Harbour Porpoise Welfare: UK's Smallest Cetacean
The harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) is the UK's most common cetacean, with welfare shaped by fisheries bycatch, prey availability, and noise pollution in coastal waters.
Key Facts
- The smallest cetacean in UK waters, rarely more than 1.8m long
- Bycatch in gillnets and other fishing gear is the primary human-caused mortality threat
- Porpoises must eat approximately 7-10% of their body weight daily to maintain welfare
- Acoustic disturbance from shipping and construction affects porpoise foraging and communication
- Prey depletion from overfishing reduces the food availability essential for welfare
Welfare Considerations
Harbour porpoise welfare is threatened by fisheries interactions more than any other cause. Incidental entanglement in static gillnets causes drowning in animals that must surface to breathe. Thousands of porpoises die in UK waters each year from bycatch. Acoustic pollution from shipping, sonar, and construction disrupts the echolocation-based foraging that porpoises depend on, reducing feeding efficiency and welfare. Prey fish availability determines whether porpoises can maintain the caloric intake necessary for survival, reproduction, and immune function. Conservation measures including acoustic deterrents on nets, temporal and spatial fishing closures, and marine protected areas address these welfare threats.
What You Can Do
- Support Marine Conservation Society and other cetacean welfare organizations
- Report stranded or injured porpoises to BDMLR for expert assistance
- Advocate for improved bycatch reduction measures in UK fisheries management
- Reduce your seafood footprint, choosing sustainable certified fish
- Support offshore wind development siting that minimizes cetacean acoustic disturbance