ORCA

Whale & Dolphin Identification

Take a deep dive into the world of whales and dolphins...

Whales, dolphins and porpoises are animals we share a special connection with, but for many of us they are as mysterious as they are awe-inspiring. This course will give you a glimpse of the amazing world that these animals live in and teach you about the myriad of species we find in our oceans.

Our Introduction to Whale and Dolphin Identification course will teach you the fundamental skills you need to help identify the species we find in the northeast Atlantic and share with you top tips from professional whale watchers so that you too can tell your harbour porpoise from your humpback whale.

Book your course today

Start your ORCA journey...

ORCA's work relies on a passionate and dedicated army of citizen scientists who everyday work to help protect whales and dolphins around the world.

All of these amazing volunteers started their journey by learning the basics of cetacean identification so that they could contribute to our 25+ years of data collection and you can join them by starting your own ORCA journey today.

ORCA's mission is to give everyone who cares about whales and dolphins an active role in safeguarding their future and this course is your first step to joining us in making that a reality.

Course Information

The Introduction to Whale and Dolphin Identification course will equip you with the skills and knowledge to identify a wide range of whale, dolphin and porpoise species found in the northeast Atlantic.

During this course, you will;

  • Learn all about ORCA and an introduction to our charity

  • Learn about whale, dolphin and porpoise biology, ecology and behaviour

  • Develop the skills and knowledge to be able to confidently identify the most common species of whale, dolphin and porpoise that can be seen in the northeast Atlantic

The materials are self-study, so can be completed in your own time at your own pace.

This course is a prerequisite for progressing on to become an ORCA OceanWatcher and/or Marine Mammal Surveyor, or can stand alone if you just wanted to learn more about wonderful ocean giants.

Our training course terms and conditions can be found here.

Book your course today

How to get involved as an ORCA citizen scientist

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Start your citizen scientist journey today...

If you want to start collecting vital data on whales and dolphins using our OceanWatchers app, you will need to progress onto our OceanWatchers course.

Book both the 'Introduction to Whale and Dolphin Identification' and 'OceanWatchers' courses today and you're all ready to get started!

Book both courses today

Continue your journey...

Marine Mammal Surveyors

Utilising the UK ferry network, our volunteer survey teams board ferries leaving ports across the UK to conduct scientific surveys to record the species they see.

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