The Pelagos Sanctuary

Many people still think that you have to go to the middle of the Pacific, Baja California or South Africa to see a cetacean. However, the Mediterranean is also home to a vast array of cetaceans, including whales and dolphins.

Just a few miles off our shores you can encounter giant fin whales (the second largest species in the world after the blue whale, reaching lengths of 20-24 metres), sperm whales (the world’s largest predators) and six other species of cetaceans.

For 27 years, marine biologists from Tethys have been patrolling the waters of the Corsica-Ligurian-Provence basin to monitor cetacean populations in the area all year round. Eight species of marine mammals are sighted regularly, and their numbers are such that, following the advice of the Tethys Institute, the governments of Italy, France and the Principality of Monaco decided to set up a marine reserve to protect them: the Pelagos Sanctuary.

The Pelagos Sanctuary for Mediterranean Marine Mammals occupies an area of approximately 88,000 km2 between Italy, the South of France and Sardinia, and covers both the interior maritime and territorial waters of France, Monaco and Italy, and the adjacent Pelagic waters. This stretch of sea conceals a heritage of inestimable value, the existence of which continues to be ignored by many.
Compared to the rest of the Mediterranean, the waters of the Sanctuary are characterized by a high level of primary productivity, due to the reciprocal action of complex oceanographic, climatic and geomorphological factors. These high levels of primary production support a large biomass of zooplankton, including the small crustaceans that make up what is known as Mediterranean krill. The large quantities of zooplankton attract different types of predators, including cetaceans, mobula rays and turtles.

The various species of cetaceans that are regularly sighted in the Sanctuary find the necessary conditions for both food supply and reproduction in its waters. These species are the fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus), sperm whale (Physeter macrocephalus), Cuvier’s beaked whale (Ziphius cavirostris), the long-finned pilot whale (Globicephala melas), Risso’s dolphin (Grampus griseus), bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus), striped dolphin (Stenella coeruleoalba) and the rare common dolphin (Delphinus delphis). Striped dolphins are the most numerous, with a population of more than 80,000, followed by fin whales, of which there are more than 400 in summer.

However, all these different species of cetaceans have to coexist in an area characterised by high levels of human pressure. Most of the coastal areas bordering on the Sanctuary, especially those on the mainland, are densely populated and dotted with towns, major commercial ports and numerous industrial areas.

There is still much to be done to mitigate human impact and to ensure the protection of these extraordinary inhabitants of our seas. People have to know about this heritage in order to appreciate and love it.

The opportunities are many and range from a half-day or full weekend excursion on sailing boats or whale-watching motorboats, to participation in one of the research cruises that the Tethys Institute runs in the Sanctuary from Portosole to Sanremo.

There is still much to be done to mitigate human impact and to ensure the protection of these extraordinary inhabitants of our seas. People have to know about this heritage in order to appreciate and love it.
The opportunities are many and range from a half-day or full weekend excursion on sailing boats or whale-watching motorboats, to participation in one of the research cruises that the Tethys Institute runs in the Sanctuary from Portosole to Sanremo.

No scientific training is necessary to experience the thrill of close encounters with whales and dolphins, and to assist marine biologists in collecting data and contributing to their protection www.tethys.org.