On the 21st November, the final ferry survey of 2025 with our longstanding partner DFDS departed from Newhaven for a return crossing to Dieppe. Here is a summary of our surveys undertaken by our dedicated Marine Mammal Surveyors on board DFDS vessels this year:
- 147 individual animals recorded in 2025. This is slightly fewer animals seen in 2024 (176), highlighting the importance of the year on year, continued monitoring by ORCA, with trends and shifts in distribution being reported on in real-time which is critically important for cetacean conservation
- 5 different marine species seen, including whales, dolphins, porpoises and seals
- A distance of 6,257 km was travelled whilst surveying - 207 km more than in 2024
- 30 surveys were conducted across three routes (Newhaven-Dieppe, Dover-Calais and Newcastle-Amsterdam) between March and November
- 111 ORCA volunteer Marine Mammal Surveyors conducted these important surveys
- Harbour porpoise were the species recorded most frequently with 48 individuals recorded. Harbour porpoise were seen throughout the year and on every route
- Fewer animals were seen on the Dover-Calais and Newhaven-Dieppe routes than in 2024 (28 in 2024 vs 12 in 2025 on Dover-Calais despite slightly increased survey effort and 73 in 2024 vs 21 in 2025 on Newhaven-Dieppe despite similar levels of survey effort between the years)
- In contrast, the number of animals seen on the Newcastle-Amsterdam route increased: 114 animals were seen in 2025 compared to 75 in 2024
- This likely reflects differing food availability between the two areas between years. There was also an increase in common dolphin sightings on the Newcastle-Amsterdam route and white-beaked dolphins were not recorded at all by Marine Mammal Surveyors (although they were recorded by Ocean Conservationists on this route in much smaller numbers than in 2024). This may be indicative of an influx of warmer water from the west to the North Sea which points to an oceanographic explanation for the change in the distribution of sightings this year and highlights the importance of long term surveys along the same route to unravel these patterns and distinguish them from changes in cetacean populations
- This year there have been notable shifts on distribution of wildlife around the UK and fewer animals recorded. With our long-term monitoring of these regions thanks to the yearly surveys conducted from your vessels, we are able to be alerted to these changes in real-time and to investigate them further to ascertain if this is just an anomaly year or if there is something more serious impacting the wildlife of the region
A massive thank you all of our dedicated Marine Mammal Surveyors who took part in surveys on DFDS vessels during 2025!
We are busy planning for the 2026 survey season and applications for our ferry surveys will be open in the New Year. As always, we will continue to keep you updated on the progress of this via email and the Surveyor Network News Page.