Strandings

2004 - Hawai'i

The U.S. Navy is denying responsibility, and as of this writing the incident is so recent that it is under investigation, however, no one disputes the fact that naval vessels were on maneuver off Hawai'i using their sonar periodically in the 20 hours before a large pod of melon-headed whales unexpectedly came to shore in the area. On July 3, 2004, almost 200 deep-water whales stranded in Hanalei Bay (Kaua'i). For a full report see the Sept 2004 Conservation Report

2003 - Puget Sound

harbor porpoises started washing ashore dead following a US naval exercise using mid-frequency sonars by the USS Shoup in Haro Strait off the coast of the state of Washington - for a report, see: http://www.whaleresearch.com/thecenter/usnavysonar.html

2002 - Canary Islands

whales and dolphins started washing ashore dead with no visible injuries - mid-frequency sonars were used in this international naval exercise - for a report, see: Canaries_stranding.pdf

related research from Conservation report excerpts: sperm whales get the bends (Jan 2005)

2000 - Bahamas

many stranded live in shallow water, others washed ashore dead; mid- and low-frequency sonars were used in this US naval exercise - for a report, see: http://www.whaleresearch.com/thecenter/bahreport.html

1996 - Greece - Nature article

first documented report linking whale strandings to the use of military sonar. This article appeared in Nature - one of the world's most prestigious scientific journals - on the stranding of 12 Cuvier's beaked whales across a 40-mile stretch of Greek beach in the Kyparissiakos Gulf in the Mediterreanean Sea. Since that time military sonars have come under increased scrutiny. In this incident, low-frequency sonar was used during NATO military exercises - to read the Nature article, see: FrantzisNature-article.pdf

Summary Record of the SACLANTCEN Bioacoustics Panel, La Specia, 15-17 June 1998

click on any of the above images for a larger view of the stranding areas