Southern Right Whale photo identification project - SWIFFT

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The Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning (DELWP) is inviting the community to participate in a citizen science project which supports its Southern Right Whale research program. DELWP is inviting community members to submit sighting information and photos of Southern Right Whales, which is vital for the monitoring and protection of this Critically Endangered species.

Photos of the unique pattern of white features on the whales’ head (called callosities) are catalogued and used to identify individual whales. Together with the sighting information this data is used to help us monitor movements, breeding patterns and determine trends in population size. Whilst this project focuses on Southern Right Whales, we also welcome sightings and photos of any other whale species as this information assists us to conserve and protect all species in Victorian waters.

The online whale sightings uploader has been developed to support volunteers in contributing their observations and photos to the whale research and monitoring project. Sightings submitted using the uploader are reviewed by DELWP researchers and added to the DELWP whale sightings database and Victorian Biodiversity Atlas (VBA).

For more information on this and how you can be part of this integral project, please click on the following link:

https://www.swifft.net.au/srwsmp/

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