On Thursday, July 19, 2018, Mr. Marie-Pierre Gramaglia, Minister of Infrastructure, Environment and Urban Planning, visited the ship ‘Song of the Whale,’ one of the main means by which the ACCOBAMS Survey Initiative is carried out.

The event was organised by the Permanent Secretariat of ACCOBAMS, the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation and the International Fund for the Protection of Animals (IFAW), during the stopover of the ship in Monaco, headquarters of ACCOBAMS.

First results have shown the distribution of ocean mammals -whales and dolphins – which were then presented at a conference held at the Yacht Club. Participants were also able to read the scientific protocol of the regional census, listen to the recordings of the sounds emitted by the cetaceans during the study and listen to the testimony of scientific observers present on the boat.

The ACCOBAMS Survey Initiative is an innovative and unprecedented project aimed at improving conservation measures in the Mediterranean in order to safeguard its biodiversity.

The Permanent Secretariat of the Agreement on the Conservation of Cetaceans of the Black Sea, the Mediterranean and the adjacent Atlantic Area (ACCOBAMS) is currently carrying out the first survey of cetaceans and megafauna, using eight aircraft, five boats, including the Song of the Whale, and a hundred scientific observers from all over the Mediterranean basin.