The ICES Working Group on Marine Mammal Ecology (WGMME) 2010 report is now available, and can be downloaded at http://www.ices.dk/workinggroups/ViewWorkingGroup.aspx?ID=32 A number of Terms of Reference were covered during this year's meeting in the Azores including: a ) Review the effects of wind farm construction and operation on marine mammals and provide advice on monitoring and mitigation schemes; b ) Review the current contaminant loads reported in marine mammals in the ICES area, the causeeffect relationships between contaminants and health status, and the population-level effects of environmental impacts; c ) Further development of the framework for surveillance and monitoring of marine mammals applicable to the ICES area; d ) Review and report on any new information on population sizes, population/stock structure and management frameworks for marine mammals; e ) Provide information on abundance, distribution, population structure and incidental capture of marine mammals off the Azores; f ) Review of the scope, objectives and technical issues of the initiative for a European Marine Mammal Tissue Bank; g ) Update on development of the ICES seal database, status of intersessional work. Reports from previous years can also be found on the ICES WGMME webpage. Just to note that the ICES Annual Science Conference 2010 will be held at la Cité des Congrès in Nantes, France, between 20 and 24 September. For further information see http://www.ices.dk/iceswork/asc/2010/index.asp. Best wishes Sinéad Murphy Chair of WGMME ------------------------------------------------------------------ University of St Andrews Webmail: https://webmail.st-andrews.ac.uk