbacks, greys, and blue whales. The west coast of Mexico including Baja California is an area known for its grey whale calving as well, and tourists flock here to witness mothers with their very large and inquisitve babies.

Kaikoura in New Zealand is a world-famous site for whales (in particular Sperm Whales) and Albatrosses.

Hervey Bay in Queensland, Australia offers reliable whale watching conditions for Southern Humpback Whales from the beginning of August through to the end of November each year. Whale numbers and activity have increased markedly in recent years. Sydney, Eden, Port Stephens and Byron Bay in New South Wales are other popular hot spots for tours from May to November.

Southern Right Whales are seen in winter (June-August) along the south coast of Australia. They are often readily viewed from the coast around Encounter Bay near Victor Harbor and up to a hundred at a time may be seen from the cliff tops at the head of the Great Australian Bight near Yalata.

In New England and off the east coast of Long Island, the whale watching season typically takes place from about mid-spring through October, depending both on weather and precise location. It is here that the Northern Humpback Whale, Fin Whale, Minke Whale, and the very endangered North Atlantic Right Whale are often observed. For generations, areas like the Gulf of Maine and Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary ( part of the inner waters formed by Cape Cod's hooked shape) have been important feeding grounds for these species and in the past this area was a whaling capital for the U.S. whaling industry, particularly the island of Nantucket. Though strict laws prohibit the molestation of these large wild mammals, it is not unknown for the whales to approach the boats entirely on their own, particularly calves and juveniles. In recent years it is also not uncommon from time to time to see these huge animals playing and feeding in harbors of large cities, including New York.

In Canada, a popular whale-watching area is at Tadoussac, Quebec, where Beluga Whales favour the extreme depth and admixture of cold fresh water from the Saguenay River into the inland end of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence. In addition, the Maritimes shares a population of humpbacks Living in the bay of Fundy, during the summer and moving South and out in to the Ocean during the winter.

In Brazil, humpback whales are observed off Salvador in Bahia State and at the National Marine Park of Abrolhos during their breeding season in austral winter and spring. Likewise, Southern Right Whales are observed from shore in Santa Catarina State during the same season, as mother/calf pairs can come as close to shore as 30 meters (about 100 feet). Income from whale watching has bolstered many a coastal community in Brazil and has made the township if Imbituba, Santa Catarina, recognized as a Brazilian "whale capital".

In South Africa, the town of Hermanus is one of the world centers for whale watching. During the winter months (July-October) Southern Right Whales come so close to the Cape shoreline that visitors can watch whales from their hotels. The town employs a "whale crier" (cf town crier) to walk through the town announcing where whales have been seen.

In Western Australia, whales are watched not far from Cape Leeuwin and Cape Naturaliste.

All three of the current major whaling nations (Norway, Japan and Iceland) have large and growing whale watching industries. Indeed Iceland had the fastest-growing whale watching industry in the world between 1994 and 1998.

Many conservationists now espouse the economic argument that a whale is worth more alive and watched than dead in order to try to persuade the governments of whaling nations to curtail whaling activities. The correctness of this argument is the subject of much debate at the International Whaling Commission, particularly since argue about the whaling countries the 'scarcity' of whale meat which supposedly has caused it to become a luxury item, increasing its value. However, whale meat markets have collapsed and in Japan the government keeps its flow artificially through subsidies and whale meat distribution in schools and other forms of whale meat promotion. In 1997 2,000 tonnes of whale meat were sold for $30m - a single 10 tonne Minke Whale would thus have been worth $150,000. There is no agreement as to how to value a single animal to the whale watching industry, though it is probably much higher. It is possible to construct arguments that 'prove' a single whale is worth either much more or much less than this figure. However, it is clear from most coastal communities that are involved in whale watching that profits can be made and are more horizontally distributed throughout the community than if the animals were killed by a whaling industry.

Upon the resumption of whaling in Iceland in August 2003, pro-whaling groups, such as fishermen who argue that increased stocks of whales are depleting fish populations, suggested that sustainable whaling and whale watching could live side-by-side. Whale watching lobbyists, such as Húsavík Whale Museum curator Asbjorn Bjorgvinsson, counter that the most inquistive whales, which approach boats very closely and provide much of the entertainment on whale-watching trips, will be the first to be killed by whalers. Pro-whaling organisations such as the High North Alliance on the other hand, have said that whale watching is not profitable and that some whale-watching companies in Iceland are surviving only because they receive funding from anti-whaling organisations (statement from the HNA on the issue).

The rapid growth of the number of whale watching trips and the size of vessel used to watch whales has led to concerns that whale behaviour, migatory patterns and breeding cycles make be affected. There is now strong evidence that whalewatching can significantly affect the biology and ecology of whales and dolphins. Unfortunately management responses are lagging far behind the rapid growth of the sector and much is needed to improve the sustainability of whalewatching in most locations in the world.

Writing in Nature in April 2004, scientists from the University of Durham working off the coast of Washington in the northwest United States discovered that Orca are increasing the length of their calls to make themselves heard to each other above the din of boat engine noise. The research examined the length of the whales' calls between 1977 and 1981, 1989 and 1992 and 2001 and 2003. They found that whilst the call length had not changed much between the first two surveys, the third survey saw, at times of day when environmental noise exceeded a certain threshold, the Orca increasing the length of their calls by about 15% in an apparent effort to make themselves heard.

The researchers commented that this was in one sense a positive sign - Orca able to adapt to their environment rapidly. However, populations of Orca in the area have fallen since a survey in 1996 and concern remains that the whale watching boats, and private boats that follow them that are less likely to follow local conservation guidelines, are causing intolerable environment stress to the creatures.

• Provincetown Center for Coastal Studies
• Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society
• International Fund for Animal Welfare
• International Whaling Commission
• Whale Watching in South America
• GREMM - Group for Research and Education of Marine Mammals, based in Quebec
• A discussion of various whale watching regulations around the world
• Homepage for The Oceania Project. Humpback Whale Research Expedition, Hervey Bay, Queensland, Australia
• Summary of the research from BBC News
• Abstract from Nature.com; full-text requires subscription
• Homepage for the Durham research group
• Whale Watch in Baja