A sound approach to killer whale conservation: understanding and protecting the ocean’s top predator

• Main Author: Deecke, Volker B.
• Format: Conference Object
• Language: unknown
• Published: 2024
• Subjects: 599 Mammals; 591 Specific topics in natural history; 577 Ecology; Canada; Pacific; Iceland; Killer Whale; Alaska; Killer whale
• Online Access: http://insight.cumbria.ac.uk/id/eprint/7563/; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z5o5SgT91OE

Professor of Wildlife Conservation at the University of Cumbria, Volker Deecke will present the results of research using innovative digital recording tags to understand the foraging behaviour of mammal-hunting and fish-eating killer whales in the Northeast Pacific. Killer whales are the top predators in marine ecosystems and are found in all the world’s oceans, yet we know surprisingly little about how these animals communicate and find their prey. Volker’s research shows how new technology can help us understand how these animals communicate and find and catch their prey, and how underwater noise may be interfering with these essential life processes. Born in Germany and raised in Austria, Volker Deecke received his BSc and Masters from the University of British Columbia and a Doctorate from the University of St. Andrews. He has studied killer whales and other marine mammals in Canada, Alaska, Iceland and Shetland. He is interested in the role of behavioural research in wildlife conservation, specifically understanding underwater communication and the effect of underwater noise.