Almost everything hurting marine mammals right now was caused by people. That sounds like bad news — and it is — but it also means people can undo a lot of it. Here's what's going wrong, and exactly what you can do.
Nobody learns anything from being told the ocean is sad. Here is what is actually happening, and why it matters to the animal.
Bags look like jellyfish. Lost nets keep fishing for years — that's called ghost gear. Animals swallow it or get tangled in it and can't reach the surface to breathe.
What helps
Refuse single-use plastic. Every straw you don't use is one that can't end up out there.
Bycatch is when an animal gets caught in gear meant for something else. It's the single biggest killer of whales, dolphins and porpoises worldwide.
What helps
Support fisheries that use whale-safe gear, and never leave fishing line on a beach or dock.
Whales use sound the way we use sight. Ships, sonar and drilling fill the ocean with noise that drowns out the calls they need to find food, family and mates.
What helps
Ask for slow-down zones for ships in feeding grounds. Quieter ships are safer whales.
Walruses, narwhals and belugas need sea ice to rest and hide. Warmer water also moves the fish, so mothers have to swim farther to feed their babies.
What helps
Walk, bike or bus when you can, and learn where your family's electricity comes from.
A whale resting at the surface is nearly invisible to a container ship going 20 knots. Most manatees carry scars from boat propellers.
What helps
On a boat, slow down in manatee and whale zones and post a lookout.
Toxins build up as they move up the food chain. Orcas are at the very top, so they carry some of the highest chemical loads of any animal on Earth — and mothers pass it to their calves in milk.
What helps
Choose safer cleaners at home and never pour anything down a storm drain.
These are IUCN Red List categories. They change as scientists learn more — a few of these animals moved in the right direction because people stepped in.
None of these need money, a car, or a grown-up's permission. Pick one. Actually do it.
Bring gloves and a bucket. Count what you find and write it down — that list is real scientific data.
Reusable bottle, reusable bag, no straw. Do it for a month and count how many you avoided.
If you meet a seal or sea lion on a beach, stay 50 metres back and keep dogs on a leash. A pup alone is usually NOT abandoned — mum is fishing.
Hurt or tangled animal? Call your local marine mammal rescue. Never push it back in the water yourself.
Ask where the fish on your plate came from. Some fisheries catch far more bycatch than others.
Pick one animal from this site and teach it to a friend. Protection starts with people caring, and caring starts with knowing.
Conservation statuses and population figures on this site come from the IUCN Red List and NOAA Fisheries. Science moves — if you find something out of date, tell us and we'll correct it. That's how this is supposed to work.