In February 2024, NOAA Fisheries and partners responded to a dead spinner dolphin yearling and a dead humpback whale calf in Hawaiʻi. Examinations revealed their deaths were likely due to vessel strikes.
Collisions with boats as small as 30 feet in length can be lethal to large whales, especially calves, and dangerous for boat passengers. Reduce your speed to keep everyone safe.
A vessel strike, sometimes referred to as a ship strike, is a collision between any type of boat and marine animal, including whales, dolphins, sea turtles, fish, seals, or sea lions.