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Despite the existence of an international moratorium on all commercial whaling operations, Iceland has allowed its whalers to kill 154 fin and 229 minke whales each year. Paradoxically, while Iceland’s growing whale watching industry brings tens of thousands of tourists to Iceland each year, Iceland’s whalers continue to decimate the same whale populations. Motivated by an abhorrence for the unconscionable slaughter of some of nature’s most majestic animals, the activists of Hard To Port embark on a journey to Iceland with the aim of launching the first phase of their ‘Whaler Watching’ campaign and of disrupting the whaling season. ‘184’ portrays the actions and findings of Hard To Port’s two week journey to Iceland in the summer of 2015.
184
How a small group of activists exposes the Icelandic whaling industry.
Watch the film for free.
Posted : May 16, 2016 3:23 am
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Tilikum Update 5.15.16
Sunday, May 15, 2016
It has been a couple months since we have been able to check on Tilikum, but he continues to fight the good fight.
Today he was observed swimming in "E" pool, next to the medical pool. The fact that he was moving was a welcome relief. Even when he is not sick, he doesn't always swim. Instead he spends lots of time logging at the surface.
There were times, particularly at the beginning of each show, when he would look through the gate. It's as if he is watching a TV show of his life. Like Dory I cannot speak whale, but this makes me think that he wants to join in the action. He has not done the splash segment of the show or been on public display in months.
I asked the infamous trainer Holly how he was doing, and she said he was having a good day today. She said he is not out of the woods yet, but he continues to have good days and bad days.
We will continue to monitor his progress.
Please check the link to see pictures of the tiny enclosure these Orcas are subjected to in captivity.
http://www.oceanadvocatenews.com/#!Tilikum-Update-51516/c1nni/57392e9e0cf23692b425d6f5
Posted : May 16, 2016 1:59 pm
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New Whale Sanctuary Strives to Simulate Native Habitat
By: Diane M.
May 16, 2016
What happens to a captive whale when it can’t turn tricks anymore? Where does a stranded dolphin or porpoise go?
If The Whale Sanctuary Project has its way, these magnificent creatures will end their days in a seaside haven.
The Whale Sanctuary Project will function like other sanctuaries for abused and dispossessed animals. It will provide as close to their natural habitat as possible while providing the care they need to live out their lives with dignity.
The Sanctuary will do this by surrounding the cetaceans with experts in marine mammal science and behavior, as well as veterinarians, to help restore and maintain their health. Plus, it will include a cadre of lawyers and public policy experts to help create and operate this one-of-a-kind safe spot.
An important reason for establishing the sanctuary is because otherwise, “entertainment” whales, dolphins and porpoises don’t really have anywhere else to go.
“We would like to see captive animals returned to their native habitat,” says the Sanctuary on its website, but “this is not always possible—especially for those who have been born in captivity and have never experienced life in the ocean with their own family…They need lifetime care where they can thrive in a natural setting that’s as close as possible to what they would experience in the wild.”
While the Whale Sanctuary Project was not set up in response to specific abuses orcas and other mammals have suffered at Sea World and elsewhere, the public might draw its own conclusions about the importance of the sanctuary in light of what has been learned about the way animals in captivity have been treated. The film Blackfish did much to raise awareness about the cruel training that turns whales into, essentially, aquatic clowns.
Creation of the Sanctuary is currently in the planning phase, as biologists search for the perfect place to locate it. Because orcas and beluga whales are cold-water animals, the group is considering coves, bays and inlets on the costs of Washington State and British Columbia on the west coast, and Maine, Newfoundland and Nova Scotia on the east.
While the Sanctuary will also support conservation and protection of the mammals, the organization’s founders say that their project is “about restoring something we humans have taken from these highly intelligent, socially complex animals.”
“By restoring to these amazing animals the ability to live their lives according to their own nature, we dignify not only them, but also ourselves.”
Posted : May 17, 2016 6:09 pm
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TOURISM & CRUISES
MAY 18, 2016 5:27 PM
PETA, animal groups sue USDA over Seaquarium’s killer whale Lolita
Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/business/tourism-cruises/article78462107.html#storylink=cpy
Posted : May 19, 2016 1:41 am
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Dolphins swimming at night in water full of millions of luminous plankton.
Posted : May 19, 2016 1:59 am
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What Taking Orcas From the Ocean for Captivity Does to Wild Pods
Posted : May 22, 2016 4:06 pm
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What’s killing the orcas at SeaWorld?
Story by Richard Webner |
https://expressnews.atavist.com/safeguarding-seaworld-infections-take-toll-on-mammals
Posted : May 23, 2016 5:43 pm
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CAPTIVE DOLPHINS NEED A FULL, RICH SOCIAL LIFE
BY DENISE L. HERZING AND INGRID N. VISSER ON 5/24/16 AT 11:06 AM
http://www.newsweek.com/captive-dolphins-need-full-rich-social-life-463049?rx=us
Humans have long been fascinated with dolphins, which in more recent times has led to the animals' capture and confinement, including at theme parks like SeaWorld.
However, it's time to consider alternatives that reflect both current science and humane ethics. Many other species that humans have exploited are now allowed to live out their lives, with dignity, in sanctuaries.
As scientists researching free-ranging dolphins, we believe that they deserve the same consideration.
Like the lives of other social mammals, a dolphin's life is a mixture of physical, emotional and social survival. In their natural habitats, dolphins make myriad choices every day because of the complexity of both their habitat and social environments.
Well studied, free-ranging dolphin communities demonstrate repeatedly that bonds are strong between individuals. Free-living dolphins have both close friendships and lifelong relationships. Dolphins depend heavily on their peers and cohorts for a variety of aspects of life, including protection, learning, fun, procreation and, in some cases, even for their food, as they may hunt together in groups.
Dolphins not only have different personalities but also may play different roles in a group, such as babysitter, information broker or keeper of knowledge. It has become more and more apparent that the individual lives and roles of dolphins in their society can make or break that society.
In most captive situations, however, the social group is predetermined for a dolphin by humans, and she or he just has to fit in—or tough luck.
Dolphins use many forms of communication that include visual cues, such as body posturing, but acoustic signaling is even more important for them. One form of this is known as "signature whistles"—contact calls that are unique to each individual. These are established at an early age and influenced by the community at large. Dolphin etiquette and rules of signal use are specific and enforced over time through both observational learning and teaching.
In tanks, these sounds are reflected off the stark concrete walls, can be distorted and are possibly acoustically painful because of the lack of dispersal in a small body of water. In addition, background noise from pumps, loud music and rollercoaster rides (some tanks even have the footings for such behemoths placed beside or inside the tank) can hinder or even block communication channels.
It isn't hard to imagine that for an acoustically oriented animal, this is not a desirable living situation. It doesn't take a scientist to understand that being in a cramped tank in no way replicates a natural environment. Even if a dolphin has been bred in captivity, millions of years of evolution and instinct do not disappear overnight, nor even in a few generations.
In a seaside sanctuary or protected ocean cove, captive dolphins could be transitioned to live in large areas of the ocean while still being monitored and cared for by humans if necessary. They could swim greater distances, dive and learn to hunt for their own food. They could experience some of the diversity a natural habitat enclosure could offer, such as rocks, sand, seaweeds, other creatures and changing tides.
Dolphins in such a sanctuary could have the freedom of choice to socialize with other dolphins, to interact with humans or not, be involved in research or not: the choice would be theirs and their choice would be the priority.
After all we have done to the oceans and to dolphins, we can at least give those we have subjected to captivity the chance to retire with some dignity; to live their final years with these minimal freedoms. For some it may also be the stepping-stone towards true freedom and a life in the open ocean.
Denise L. Herzing is research director of the Wild Dolphin Project. Ingrid N. Visser is a scientist with the Orca Research Trust and the Free Morgan Foundation.
Posted : May 25, 2016 9:28 pm
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Video of Baby Dolphin in Marine Park Shows Exactly How These Animals Feel About Captivity
Posted : May 25, 2016 9:29 pm
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VIDEO: MORGAN SHOWS WHAT’S WRONG WITH CAPTIVITY
26 MAY, 2016
https://dolphinproject.net/blog/post/video-morgan-shows-whats-wrong-with-captivity/#!prettyphoto/0/
Posted : May 27, 2016 12:55 pm
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Gods In Shackles Documentary Trailer
Posted : May 28, 2016 10:39 am
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Posted : May 28, 2016 7:18 pm
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I Am Morgan: Please Free Me
http://www.worldanimalnews.com/content.php?content_ID=868
Posted : May 29, 2016 4:09 pm
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TILIKUM IMPROVING BUT SEAWORLD IS STILL TANKING
28 MAY, 2016
https://dolphinproject.net/blog/post/tilikum-improving-but-seaworld-is-still-tanking/
Posted : May 30, 2016 10:27 pm
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HSBC Pulls Ad – There’s Suffering Behind Dolphin Kisses
Posted by Dan 19 hours ago
A box of delicious dolphin-shaped vegan chocolates is on its way to HSBC as thanks for the bank’s recent decision to pull an ad that showed a child kissing a captive dolphin. HSBC made the call after learning from PETA US that highly intelligent, far-ranging dolphins suffer from emotional, physical and psychological stress when they’re held captive in small pools or makeshift lagoons for “swim with dolphins” programmes.
Dolphins don't belong in captivity
Compassionate people everywhere should steer clear of any business that exploits captive marine mammals for profit, and HSBC made the right call by pulling the ad and not promoting such “attractions”.
“Swim with dolphins” programmes usually keep animals in small pools or polluted sea pens and are often poorly regulated. Driven by greed, many facilities operate almost continuously, giving animals little respite from a constant stream of tourists. The stress of captivity takes its toll on dolphins and can cause them to develop painful conditions, such as stomach ulcers, and many die prematurely. In addition, many of the parks that host these events use dolphins who were taken from the ocean illegally or through immensely cruel methods, such as the baby dolphins who are torn away from their families during the annual Japanese dolphin hunt.
Learn the truth about the cruelty behind dolphin captivity, and please share to help holidaymakers understand why they should never patronise one of these excursions.
http://www.peta.org.uk/blog/hsbc-pulls-ad-theres-suffering-behind-dolphin-kisses/
Posted : June 1, 2016 9:31 am
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Orcas are first non-humans whose evolution is driven by culture
DAILY NEWS 31 May 2016
Posted : June 1, 2016 4:49 pm
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Very disappointing
Judge Throws Out Case Against Miami Seaquarium Over Orca Battle
http://www.nbcmiami.com/news/local/Judge-Throws-Out-Case-Against-Miami-Seaquarium--381767031.html
The World’s Loneliest Killer Whale Dealt Setback on Road to Freedom
A judge rules that the harassment and harm Lolita faces in her tiny tank at Miami Seaquarium aren’t reason enough to call for her release.
http://www.takepart.com/article/2016/06/03/lolita-killer-whale-loses-court
Posted : June 4, 2016 5:04 pm
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On a brighter note!
SeaWorld Entertainment, Inc. Co (SEAS) Sees New 52-Week Low
JUNE 3, 2016 BY TED BLACKBURN
http://www.fidaily.com/seaworld-entertainment-inc-co-seas-sees-new-52-week-low/204268/ted-blackburn
Posted : June 4, 2016 5:07 pm
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She looked like she was trying to take her own life': New calls for SeaWorld killer whale in Tenerife to be released back to the wild after shocked tourists film her beaching herself while she was supposed to be performing tricks
Petition:
Posted : June 6, 2016 10:28 am
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Are Orcas at SeaWorld Suffering From PTSD?
Posted : June 6, 2016 8:29 pm
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We Still Aren’t Doing Enough to Protect Orcas
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/pamela-anderson/protect-orcas_b_10319202.html
Posted : June 6, 2016 8:33 pm
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It's time to release tormented orca Morgan, says New Zealand expert video
Posted : June 7, 2016 3:52 pm
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Photo Illustrates the Lesson We Should Have Learned About Orca Captivity in the 1980s
Posted : June 11, 2016 2:04 am
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VIDEO: JUST LIKE YOU
18 NOVEMBER, 2015
Posted : June 11, 2016 2:17 am
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SeaWorld Orca Beaches Herself AGAIN In New Video
Scroll down to article and video.
https://www.thedodo.com/seaworld-orca-morgan-beaching-herself-1847517890.html
Posted : June 11, 2016 3:00 am
