PLEASE NOTE
Dedicated efforts to document marine mammal habitats have only covered a fraction of the global ocean. All users of this site should bear in mind that waters not identified as Important Marine Mammal Areas (IMMAs), candidate IMMAs (cIMMAs) or areas of interest (AoI), and therefore outside of these denominations, may still be important for the long-term survival and well-being of marine mammals. Human activities taking place in marine environments everywhere around the world must be conducted responsibly.
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By Region
By Species
Cetacea + |
Balaenidae + |
Balaena mysticetus |
Eubalaena glacialis |
Eubalaena japonica |
Eubalaena australis |
Neobalaenidae + |
Caperea marginata |
Eschrichtiidae + |
Eschrichtius robustus |
Balaenopteridae + |
Balaenoptera acutorostrata |
Balaenoptera acutorostrata acutorostrata |
Balaenoptera acutorostrata scammoni |
Balaenoptera acutorostrata un-named subsp. |
Balaenoptera bonaerensis |
Balaenoptera edeni |
Balaenoptera edeni edeni |
Balaenoptera edeni brydei |
Balaenoptera omurai |
Balaenoptera borealis |
Balaenoptera borealis borealis |
Balaenoptera borealis schlegelii |
Balaenoptera physalus |
Balaenoptera physalus physalus |
Balaenoptera physalus quoyi |
Balaenoptera physalus patachonica |
Balaenoptera musculus |
Balaenoptera musculus musculus |
Balaenoptera musculus intermedia |
Balaenoptera musculus indica |
Balaenoptera musculus brevicauda |
Balaenoptera musculus un-named subsp. |
Megaptera novaeangliae |
Megaptera novaeangliae novaeangliae |
Megaptera novaeangliae australis |
Megaptera novaeangliae kuzira |
Physeteridae + |
Physeter macrocephalus |
Kogidae + |
Kogia breviceps |
Kogia sima |
Ziphiidae + |
Berardius arnuxii |
Berardius bairdii |
Indopacetus pacificus |
Hyperoodon ampullatus |
Hyperoodon planifrons |
Hyperoodon pacificus |
Mesoplodon bidens |
Mesoplodon bowdoini |
Mesoplodon carlhubbsi |
Mesoplodon europaeus |
Mesoplodon ginkgodens |
Mesoplodon grayi |
Mesoplodon hectori |
Mesoplodon hotaula |
Mesoplodon layardii |
Mesoplodon mirus |
Mesoplodon perrini |
Mesoplodon peruvianus |
Mesoplodon stejnegeri |
Mesoplodon traversii |
Mesoplodon densirostris |
Tasmacetus shepherdi |
Ziphius cavirostris |
Platanistidae + |
Platanista gangetica |
Platanista gangetica gangetica |
Platanista gangetica minor |
Iniidae + |
Inia geoffrensis |
Inia geoffrensis geoffrensis |
Inia geoffrensis boliviensis |
Lipotidae + |
Lipotes vexillifer |
Pontoporiidae + |
Pontoporia blainvillei |
Monodontidae + |
Monodon monoceros |
Delphinapterus leucas |
Delphinidae + |
Cephalorhynchus commersonii |
Cephalorhynchus commersonii commersonii |
Cephalorhynchus commersonii kerguelenensis |
Cephalorhynchus eutropia |
Cephalorhynchus heavisidii |
Cephalorhynchus hectori |
Cephalorhynchus hectori hectori |
Cephalorhynchus hectori maui |
Delphinus delphis |
Delphinus delphis delphis |
Delphinus delphis bairdii |
Delphinus delphis ponticus |
Delphinus delphis tropicalis |
Feresa attenuata |
Globicephala melas |
Globicephala melas melas |
Globicephala melas edwardii |
Globicephala melas un-named subsp. |
Globicephala macrorhynchus |
Grampus griseus |
Lagenodelphis hosei |
Lagenorhynchus acutus |
Lagenorhynchus albirostris |
Lagenorhynchus australis |
Lagenorhynchus cruciger |
Lagenorhynchus obliquidens |
Lagenorhynchus obscurus |
Lagenorhynchus obscurus obscurus |
Lagenorhynchus obscurus fitzroyi |
Lagenorhynchus obscurus posidonia |
Lagenorhynchus obscurus un-named subsp. |
Lissodelphis borealis |
Lissodelphis peronii |
Orcaella brevirostris |
Orcaella heinsohni |
Orcinus orca |
Orcinus orca un-named subsp. |
Orcinus orca un-named subsp. |
Peponocephala electra |
Pseudorca crassidens |
Sousa teuszii |
Sousa chinensis |
Sousa chinensis chinensis |
Sousa chinensis taiwanensis |
Sousa plumbea |
Sousa sahulensis |
Sotalia fluviatilis |
Sotalia guianensis |
Stenella attenuata |
Stenella attenuata attenuata |
Stenella attenuata graffmani |
Stenella clymene |
Stenella coeruleoalba |
Stenella frontalis |
Stenella longirostris |
Stenella longirostris centroamericana |
Stenella longirostris longirostris |
Stenella longirostris orientalis |
Stenella longirostris roseiventris |
Steno bredanensis |
Tursiops aduncus |
Tursiops truncatus |
Tursiops truncatus ponticus |
Tursiops truncatus truncatus |
Phocenidae + |
Neophocaena phocaenoides |
Neophocaena asiaeorientalis |
Neophocaena asiaeorientalis asiaeorientalis |
Neophocaena asiaeorientalis sunameri |
Phocoena dioptrica |
Phocoena phocoena |
Phocoena phocoena phocoena |
Phocoena phocoena vomerina |
Phocoena phocoena relicta |
Phocoena phocoena un-named subsp. |
Phocoena sinus |
Phocoena spinipinnis |
Phocoenoides dalli |
Phocoenoides dalli dalli |
Phocoenoides dalli truei |
Carnivora + |
Otariidae + |
Arctocephalus australis |
Arctocephalus australis australis |
Arctocephalus australis un-named subsp. |
Arctocephalus forsteri |
Arctocephalus galapagoensis |
Arctocephalus gazella |
Arctocephalus philippii |
Arctocephalus philippii philippii |
Arctocephalus philippii townsendi |
Arctocephalus pusillus |
Arctocephalus pusillus pusillus |
Arctocephalus pusillus doriferus |
Arctocephalus tropicalis |
Callorhinus ursinus |
Eumetopias jubatus |
Eumetopias jubatus jubatus |
Eumetopias jubatus monteriensis |
Neophoca cinerea |
Otaria byronia |
Phocarctos hookeri |
Zalophus californianus |
Zalophus japonicus |
Zalophus wollebaeki |
Odobonidae + |
Odobenus rosmarus |
Odobenus rosmarus divergens |
Odobenus rosmarus rosmarus |
Phocidae + |
Cystophora cristata |
Erignathus barbatus |
Erignathus barbatus barbatus |
Erignathus barbatus nauticus |
Halichoerus grypus |
Halichoerus grypus grypus |
Halichoerus grypus atlantica |
Histriophoca fasciata |
Hydrurga leptonyx |
Leptonychotes weddellii |
Lobodon carcinophaga |
Mirounga leonina |
Mirounga angustirostris |
Monachus monachus |
Neomonachus tropicalis |
Neomonachus schauinslandi |
Ommatophoca rossii |
Pagophilus groenlandicus |
Phoca vitulina |
Phoca vitulina vitulina |
Phoca vitulina mellonae |
Phoca vitulina richardii |
Phoca largha |
Pusa hispida |
Pusa hispida hispida |
Pusa hispida botnica |
Pusa hispida ochotensis |
Pusa hispida ladogensis |
Pusa hispida saimensis |
Pusa caspica |
Pusa sibirica |
Ursidae + |
Ursus maritimus |
Mustelidae + |
Enhydra lutris |
Enhydra lutris kenyoni |
Enhydra lutris lutris |
Enhydra lutris nereis |
Lontra felina |
Neovison macrodon |
Sirenia + |
Trichechidae + |
Trichechus inunguis |
Trichechus manatus |
Trichechus manatus latirostris |
Trichechus manatus manatus |
Trichechus senegalensis |
Dugongidae + |
Dugong dugon |
Hydrodamalis gigas |
By Denomination
Mediterranean + |
Imma + |
Akamas and Chrysochou Bay |
Akrotiri |
Alboràn Corridor |
Alboràn Deep |
Alboràn Sea |
Balearic Islands Shelf and Slope |
Campanian and Pontino Archipelago |
Central Aegean |
Chios and Turkish Coast |
Cilician Basin |
Coastal Shelf Waters of the South East Levantine Sea |
Gulf of Ambracia |
Gulf of Corinth |
Hellenic Trench |
Ionian Archipelago |
Waters of Ischia and Ventotene |
Kélibia |
Lampedusa |
North West Mediterranean Sea, Slope and Canyon System |
Northern Adriatic |
Northern Coast and Islands of the Thracian Sea |
Northern Coast of Cyprus |
Northern Sporades |
Shelf of the Gulf of Lion |
Strait of Gibraltar and Gulf of Càdiz |
Western Ligurian Sea and Genoa Canyon |
cImma + |
Central Southern Adriatic |
Central Tyrrhenian Sea |
East Sicily and Strait of Messina |
North East Ionian Sea |
Waters Surrounding the Maltese Islands |
Northeast Ionian Sea Coast and Islands |
Aegean and Crete Coastal Waters and Islands |
Pacific Islands + |
Imma + |
Austral Archipelago |
Bismarck Sea |
Cook Islands Southern Group |
Kikori Delta |
Main Hawaiian Archipelago |
Main Hawaiian Islands |
Main Solomon Islands |
Marquesas Archipelago |
New Caledonia Southern Seamounts and Banks |
New Caledonian Lagoons and Shelf Waters |
North West Hawaiian Islands |
Palmyra Atoll |
Samoan Archipelago |
Society Archipelago |
Southern Shelf Waters and Reef Edge of Palau |
Tongan Archipelago |
Vatu-i-Ra |
Waters of New Caledonia and Loyalty Islands |
Kona Coast of Hawaii Island |
cImma + |
Chesterfield-Bellona Coral Reef Complex and Seamounts |
Tuvalu |
Vanuatu Archipelago |
Gilbert Islands |
Wallis and Futuna |
Northeast Indian Ocean and Southeast Asian Seas + |
Imma + |
Balikpapan, Adang and Apar Bays |
Babuyan Marine Corridor |
Bintuni Bay, West Papua |
Bohol Sea |
Buleleng |
Chilika Lagoon |
Coastal Northern Bay of Bengal |
Con Dao |
Eastern Lesser Sunda Islands and Timor Coastal Area |
Gulf of Mannar and Palk Bay |
Iloilo and Guimaras Straits |
Kaimana, West Papua |
Kien Giang and Kep Archipelago |
Kuching Bay |
Malampaya Sound |
Matang Mangroves and Coastal Waters |
Mersing Archipelago |
Satun-Langkawi Archipelago |
Savu Sea and Surrounding Areas |
Similajau-Kuala Nyalau Coastline |
South West to Eastern Sri Lanka |
Southern Andaman Islands |
Southern Bali Peninsula and Adjacent Slope |
Sundarbans |
Swatch-of-No-Ground |
Tañon Strait |
Tolitoli |
Wakatobi and Adjacent Waters |
Western Lesser Sunda Islands and Sumba Coastal Area |
Berau and East Kutai District, Kalimantan |
cImma + |
Upper Gulf of Thailand |
Trat Koh Kong |
Lower Kinabatangan Estuarine and Coastal Area |
Trang |
Bay of Brunei |
Raja Ampat and Dampier Strait |
Mayo Bay to Pujada Bay |
African Atlantic + |
Imma + |
Cabo Blanco |
cImma + |
European Atlantic + |
Imma + |
Madeira and Desertas Islands |
cImma + |
Western Indian Ocean and Arabian Seas + |
Imma + |
Aldabra Atoll |
Bazaruto Archipelago to Inhambane Bay |
Cape Coastal Waters |
Comoros Island Chain and Adjacent Reef Banks |
Dhofar |
Farasan Archipelago |
Greater Pemba Channel |
Gulf of Kutch |
Gulf of Masirah and Offshore Waters |
Gulf of Salwa |
Indus Estuary and Creeks |
Kisite-Shimoni |
Lakshadweep Archipelago |
Lamu Offshore |
Madagascar Central East Coast |
Maldives Archipelago and Adjacent Oceanic Waters |
Mascarene Islands and Associated Oceanic Features |
Menai Bay |
Miani Hor |
Mozambique Coastal Breeding Grounds |
Muscat Coastal Waters and Offshore Canyons |
Nakhiloo Coastal Waters |
North East Arabian Sea |
Northern Gulf and Confluence of Tigris, Euphrates and Kuran |
Northern Red Sea Islands |
Northwest Madagascar and Northeast Mozambique Channel |
Oman Arabian Sea |
Seychelles Plateau and Adjacent Oceanic Waters |
Shelf Waters of Southern Madagascar |
Sindhudurg-Karwar |
South East African Coastal Migration Corridor |
South West Madagascar and Mozambique Channel |
Southern Coastal Shelf Waters of South Africa |
Southern Egyptian Red Sea Bays, Offshore Reefs and Islands |
Southern Gulf and Coastal Waters |
Toliara, St. Augustine Canyon and Anakao |
Watamu-Malindi and Watamu Banks |
cImma + |
Central Mozambique Channel |
Gulf of Salwa and Northwestern Gulf |
Madagascar Ridge |
Australia, New Zealand and Southest Indian Ocean + |
Imma + |
Australian East Coast Migration Corridor |
Albany Canyon Region |
Central and Western Torres Strait |
Central West Coast, North Island |
Dampier Archipelago |
Eastern Indian Ocean Blue Whale Migratory Route |
Geographe Bay to Eucla Shelf and Coastal Waters |
Gourdon Bay to Bigge Island |
Great Barrier Ribbon Reefs and Outer Shelf |
Hervey Bay and Great Sandy Strait |
Hikurangi Trench |
Hinchinbrook to Round Hill |
Houtman Abrolhos to Rottnest Shelf Waters |
Kaikoura |
Mapoon to Aurukun |
Marlborough Sounds and Cook Strait |
Moreton Bay |
Ningaloo Reef to Montebello Islands |
Northern Great Barrier Reef |
Northwestern Australian Coastal Waters and Inlets |
Rakiura Stewart Island and Te Ara a Kiwa |
Rangitahua Kermadec |
Shark Bay |
South Australian Gulfs and Adjacent Waters |
South Taranaki Bight |
Southeastern Australian and Tasmanian Shelf Waters |
Southern Great Barrier Reef Lagoon and Coast |
Southern Gulf of Carpentaria |
Tikapa Moana Te Moananui _ Toi Hauraki |
Western Australian Humpback Whale Migration Route |
Southern Australian Coastal and Shelf Region |
cImma + |
East Coast, South Island |
Northern Territory |
Extended Southern Ocean + |
Imma + |
Amsterdam Island, Saint Paul Complex and Associated Waters |
Bouvetøya and Surrounding Waters |
Crozet Islands |
Gough Island and Surrounding Waters |
Heard Islands Kerguelen and Surrounding Waters |
Macquarie Island Ridge |
New Zealand Subantarctic Islands |
Prince Edward Islands and Western Oceanic Waters |
Ross Sea Ecosystem |
Scotia Arc |
Scott Islands and Iselin Bank Complex |
South Georgia |
Western Antarctic Peninsula and Islands |
cImma + |
Circumpolar Southern Ocean Seasonal Ice Edge Extent |
Black Sea, Turkish Straits System, and Caspian Sea + |
Imma + |
Balaklava and the Southern Crimea |
Caspian Seal Breeding Area |
Caspian Seal Moulting and Haul Out Areas |
Caspian Seal Transitory Migration and Feeding Area |
Colchis |
Emona |
Kaliakra to Danube Delta |
Karadag and Opuk |
Karkinit and Dzharylhach Gulfs |
Kerch Strait and Taman Bay |
Sea of Azov |
Sinop |
Turkish Straits System and Prebosphoric |
Western Black Sea |
cImma + |
Black Sea Eastern Anatolian Coast |
South East Tropical and Temperate Pacific Ocean + |
Imma + |
Almirantazgo Sound |
Almirante Montt Gulf |
Banderas Bay and Islands of Nayarit |
Carnegie Ridge, Galapagos to Mainland |
Central America Humpback Whale Corridor |
Costa Rica Thermal Dome |
Central Humboldt Current Upwelling System |
Central Magellan Strait |
Chacao Channel - Guamblin Island |
Chiloe Interior |
Cobquecura-Itata |
Continental Shelf of the Northern Humboldt Current |
Eastern Pacific Warm Pool |
Galapagos Archipelago |
Gorgona-Tribuga-Malpelo |
Guadalupe Island |
Gulf of Arauco |
Gulf of California |
Gulf of Chiriqui |
Gulf of Panama |
Gulf of Penas |
Gulfo Dulce |
Humboldt Archipelago |
Juan Fernandez Archipelago |
La Paz Bay |
Magdalena-Puyuhuapi |
Osa Peninsula |
Pacific Coast of Baja California Peninsula |
Papudo-Maitencillo |
Pitipalena Anihue |
Revillagigedo Archipelago |
San Jose Canyon and Adjacent Shelf |
San Juan del Sur-Papagayo |
Upper Gulf of California |
Western Baja California Lagoons and Coastal Waters |
Western Magellan Strait |
cImma + |
Southeastern Pacific Whale Migratory Corridor |
Northwestern Patagonia |
Beagle Channel - Southern Patagonia |
Laguna San Rafael |
Fitzroy Channel |
By Criteria
By AoI
IMMAs | |
cIMMAs | |
AOIs |
Warning
IMMAs or cIMMAs or AoI layers may overlap, impairing the selection of a certain area. Use the above command "SELECT LAYERS" to de-select or select the whole covering layer
Denomination Legend
Important Marine Mammal Area | |
candidate Important Marine Mammal Area | |
Area of Interest | |
Not yet assessed area |
IMMA:
a discrete portion of habitat, important to marine mammal species, that has the potential to be delineated and managed for conservation.
‘Important’ (in the context of the IMMA classification):
any environmental condition, biological property, or value of a place, which supports marine mammals, and maintains or improves their conservation status.
Qualifying species:
species that satisfy one or more of the IMMA criteria; including the species that apply to the diversity criterion (D2).
Supporting species:
species that obviously have habitat within the IMMA but that do not satisfy any of the IMMA criteria. Species that have occupied the area historically but no longer occur, vagrants, single sightings or strandings of species that normally occur in habitat outside the IMMA boundary should not be listed as supporting species.
Preliminary Area of Interest (pAoI):
area proposed prior to a regional workshop for consideration by the workshop with the potential to become a cIMMA.
Area of Interest (AoI):
area that had been proposed as a candidate IMMA at a regional workshop but with insufficient information to satisfy the IMMA criteria. Areas of Interest are included in the online searchable database and displayed on the e-Atlas with a blue colouration. It is possible in the future when more information becomes available, that an AoI will become an IMMA, subject to undergoing consideration at a new workshop and review process.
candidate IMMA (cIMMA):
proposal for an IMMA produced at the end of an IMMA workshop that is sent to the Independent Review Panel for consideration as an IMMA. A cIMMA that is deemed by reviewers to be needing more information to satisfy the IMMA criteria will remain a cIMMA, included in the online searchable database and displayed on the e-Atlas with a pink colouration. For a cIMMA to become an IMMA, it is sufficient for the point of contact to interact with the IMMA Secretariat to ensure that certain requirements have been satisfied, and the Secretariat can then determine if the cIMMA can become a full IMMA.