Dominican Republic hosted third World Humpback Whale Congress

The event took place from March 6 to 10 in Santo Domingo and Samaná, with the participation of researchers on the study of cetaceans and marine protected areas.

Santo Domingo. – The Dominican Republic hosted the third World Humpback Whale Congress in which international specialists and researchers participated to address the study and preservation of these cetaceans, which in early January of each year choose the warm waters of the Samaná peninsula to mate and have their young.

The conclave, held from Monday March 6 to Friday March 10, was supported by the Ministry of Tourism (MITUR), through the Office of Tourism Promotion (OPT) of France and organized by the Sorbonne University of Paris, the Cétamada Association of Madagascar, the National Authority of Maritime Affairs (ANAMAR) and the French Embassy in the Dominican Republic.

It focused its activities, workshops and sessions on the blue economy, and was the ideal meeting for the world scientific community, present at the congress, to exchange their knowledge and experiences on topics such as habitat and protection of humpback whales, ocean conservation, prospects for the development of marine protected areas, among other topics of interest.

Some 7 special guests continued the program with thematic oral sessions dedicated to migration, behavior, anatomy, genetics, acoustics and participatory science.

In addition, thematic workshops were dedicated to port measures for the marine environment and the regional Caribbean CAMAC project, led by the AGOA Marine Mammal Sanctuary.

The five-day conference was attended by researchers, professionals, environmentalists, managers, artists, artists and artists,

environmentalists, managers, artists and students from both the country and abroad, who also had the opportunity to describe their current projects and discuss collaborations for future projects.

As part of the first day of the congress, on Monday 6, a tribute was paid to ldelisa Bonnelly, an emblematic figure in the protection of marine mammals in the country and considered the “mother of marine conservation in the Caribbean”.

In addition, the delegates will travel to Samaná where they will meet with tour operators.

This congress is certified by the United Nations Decade of the Ocean program and receives the support of the Ministry of the Environment of the Dominican Republic; the Marine Biology Research Center of the Autonomous University of Santo Domingo (CIBIMA); the Dominican Foundation for Marine Studies (FUNDEMAR).

It was also supported by the French Development Agenda in the Dominican Republic (AFD), Guadeloupe Port Caraibes; the ITMX Group; CeSigma Signals & Systems; the Marine Mammal Twinning; Moto Marina Tour; the World Foundation for Democracy and Development, and the Oceana Institute of the Sorbonne University.

From January 15 to March 31, Humpback whale watching is the main ecotourism activity that takes place in the northeastern part of the country, where national and foreign tourists enjoy the migrations of these cetaceans that arrive with the objective of procreating in the warm Caribbean waters.