Wild Whales

Home of the BC Cetacean Sightings Network

Report a Sighting

We need your help!  By reporting sightings, researchers are able to better understand the relative abundance, distribution, and habitat use of BC’s threatened and endangered cetaceans and sea turtles.

Identifying Species

Some species, such as the killer whale, are large, distinctive and easy to identify. Other species, however, are more difficult to distinguish.  Download our printable guide to help with identification!

Threats to Cetaceans

Of the 23 species of whales, dolphins, porpoises, and sea turtles in BC waters, 12 are listed under the Species at Risk Act as Endangered, Threatened, or Special Concern.  Learn more about the many anthropogenic threats these animals face.

How Sightings Are Used

Information about the distribution and abundance of species is the key to both understanding the status of the species, and whether the status of the population is improving, steady or declining.

Recent News

Churchill, Manitoba; Putting Polar Bears on the Radar

Churchill, Manitoba; Putting Polar Bears on the Radar

By: Julia Felske, Practicum Student Churchill, Manitoba, a small community of 899 residents, is widely known as ‘The Polar Bear Capital of the World’, and with good reason: from July to November about a thousand polar bears migrate to Churchill where they wait for the...

Looking at Sightings in a Whole New Way

Looking at Sightings in a Whole New Way

Using a new tool from the BC Cetacean Sightings Network (BCCSN), the residents of Saturna Island have taken whale research and conservation into their own hands! This year the Saturna Island Marine Research and Education Society (SIMRES) initiated a pilot project to...