More commercial ships are being diverted around South Africa’s Cape of Good Hope as conflict disrupts major Middle East shipping corridors, increasing the risk that vessels will strike whales in one of the world’s important whale habitats.
The concern was raised in a study presented this month at a meeting of the International Whaling Commission, according to reporting cited by Al Jazeera. Researchers warned that shipping traffic along South Africa’s southwestern coast has risen sharply, putting whales in busier lanes at a time when several species feed, migrate or gather in the area.
How the war is changing shipping routes
Shipping through the Red Sea and Suez Canal had already been disrupted since November 2023, when Houthi forces began targeting vessels in the region. More recently, attacks on vessels and restrictions around the Strait of Hormuz have pushed more shipping companies to send vessels around southern Africa instead.
The scale of the change is visible in traffic data cited in the report: at least 89 commercial vessels sailed around Southern Africa between March 1 and April 24, compared with 44 in the same period in 2023, according to the International Monetary Fund’s PortWatch Monitor.
Why whales are vulnerable
South Africa’s waters are home to more than 40 whale species. The Cape of Good Hope area hosts southern right whales, humpback whales and Bryde’s whales, along with orcas, sperm whales, minke whales and dolphins. Large groups of humpbacks feed in the region before migrating annually toward Antarctica.
Researchers say the danger is not simply that there are more ships, but that whales may not move away in time. Els Vermeulen of the University of Pretoria, who led the study presented to the whaling commission, told AFP that fast-moving traffic poses the greatest risk and said such traffic has quadrupled.
Some whale populations have recovered since commercial whaling declined, including southern right and humpback whales, but others remain in trouble. Antarctic blue, fin and sei whales are listed on South Africa’s Red List as Endangered or Critically Endangered, according to the source report.
What could reduce the risk
The study suggested that even modest shifts in traffic lanes away from South Africa’s coast could cut strike risks for some whale species by 20 to 50 percent. Experts also point to speed reductions, which can lower the likelihood of lethal collisions and reduce underwater noise, and to alert systems that warn ships when whale super-pods are nearby.
South Africa’s Environment Ministry told AFP that “all available solutions and mitigation measures will be examined” to protect whales around the Cape of Good Hope. The next question is whether maritime authorities and shipping companies move quickly enough to adjust routes or speeds as global trade continues to reroute around southern Africa.
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