Dear colleagues:

In 2003, Mason Weinrich and I submitted a paper to the International
Whaling Commission Scientific Committee's Whale Watching Subcommittee,
on the occurrence of "swim-with-whale" excursions around the world. The
paper was a preliminary examination of the phenomenon, using information
gathered from web sites, MARMAM, and contacts with colleagues. We would
like to do an update of this paper, with the goal toward conducting a
more in-depth examination of the practice in the near future (perhaps in
time for the 2006 meeting). If you are aware of any situations where
paying customers swim with whales - that is, baleen whales or larger
toothed whales (sperm or beaked), as opposed to delphinids - we would be
grateful if you could provide details. It would be ideal if you could
provide web site addresses of excursion companies, detailed first-hand
descriptions, or publications referencing the occurrence. We are
looking for instances where the swimming is "formal" (advertised
publicly in advance and a specific goal of the recreational activity -
formal activity may or may not be legal under domestic legislation) or
opportunistic (including one-time occurrences witnessed first-hand).

If you would like to see a copy of the 2003 paper, as a guide to what we
are looking for and seeking to accomplish, please let me know and I will
email it to you as a .pdf. If you have any questions, please let me
know.

The deadline for transmission of information to us is APRIL 29, 2005.
My email address is [log in to unmask] Thank you.


**************************
Naomi A. Rose, Ph.D.
Marine Mammal Scientist
Oceans and Wildlife Protection
The Humane Society of the United States/
Humane Society International
2100 L Street, NW
Washington, DC 20037 USA
ph 301 258 3048
fax 301 258 3082
eml [log in to unmask]
http://www.hsus.org
http://www.hsihsus.org


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