Photo Credit: Asha de Vos
A recent international workshop on whale-vessel collisions is expected to help improve protections for whales worldwide.
The event was co-hosted by UC Santa Barbara’s Benioff Ocean Science Laboratory (BOSL), a center for applied marine research based at UC Santa Barbara’s Marine Science Institute, along with the International Whaling Commission (IWC). Held at the International Maritime Organization headquarters in London, the workshop convened scientists, policymakers and shipping industry representatives to examine the growing global issue of whales being struck by ships.
As commercial vessels and migrating whales increasingly share busy ocean corridors, collisions have become a serious threat to marine mammals.
Along the U.S. West Coast, 118 whale deaths linked to ship strikes were documented between 2015 and 2024, most occurring off California’s coast. The state is home to some of the world’s busiest ports, including Los Angeles, Long Beach and those in the Bay Area. Researchers note that the true number of whale fatalities is likely far greater because many collisions are never reported. On the East Coast, ship strikes remain a major danger for the endangered North Atlantic right whale.
BOSL Director Professor Douglas McCauley noted that it is difficult to estimate how many whales are killed each year by ship strikes, in part because many whales sink after fatal collisions. He added that based on estimates from the best-studied regions of the world, it is likely that thousands of whales die in ship strikes globally each year.
The challenge extends far beyond U.S. waters. In a 2024 study published in Science, BOSL researchers and collaborators found that major whale migration routes frequently overlap with heavily traveled global shipping lanes. The study, which created the first worldwide map comparing whale movements with ship traffic, served as a key foundation for the workshop. Participants from organizations such as the World Wildlife Fund, the World Shipping Council, the United Nations and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration worked together to identify collision hotspots and develop response strategies.
Understanding what options are available and what has worked elsewhere is the first step toward making the problem feel solvable
One approach highlighted by BOSL researchers involves reducing vessel speed in high-risk whale areas. Through Whale Safe — a monitoring system developed by BOSL researchers — ship operators receive near real-time whale activity updates in the Santa Barbara Channel. The system combines citizen science observations with underwater acoustic technology to detect whales and evaluates ship compliance with voluntary speed limits.
Whale Safe is part of the California-supported Protecting Blue Whales and Blue Skies initiative, a collaboration involving government agencies, environmental organizations, foundations, and BOSL researchers.
BOSL project scientist Rachel Rhodes emphasized that solutions must be tailored to regional conditions. “There is no one-size-fits-all solution for preventing whales from being run over — what works in California may not work for high-speed ferries operating in the Azores or the sailboat racing community in Europe,” she said.
Researchers also discussed additional strategies during the workshop, including rerouting shipping lanes and testing whale-detection technologies such as thermal imaging systems.
The workshop brought together researchers, policymakers, conservation groups, and maritime industry leaders from 10 countries across five continents to share approaches and build collaboration.
The workshop’s findings will be presented to the IWC Scientific Committee later this month, with the aim of developing region-specific action plans to reduce whale-ship collisions worldwide.
Adapted from original reporting by Sonia Fernandez, “Global workshop focuses on protecting whales from ship strikes,” The Current, UC Santa Barbara, 2026.