Coasts
Learn MoreBackground
Canada is the second largest country in the world – its land area is almost 10 million square kilometres. What is often forgotten is that our country also includes more than seven million square kilometres of ocean and more than 200,000 kilometres of coastline!
We enjoy a wealth of benefits from the ocean. Unfortunately, the way we use the ocean is often harmful to wildlife and wild habitats. The use of the ocean, its aquatic inhabitants, and its living and non-living resources is unavoidable. What is avoidable is the careless and unsustainable use of the ocean – and this is what we are working to end.
Did You Know?
340
As of the end of 2021, the estimated number of North Atlantic right whales remaining.70%
The percentage of the earth covered in ocean — 80% of which is unmapped!200,000
The distance in kilometres of coastline in Canada.Atlantic Whale Conservation Program
The purpose of this project is to conduct stewardship, monitoring and necessary research activities that will contribute to the recovery of North Atlantic right whales by reducing their likelihood of becoming entangled in fishing gear in Canadian waters. In other words, this project focuses on entanglement prevention.
The main project outcomes include fish harvester-led development and evaluation of fishing technology that will reduce entanglements; involvement of fish harvesters and Indigenous communities in active roles that reduce the threat of entanglement; and improved knowledge of the distribution, health and entanglement risks of North Atlantic right whales within Canadian waters.
Learn MoreMarine Action Plan
Canadian marine species face a current and growing danger of being lethally struck by ships. Time is running out for them and removing the risks that threaten their lives is imperative. We ask that you sign this petition to support the CWF Marine Action Plan to ensure safer waterways for whales and all marine species.
Learn moreNorth Atlantic Right Whale
With increasing risks to North Atlantic right whales from entanglement and ship strikes, we are working alongside government and industry to better quantify the risks, and to develop innovative approaches to decrease the threat of entanglement and improve fisheries management measures.
Learn moreCanadian Marine Animal Response Alliance
CMARA aims to improve marine animal rescue, research and outreach on behalf of the Canadian public for the conservation of our marine wildlife heritage.
Learn moreAquaculture
Aquaculture is raising fish for consumption in cages that float in the ocean (essentially they’re open-pens). These are usually located in areas where they are protected from storms but have good water flow. As a result they are often placed in sheltered bays or near the mouths of rivers. CWF has taken a strong stance against the practice.
Learn moreHinterland's Who's Who
For more than 50 years, Hinterland Who’s Who has proudly been bringing Canada’s iconic wildlife directly into Canadians’ homes. Re-launched in 2003, the new video series — as well as comprehensive website — serves to rebuild the connection thousands of viewers made with wildlife through the original series.
Learn MoreBioblitz
With the help of Canadians like you, we hope to catalogue as much of Canada as possible so that we can make informed decisions about our land use, environmental policies and wildlife.
Learn moreiNaturalist.ca
If enough people record their observations in iNaturalist Canada, we can make a difference for Canada’s wildlife. We can build a living record of life in Canada that scientists and environmental managers can use to monitor changes in biodiversity, and that anyone can use to learn more about Canada’s amazing natural history.
Learn moreHow Climate Change is Impacting Canada’s Whales
The ocean is warming at unprecedented rates from human-driven climate change. The ocean is our planet’s greatest carbon sink – it absorbs excess heat and energy from the atmosphere. Current levels are leading to cascading effects in our marine ecosystem, ranging from melting sea-ice and sea-level rise to increasing water temperatures around the world. These changes have far reaching impacts on marine life and biodiversity, including Canada’s large whales.
Areas in the Northwest Atlantic Ocean have been warming faster than most of the global ocean. The critically endangered North Atlantic Right Whales, who calls this ocean home, is one of the most apparent examples of a species responding to climate change. Historically, North Atlantic Right whales would spend the spring and summer months foraging for oil-rich, cold-water species of copepods throughout the Gulf of Maine and Bay of Fundy. But sometime around the early 2010s, they started spending less time in these summer foraging areas and started travelling northward to the Gulf of St. Lawrence. This was driven by marine heatwaves and warming ocean temperatures in the Gulf of Maine, forcing the copepods to seek colder waters. As North Atlantic Right whales followed their food and noticeably shifted their annual migratory route and habitat use in Canada, they became more seriously exposed to additional risks from human activities, specifically to entanglement in commercial fishing gear and to vessel strikes in some of the world’s busiest shipping lanes. The movement of North Atlantic Right whales to the Gulf of St Lawrence resulted in several mass mortality events in recent years, ongoing injuries to these whales, and low reproductive rates – impacting the ability of this species to recover.
Pacific species are also showing similar habitat and prey distribution changes linked to climate change. Pacific Grey Whales along British Columbia’s coast have been stranding at high rates with poor body conditions. Studies have shown a link between sea ice and healthy Grey Whales, as their prey relies on sea ice to grow. With less sea ice, food is less abundant and lower in quality, meaning their prey cannot effectively sustain the population, resulting in skinnier animals that aren’t getting enough food. As with North Atlantic Right whales, this is also causing Grey Whales to explore different habitats as they search for food, potentially putting them at greater risk of entanglements and vessel strikes, where they hadn’t previously been present.
These are just two examples of whale species responding to changes in the ocean ecosystem, but similar patterns are seen with other species. Additionally, with ongoing marine impacts from climate change, it is predicted that marine species distributions will continue to substantially change. The work conducted by the Canadian Wildlife Federation is helping to find solutions to current and future habitat shifts by improving our capability to quickly adapt our marine industries and create safe environments for whales and humans to co-exist.