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Peter Corkeron @petercorkeron.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

Thoughtful piece in @thefridaytimes.bsky.social by Dr. Intikhab Ulfat on #whaling in Iceland "It will show how a society can retain respect for its maritime history while deciding that history does not impose an obligation to repeat every practice inherited from it" 🐳🌍🦑

thefridaytimes.com

The Last Harpoon? Iceland Confronts The Future Of Commercial Whaling

Governments contemplating the termination of any legal industry have an obligation to think about transition, retraining and alternative employment rather than

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Peter Corkeron @petercorkeron.bsky.social · 03/09/2026

Just in case anyone is under any illusion, Erica Fuller from @theclf.bsky.social “Entanglements in fishing gear are a leading cause of death for these critically endangered whales,” Fuller said. ”Punting crucial protections almost a decade down the line will condemn many whales... 2/4

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Peter Corkeron @petercorkeron.bsky.social · 03/09/2026

This is unfortunate "...American fishermen just want to fish, and they need their government to clear the bureaucratic barriers standing in their way." For #rightwhales "NOAA Fisheries will not mandate the use of ropeless gear." The fishing industry's desires, fulfulled 🐳🌍🦑

fisheries.noaa.gov

Advancing Agency-Level Reforms to Restore American Seafood Competitiveness

NOAA Fisheries Assistant Administrator Eugenio Piñeiro Soler announces prioritized agency actions in support of the Executive Order on Restoring American Seafood Competitiveness.

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Peter Corkeron @petercorkeron.bsky.social · 28/08/2026

@birmo.bsky.social demonstrating the importance of changing the frame of environmental discussion "This was not the act of some vengeful god. Look into the truth of this, and you will find names, org charts and KPIs" "It fell because the reckoning is here."

aliensideboob.substack.com

The Reckoning

That imagery of the Himalayan tsunami smashing into the multi-story building in Nepal was horrifying, but then murder always is, isn’t it?

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Peter Corkeron @petercorkeron.bsky.social · 25/08/2026

Disheartening. Piece by Johnny Sturgeon in @insideclimatenews.org E.g. for ropeless gear & #rightwhales "While NOAA has claimed it will continue to promote and research such gear inventions, it is pushing to make implementation optional for fishermen or even halt the program altogether" 🐳🌍🦑

insideclimatenews.org

NOAA’s New Priorities Put Profits Ahead of Marine Protections - Inside Climate News

The agency directed the nation’s regional fisheries councils to scrap certain marine protected areas, remove species from conservation lists and expand commercial fishing operations.

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Peter Corkeron @petercorkeron.bsky.social · 25/08/2026

Canadian Dept of Fisheries & Oceans email uses MS Outlook servers, to give just one example.

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Peter Corkeron @petercorkeron.bsky.social · 20/08/2026

...Hence conspiracy not to keep records, not failing to keep records. So as long as you don’t conspire to not keep records there’s no legal problem.🤷‍♂️ h/t @walkerbragman.bsky.social for posting this story end/🧵 *Gmail? seriously?

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Peter Corkeron @petercorkeron.bsky.social · 20/08/2026

...Funnily enough, I was told that at the time there was no case law about not keeping records under the Federal Records Act. Then a case came out where apparently the decision was if there are no written records, then the problem doesn’t fall under the FRA.🤔... 5/🧵

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Peter Corkeron @petercorkeron.bsky.social · 20/08/2026

...I recall commenting about this with @jamesctobias.bsky.social on Twitter/X when Prof. Morens' story originally broke. NOAA staff ensured nothing was written down. That was one of the reasons that the next Biological Opinion on North Atlantic #rightwhales took so long to complete... 4/🧵

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Peter Corkeron @petercorkeron.bsky.social · 20/08/2026

...I didn’t realize at the time that by expressing my concern to my immediate supervisor that something illegal was happening, I was engaging in a "protected action" under the US Whistleblower Protection Act. By the time I did, it was past the time limit for lodging a complaint... 3/🧵

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Peter Corkeron @petercorkeron.bsky.social · 20/08/2026

..., so during the prior Trump Administration. I was advised by some NOAA staff that communications on North Atlantic #rightwhale would be conducted over the phone and not put in writing. And unlike putting in writing about using Gmail*, as far as I know,, NOAA staff kept no written records... 2/🧵

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Peter Corkeron @petercorkeron.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

On #whaling: Intriguing documentary on the Norwegian industry Featuring @jromanvt.bsky.social being wise, as usual. At 49:17, Norwegian whaling explained by Lars Walløe: "a kind of self determination" Made by: the Endangered Species Protection Agency: www.speciesprotection.com 🐳🌍🦑

whalewashfilm.com

Watch the film

Whale Wash is an investigative documentary film exploring the modern Norwegian whaling industry and why whaling still exists in the 21st century.

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Peter Corkeron @petercorkeron.bsky.social · 14/08/2026

I've had a new paper published on shipping collisions with North Atlantic #rightwhale, based on analysis of strikes on several whale species. In @esr-ir.bsky.social www.int-res.com/articles/esr... The work was supported by @peer.org TL;DR - huge vessels matter. A lot. 🐳🌍🦑🧪

Figure 1b from the paper, showing the relationship between vessel speed and probability of a lethal strike on large whales. Coloured lines indicate the fit of the binomial GLM fit to the data. Shading indicates 95% confidence intervals. NOte that only the model fits for "S" and "XL" vessels should get much credence. Read the paper to understand why.

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Peter Corkeron @petercorkeron.bsky.social · 26/07/2026

Well enough thanks Kate Things are interesting but improving

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Peter Corkeron @petercorkeron.bsky.social · 11/07/2026

“May” doing a lot of work there from Dave

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Peter Corkeron @petercorkeron.bsky.social · 21/06/2026

Great article in @australia.theguardian.com on shark attacks Includes comments & a photoshoot of @robharcourt.bsky.social Classic quote from @conservbytes.bsky.social on shark nets "They’re an environmental catastrophe and there is no evidence that they reduce the incidence of shark bites" 🐳🌍🦑

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Peter Corkeron @petercorkeron.bsky.social · 21/06/2026

Certainly seems that way doesn't it...

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Peter Corkeron @petercorkeron.bsky.social · 20/06/2026

Sir James Clark Ross agreed to give up polar exploration when he married Ann Coulman. Supposedly he was asked to lead the what became the Franklin Expedition & refused. He stayed at home with Ann & the kids except for when he was asked to lead the search for Franklin's lost crew Father's Day story?

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Peter Corkeron @petercorkeron.bsky.social · 16/06/2026

These days? Tones has been around for a while, hasn't he. Still the suppository of all wisdom 🤔

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Peter Corkeron @petercorkeron.bsky.social · 10/06/2026

They’re killed incidentally not accidentally. Important distinction isn’t it? Trawl gear is designed so that more than just the target species will get caught, so incidental catch isn’t caught by accident

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Peter Corkeron @petercorkeron.bsky.social · 05/06/2026

Nice to see someone who stood up for their principles and lost their job get coverage from @sulliview.bsky.social in @theguardian.com Shame about all the rest of us who aren't famous And Pelley was " able to do what his more vulnerable colleagues cannot"? Solidarity's not a thing anymore ffs

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Peter Corkeron @petercorkeron.bsky.social · 02/06/2026

Japanese fisheries agency releases this year's Total Allowable Catch for Japanese #whaling from www.jfa.maff.go.jp/e/whale/atta... 🐳🌍🦑

Screenshot of the table showing allocations of Totalt Allowable Catch for Japanese whaling for 2026. 167 minke, 154 Bryde's, 56 sei and 60 fin whales in the TAC. Factory ship whaling TAC totals 114 sei and fin whales

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Peter Corkeron @petercorkeron.bsky.social · 02/06/2026

Hey @news.abc.net.au how about conflicts of interest? Dr Hellyer is also "'Director of Strategy at C2 Robotics" from his bio C2 make the Spearfish submarine LUUV: c2robotics.com.au/products/spe... that *according to the ADF* is part of #AUKUS www.defence.gov.au/news-events/...

strategicanalysis.org

About Strategic Analysis Australia

Strategic Analysis Australia exists to provide policy insights into national security, defence and international relations challenges.

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Peter Corkeron @petercorkeron.bsky.social · 30/05/2026

Other issues - conceptual difference between putting out devices to monitor for presence of any whales, or choosing to sample individuals, with the sampling issues I raised already. Plus, the real problem is demonstrated by the Administration's changes in resourcing that I already alluded to.

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Peter Corkeron @petercorkeron.bsky.social · 30/05/2026

which is, to my knowledge, currently non-existent for whales. I'm sure somewhere like Vemco could make these tags Would that be more efficient than passive acoustics? I sincerely doubt it. Plenty of literature on using PA for whale detection in the context of reducing risk of collision...

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Peter Corkeron @petercorkeron.bsky.social · 30/05/2026

Thanks Trevor I'm well aware of these arrays. A good friend leads the Australian IMOS animal tagging program. Detection range for a passive acoustic receiver for NARW is ~ 10km. For acoustic tags, the tradeoff between signal strength, battery capacity with tag size & longevity...

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Peter Corkeron @petercorkeron.bsky.social · 29/05/2026

PS Passive acoustics is more effective. but this Administration just did away with the big gov't program on that, then say they want ideas on new tech? Disingenuous, much?

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Peter Corkeron @petercorkeron.bsky.social · 29/05/2026

End rant with aphorism: Amateurs talk tactics, professionals talk logistics.

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Peter Corkeron @petercorkeron.bsky.social · 29/05/2026

No-one whose talked about tagging for ship strike mitigation has ever talked through any of these issues, as far as I'm aware. Plus what do you do with the data anyway? How do you get vessel operators to use it? Consistent problem. And that 10% I suggested is an underestimate of the % needed...

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Peter Corkeron @petercorkeron.bsky.social · 29/05/2026

Resources needed so that 10% of the species are always tagged at one time? 35-40 whales with operating tags? Most last weeks to months, so you're talking about tagging what? 100 whales a year? Logistics for that? Resourcing? Pinning hopes on as-yet non-existent tech? ...

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Peter Corkeron @petercorkeron.bsky.social · 29/05/2026

That goal could be expressed explicit, but then the problem is that most vessel strikes on NARW are almost certainly from large vessels, and almost all are undetected. Plus unlike fish tags, whale tags don't stay on all that long or do significant damage...

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Peter Corkeron @petercorkeron.bsky.social · 29/05/2026

What are the management goals? People have been talking about tagging NARW for detection for ship strike avoidance foryears, but no-one's spelled out what they really mean by that. It's a quantifiable problem, and the tradeoff between proportion covered and the management goal?

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Peter Corkeron @petercorkeron.bsky.social · 29/05/2026

Problem with tagging is one of scale. Tagging - however done - is great to getting a sense of a sample of individuals to learn something about movement ecology. As a management tool, though? What proportion of the species needs tagging to get the appropriate coverage to achieve management goals...

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Peter Corkeron @petercorkeron.bsky.social · 29/05/2026

The 1.2 Virginia-class subs being produced per year is a metric that assumes that the rate of for producing these vessels is constant. Here's a plot of the years from start to commissioning for each Virginia sub commissioned so far, against the date when a build started

A scatterplot of the years that it's taken from the date a keel was first started to commissioning (y axis) , against time (x-axis) for Virginia-class submarines. Data from Wikipedia.

The first boat took ~ 5 years to build, the next builds got quicker, then they leveled out at around 2 years for 9 boats, then the time to build started climbing around 2015. The apparent plateau at 5 years for recent boats might be affected by the data being right-censored - boats started after 2021 that take more than 5 years to commission obviously can't show up in the graph. There's one sub started in 2021 that isn't even launched yet, so nowhere near ready to be commissioned.

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Peter Corkeron @petercorkeron.bsky.social · 28/05/2026

2. As the piece states, passive acoustics is the best way to detect #rightwhales. And as Mark Baumgartner from @whoi.edu says, scaling that up is problematic But most passive acoustic work off the US east coast has been shut down by the Trump administration @fieseler.bsky.social article.

canarymedia.com

Trump claims ‘wind mills’ kill whales but quietly torpedoes the…

The Interior Department defunds two vital research programs that track North Atlantic right whales near active offshore wind construction sites.

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Peter Corkeron @petercorkeron.bsky.social · 28/05/2026

New piece by @catrineinhorn.bsky.social in @nytimes.com on upcoming changes to vessel strike rules for #rightwhales in US waters Tech to the rescue? 2 quick points: 1. Satellite tagging enough whales to make a difference to vessel strikes? Scale problem. Logistics? Cost? 🐳🌍🦑🧪 1/🧵

nytimes.com

Could New Tech Help Save Some Very Rare Whales?

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