Sentinels of Silence? Whale Watching, Noise, and the Orca

Does whale watching protect or harm whales? This film explores heated controversies over whale watching, boat noise, and orca conservation in Washington State and British Columbia. Whale watching companies claim that they serve as "sentinels" protecting the orca from unwary recreational boaters, ferries, and ships. A number of local conservationists and scientists have argued that whale watching boats crowd and harass whales, while adding noise to the orcas' immediate environment that makes it difficult for the social species to survive. The Pacific Whale Watch Association has hired lobbyists and brought suit against their local opponents. "Sentinels of Silence?" uses dramatic imagery, peer-reviewed science, and interviews with conservationists, scientists, and industry officials to bring a fascinating chapter in the orca conservation story to light.

[callieblueheronnorth]

Thank you for this incredibly informative and well thought out video. The filmmaker Mark had a lot of courage to take on an issue that is highly charged and considered very 'political'. It shouldn't be political in my opinion as protecting the endangered SRKW should be everyone's priority at ANY cost. It is very informative and covers the issues well. I appreciate this work on behalf of the whales. Personally I support a year round ban on ALL whale watching (commercial and recreational) of the SRKW. I also support stricter guidelines for researchers and their work.

[southernresidentprotection]

See below reply to Robert's comment.

[robertspaggiari]

Let there be no confusion about my politics. I'm not an extremist. I don't take refuge in radicalism or hatred. I absolutely have respect for people earning a living, and yes, making money, whether they are farmers, whale watch captains, fishermen, or even scientists!
As I recall, before COVID, Governor Inslee used to boast about 'his' booming economy. I don't know if he has now given up on economic growth, and I admit it is looking hard to achieve.
Should fishermen sue for economic damages over the lack of fish that is still occurring?
Nevertheless, I would still like to see viability for this unique Southern Resident Killer Whale community. They need a coherent conservation plan that delivers, not an 'Orca Task Force' buffett of fragments, and I also want every other 'stakeholder' to be fat and happy, too.

[robertspaggiari]

Hey viewers, if the Snake River dams are breached, then banning whale watching might make sense politically. Dams are the elephant in the room that some people don't like talking about.
It is dishonest to portray the conflict as whale watching vs. scientists and conservationists. Some leading scientists and NGO's regard whale watch vessels as allies, other leading scientists and NGO's regard them as enemies. That is a fair statement. In whale politics we disagree about many things, both scientifically and tactically.
Divide and conquer works very well on us.
The orcanetwork.org Sightings page contains inputs from Washington State Ferries, whale watch crews, scientists, boaters, and land-based whale watchers - all making valuable contributions. Unfortunately, such inclusiveness is not universal.
I'm going to plead with viewers to go beyond this film's superficiality about our unique Southern Residents. They are worth the effort. They are not distant polar bears. They are in Washington's front yard. There is a lot of information you can access. There are hydrophones you can listen to, salmon counts for every river and stream, and fecal samples of individual whales to tell you about their health and who has had a failed pregnancy.
You can become more informed, and make up your own mind. Some of you may end up disagreeing with my support for some particular scientists and NGO's, and if that's a well-informed choice, that's cool. I only want what's best for the Southern Residents. That's my personal loyalty to J35 Tahlequah.