Canadian Whale Institute

06/18/2026

Wondering where the right whales are? 🐋

We sure are! With field research season quickly approaching we love seeing all of the activity and wondering which whales we will encounter!

Visit whalemap.org to learn more about the most recent confirmed visual and acoustic detections. This free and publicly available online tool helps track where some North Atlantic right whales have been spotted in near real-time through science and technology, giving us a small glimpse into their world!

Disclaimer: These detections reflect only a portion of the population that was seen or heard where surveys were conducted or hydrophones were listening.

06/15/2026

🌊 Waves of Gratitude! 💙

We are still smiling after an incredible week! A massive thank you to all the amazing organizations who invited us to participate in their World Oceans Day celebrations and to everyone who came by.

It was exciting to see our communities come together to celebrate and raise awareness for our blue planet.

Days like these remind us that we make big waves when we work together. Thank you for giving us the opportunity to share our mission and our work as well as connect with so many fellow ocean lovers!

Let’s keep this momentum going every single day. 🐋✨

06/12/2026

Update: The Campobello Whale Rescue Team (CWRT) was one of the many teams mobilized this week to search for the entangled right whale, Eg 5192. The whale was observed on Wednesday near the Magdalen Islands by the DFO Science aerial survey. Since this was nearly 100 nm from our team, the fishery officers from the Magdalen Islands headed out to attempt to attach a satellite tag and buoy to the trailing gear. Unfortunately, their attempts were unsuccessful and had to end early due to unfavourable weather conditions. Aerial surveys were conducted yesterday, but the entangled whale was not sighted. No further sightings have been reported since. Poor weather conditions are forecasted for the next few days, therefore CWRT will remain on standby on Campobello Island, until the whale is sighted again.

Many thanks to all the teams involved for their dedicated work!

*Disclaimer : all participating teams are trained and permitted to conduct these activities.

We are aware of an entangled North Atlantic right whale observed in the Gulf of St. Lawrence near Shippagan, New Brunswick. The whale was spotted on June 8, 2026, by aerial surveillance.

We are working with our Marine Mammal Response partners to relocate the whale. If it is located again, and weather and sea conditions allow, efforts will be made to remove any gear from the animal.

06/08/2026

Happy World Oceans Day! 🌊🦞🐡🪼🦭🐚🪸🌎

This is a day to learn more about our oceans, their role in our lives and on our planet, and be reminded of our connection to it: whether you live near or far!

On this occasion we want to highlight the importance of our work in the context of ocean and planet health, share our love for this dynamic, and powerful blue world, and we hope to inspire the same awe for our oceans in you all.

We encourage you to stay informed, stay curious, be an advocate for the ocean and its inhabitants, and volunteer or contribute to community science initiatives if you can.

As always, sharing our posts or donating through this link https://www.canadianwhaleinstitute.ca/donate is the best way to support our work. 🐋🦞

Let us know below if you learned anything new this Oceans Day!

06/04/2026

Wondering where the right whales are? 🐋

Over the past 2 weeks, all the right whale detections have been in the Gulf of St. Lawrence!

Disclaimer: these detections reflect only a portion of the population that was seen or heard where surveys were conducted or hydrophones were listening.

Visit whalemap.org to learn more about the most recent confirmed visual and acoustic detections. This free and publicly available online tool helps track where some North Atlantic right whales have been spotted in near real-time through science and technology, giving us a small glimpse into their world!

06/01/2026

🌊 Big news, ocean lovers: June is packed with events, and the Canadian Whale Institute is hitting the road to celebrate our seas!

We are bringing our whale team to five different community celebrations across the region, starting tomorrow. Come meet our researchers, explore interactive displays, and learn how we can work together to protect endangered whales.

Mark your calendars for these upcoming stops:
📍 Where to Find Us
• June 2nd: World Ocean Day — Fisheries Museum of the Atlantic (Lunenburg, NS)
• June 5th: Oceans & You Day — Maritime Museum of the Atlantic (Halifax, NS)
• June 6th: World Oceans Day — Huntsman Marine Science Centre (St. Andrews, NB)
• June 6th: Oceans Day — Discovery Centre (Halifax, NS)
• June 6th: One Port City Day — Halifax Seaport (Halifax, NS)

Whether you are in Lunenburg, Halifax, or St. Andrews bring your family, ask us your burning whale questions, and discover how you can make waves for ocean conservation.

👇 Drop a comment below and tell us which stop you will be visiting!

See you by the water! 🐋🐳

05/29/2026

The Canadian Whale Institute is pleased to share the newest edition of our newsletter, The Right Perspective! Click here to read: https://us17.campaign-archive.com/?u=0315e4dff7d47d81fd3de5228&id=7cf70fd971

Stay connected and never miss an update — subscribe using the link below! 🐳https://canadianwhaleinstitute.us17.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=0315e4dff7d47d81fd3de5228&id=a6faa96bee

We’d love to hear from you! Leave a comment below with your suggestions for future topics or stories you’d like us to cover.

In our last mailing, we described the process by which North Atlantic right whales are named. Since naming is highly reliant on distinguishing features to help researchers identify the whales in the field, some whales are never named and remain identified only by their catalog numbers.  This can b...

05/28/2026

🐋 EVENT ALERT! We are thrilled to be part of the St Croix Valley Flying Club’s 1st Annual MAYDAY Event!

Join the Campobello Whale Rescue Team for a day of community, aviation, and education.

📅 When: Saturday, May 30th
⏰ Time: 11:00 AM – 3:00 PM
📍 Where: Giddens Memorial Airport, St. Stephen, NB
☔ Rain Date: Sunday, May 31st

What to expect:
• 🚚 Tour our interactive whale rescue trailer
• 🛩️ Check out military and civilian aircraft
• 🤝 Show your support for first responders
• 🎶 Catch some live music

Bring the whole family for an incredible time. See you there! 👋

05/21/2026

Join CWI at the Halifax Discovery Centre’s Biodiversity Day - “Learn about the incredible variety of life on Earth, from microscopic bacteria to soaring hawks to diving whales and all of nature in between!”

WHEN: May 23, 2026 9:00 am - 4:00 pm
WHERE: Discovery Centre, 1215 Lower Water Street, Halifax

You’ll get to:
🧬 Explore environmental DNA and help crack a DNA puzzle
🧑‍🔬 Meet the experts from Dalhousie University’s Institute for Comparative Genomics and special guests from Acadia University
🔬Take a live look through a microscope at the world’s tiniest wonders
🐳 Talk all things whale with experts from the Canadian Whale Institute
🎉 Go on a scavenger hunt
🚀 See the new featured exhibition, Mission: Astronaut!

05/14/2026

Wondering where the right whales are? 🐋

Over the past 2 weeks, right whales have started to be detected in the Gulf of St. Lawrence!

Visit whalemap.org to learn more about the most recent confirmed visual and acoustic detections. This free and publicly available online tool helps track where some North Atlantic right whales have been spotted in near real-time through science and technology, giving us a small glimpse into their world!

Disclaimer: These detections reflect only a portion of the population that was seen or heard where surveys were conducted or hydrophones were listening.