For the first time, the island of Boa Vista in Cape Verde has a locally trained network capable of responding to cetacean strandings.
Nearly 100 emergency responders, veterinarians, fishers, surfers, government officials and conservation practitioners have completed specialist training delivered by Loro Parque Fundación, the University Institute of Animal Health and Food Safety (IUSA) at the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, and the local organisation BIOS Cabo Verde.
The initiative aims to improve the response to one of the Atlantic’s most challenging marine conservation issues: cetacean strandings. Boa Vista has experienced numerous stranding events over recent decades, including mass strandings of short-finned pilot whales (Globicephala macrorhynchus).
Training and rescue equipment
Alongside funding the technical mission, Loro Parque Fundación donated specialist rescue equipment, including two rescue pontoons and additional gear for handling small cetaceans. The equipment will remain permanently available to BIOS Cabo Verde for future rescue operations.
The three-day programme combined classroom sessions on cetacean biology, the causes of strandings and rescue protocols with practical exercises covering animal stabilisation, handling and release.
For the first time, fishers, emergency responders, veterinarians, maritime police officers, civil protection teams and conservation organisations trained together using common response procedures.
One of the most valuable training tools was an inflatable dolphin model, which allowed participants to practise realistic rescue, transport and refloating techniques.
Building long-term local capacity
“We identified the problem, documented it in the field through the MARCET project and decided to act,” said Christoph Kiessling, President of Loro Parque Fundación. “Providing equipment alone was not enough; we also had to invest in people.”
“By funding the travel of the teaching team, the rescue equipment and the training sessions, we are turning scientific knowledge into real operational capacity on the ground. Boa Vista—and the rest of Cape Verde—now has a permanent response network that simply did not exist before.”
According to Lara Martínez, Conservation Officer at the Macaronesia Species Survival Centre, involving those most likely to encounter stranded animals is essential.
“Working side by side with fishers, surfers and emergency services is fundamental because they are usually the first to detect a stranding. These training sessions give them the skills and confidence to act safely—for both the animals and themselves—during the first and most critical minutes of an emergency. That rapid response often makes the difference between life and death.”
The project is now expected to serve as a model for similar capacity-building initiatives in other island territories, including the Canary Islands.
