[Closed] 'Blackfish' Backlash: Fan Pressure Leads Willie Nelson to Cancel SeaWorld Concert

SeaWorld Suffers a Second Huge Setback as “Blackfish” Backlash Continues
by Judy Molland - August 23, 2014

Read more: http://www.care2.com/causes/seaworld-suffers-a-second-huge-setback-as-blackfish-backlash-continues.html#ixzz3BLWNWe6c

In the midst of a recent spate of awful news, here’s some good news: the “Blackfish” effect keeps going, as SeaWorld struggles with a second major setback in just one week.

Last week I brought you the news that as a result of the backlash from this powerful documentary, SeaWorld Entertainment’s stock fell 33 percent on August 13, in response to the company’s announcement of fewer ticket sales and lower second-quarter earnings, an indication that the controversies surrounding recent trainer deaths, profiled in the “Blackfish,” were scaring investors. SeaWorld’s shares are currently trading at their lowest price since it went public last year.

On the heels of that enormous blow to the SeaWorld empire comes another defeat: the company will no longer appeal the decision by the federal Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission (OSHA) that SeaWorld “willfully” violated federal safety laws requiring a workplace to be free from recognizable hazards. The marine park company said in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing last week that it wasn’t going to pursue the appeal of a court’s decision to uphold the citations.

Orlando-based SeaWorld, which has parks in Florida, California and Texas, received the citation after the 2010 death of trainer Dawn Brancheau, who was killed during a popular “Shamu” show with the orca Tilikum. The 12,000-pound whale grabbed her and pulled her under water in front of a horrified crowd.

“Blackfish,” you will recall, is the documentary that recounts the death of Brancheau. The film chronicles the life of Tilikum and the effects of keeping these predators in captivity; it challenges the very concept of keeping killer whales for entertainment, and implies that Tilikum had been driven to madness by captivity.

Now OSHA has found SeaWorld in violation of federal workplace safety law and has effectively banned trainers from swimming with the whales.

There will be no more swimming with Shamu.

After an investigation into Brancheau’s death, OSHA recommended that trainers perform with killer whales only when they have a protective barrier or sufficient distance from the marine mammals, making it impossible for trainers to swim with the whales during shows.

How exciting that all of the pressure from activists around the globe, including Care2 members, is definitely having an impact. Hooray!

Could this mean that we are moving towards the time when SeaWorld will end its killer whale training entirely, allowing the existing whales to live out their lives, and no longer training new ones?

With the company deciding to drop its appeal of this federal safety citation, things are certainly moving in that direction.

Meanwhile, trainers will still be able to swim with the whales during behind-the-scenes safety training exercises in order to acclimate whales to humans in case someone accidentally falls into a pool, said SeaWorld spokesman Fred Jacobs. He added that the company has also implemented new safety protocols and equipment for trainers, including an investment of $70 million in lifting floors in the pools that could quickly isolate whales.

Interestingly, SeaWorld also announced last week it was building new larger tanks for its killer whales, but declared that this had nothing to do with the bad press it has received since “Blackfish” appeared; nor with the fact that Southwest Airlines has pulled out of a partnership with them; nor with the fact that several entertainers, including country singers Trisha Yearwood and Willie Nelson and rock band Barenaked Ladies, have pulled out of planned performances at SeaWorld parks since the release of “Blackfish.”

Really?

Alana33 - Building bigger tanks does not mean these Orcas will have any different lives from the lonely, sterile ones they presently endure. It'll mean they'll have a tiny bit more room in which to continue to endure and suffer their endless captivity.

"The Humane Society International and the World Society for the Protection of Animals have stated that they believe that "the entire captive experience for marine mammals is so sterile and contrary to even the most basic elements of compassion and humanity that it should be rejected outright."

"The greatest danger to our future is apathy."
--Jane Goodall, Primatologist extraordinaire.

We spoke and they heard us! Thank you to all that wrote!

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District, Antilles Office will hold an informal public meeting to discuss the subject permit application for a nearshore dolphin exhibit enclosure project at Coral World Ocean Park, Coki Bay, St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands.

The meeting will be held on September 25, 2014 at 6 p.m., at Charles W. Turnbull Regional Library, 4607 Tutu Park Mall, St. Thomas, USVI.

Get there early if you wish to sign up to testify as at the CZM Meeting in 2012 Coral World had ALL their employees come very early to sign up to testify so those in opposition were unable to do so prior to the end of the public hearing due to the lateness of the hour. CW has many employees, including ones that are against this ill-concieved project that cannot speak out for fear of losing their jobs.

Remember the ACE is not concerned with animal welfare issues nor the ethics of keeping Dolphins in captivity. Their concerns are strictly environmental and construction issues so do not veer off topic if you plan to speak.

Please attend to show support in opposition to permitting the dolphin enclosure even if you do not wish to speak!

Please Rally and attend as ACE does not often respond to requests for public hearings so let's not waste this last opportunity pass us by to stop the Dolphinarium project.

We Thank Fiona Stuart of Save Water Bay and VI Dolphin Voices for keeping us informed.

If you have not yet submitted a letter to ACE you can still do so until Sept. 30, 2014.

Please reference Coral World Dolphin Exhibit Enclosure
File: SAJ-1976-89037 (SP-EWG)

You can either email: Edgar.W.Garcia@usace.army.mil

or mail a letter to:

District Engineer, Antilles Permit Section

400 Fernandez Juncos Avenue

San Juan, PR 009

How You Can Help This Japan Dolphins Day

Read more: http://www.care2.com/causes/how-you-can-help-this-japan-dolphins-day.html#ixzz3C4gsk3p9

Just as another months-long dolphin drive is set to begin in Taiji, Japan, dolphin advocates will be taking part in Japan Dolphins Day on September 1 as part of an international effort to raise awareness about their plight and encourage a future where this slaughter no longer takes place.

The award-winning documentary The Cove brought Taiji’s annual dolphin drives into the spotlight and raised international outrage over the cruel practice of rounding up thousands of dolphins and killing them for their meat every year. It also brought attention to the relationship between the slaughter and the practice of taking and selling some of these cetaceans to marine parks around the world where they’re exploited for entertainment.

The especially heartbreaking case of Angel, a rare albino calf who made headlines after she was torn from her mother’s side and taken by fishermen during a violent roundup last January, led to international outrage over the captures and helped raise the profile of the ways the captures are helping to perpetuate these drives even further.

Sadly, the slaughter and captures continue. According to Whale and Dolphin Conservation (WDC), nearly 850 dolphins of mixed species were killed last season, while more than 150 were taken alive for captivity. The outlook for this year isn’t looking much better:

Quotas have been set for the 2014-15 season, and allow for 1,938 dolphins to be taken in the drive hunts in Taiji alone. Of this total, nearly 1,000 bottlenose and striped dolphins may be killed, along with hundreds of other spotted, Risso’s, Pacific white-sided dolphins, false killer whales, and short-finned pilot whales.

The good news is that this year their advocates will be back at events being held around the world on Japan Dolphins Day to campaign on their behalf and help end the demand for captive dolphins. According to the Dolphin Project, last year more than 16,000 people participated at nearly 117 events and organizers expect record numbers this year.

Ric O’Barry, Campaign Director for the Earth Island Institute’s Save Japan Dolphins and founder of Japan Dolphins Day events, stated:

“The last Taiji hunting season was a brutal one. Across the globe, members of the public reacted to international headlines when hundreds of bottlenose dolphins were herded into the Cove in Taiji. One of those dolphins, Angel, became a symbol of the brutality of the hunts and helped to build and galvanize worldwide opposition to the inhumane captures. We plan to highlight the plight of Angel this year, along with our new slogan: Liberate, then Celebrate: A New Era for Dolphin Compassion.”

As the Dolphin Project notes, this day is not about attacking Japan – most Japanese people don’t know about the hunts and are appalled when they learn about it – it’s about continuing to educate everyone about what’s happening and about the dangers associated with eating mercury-laden dolphin meat, in addition to working with the government to end the slaughter.

We can’t all be there in Taiji to help, but there are a lot of other things we can do to help support efforts to end these dolphin drives this Japan Dolphins Day.

Attend an Event

Dolphin advocates will be attending events taking place around the world at embassies, aquariums and other public places to help educate the people about the drives in Taiji and how captivity plays a role in the continued roundups of dolphins. To find an event near you, visit the Dolphin Project’s map.

Write Letters and Sign Petitions

Dolphin advocates are being urged to send a letter to the Japanese Embassy in your country and the U.S. Embassy in Japan to voice concerns over the continued dolphin drives. You can also send a letter to the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums urging it to stop supporting facilities that take dolphins from drive hunts.

Already more than 482,000 people have signed the Care2 petition urging the Obama administration to address this issue, but there there are also plenty of other petitions that are circulating to help these dolphins. You can still sign the ones asking SeaWorld to abandon its plans to import a Pacific white-sided dolphin that was taken from a drive hunt and another one asking Taiji not to open its own marine park.

Support Organizations Working to Save Dolphins

For more information on ways to help organizations working to protect cetaceans and end dolphin drives, visit the Dolphin Project, Sea Shepherd’s Cove Guardians, Save Japan Dolphins and Whale and Dolphin Conservation.

Just Stay Home

One of the easiest ways to help is by simply not visiting aquariums and marine parks that keep dolphins (or whales). The profits raked in from the sale of dolphins captured during these drives is largely subsidizing them, and the money these facilities make from visitors helps support the demand for more. Please also continue to spread the word about these drives and why captivity is bad for cetaceans.

This video was created by Megan Rose Taylor, who writes in the description that she hopes to inspire others to give their voice to these dolphins. If you don’t want to see graphic images, close your eyes and listen to her powerful words.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=qys185SUMH0

Danish Police Arrest Sea Shepherd Team Trying to Stop Faroe Islands Whale Slaughter

Islanders kill 33 pilot whales, but Sea Shepherd says it has saved 270 others.
August 31, 2014 By David Kirby

The Royal Danish Navy arrested 14 volunteers from the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society on Saturday for trying to intervene in the slaughter of 33 pilot whales in the Faroe Islands, a protectorate of Denmark.

A team of six Sea Shepherd volunteers spotted a pod of pilot whales from shore on Sandoy Island in the remote North Atlantic archipelago on Saturday and alerted Sea Shepherd’s small flotilla of boats, which has been patrolling the icy waters for nearly three months. Sea Shepherd has been trying to stop the annual Faroese whale hunt known as grindadráp, or grind.

During the grind, islanders drive pilot whales and other dolphins into shallow bays, where the animals are butchered to the cheers of locals watching from shore.

On Saturday, Sea Shepherd volunteers arrived at the beach where the whales were spotted before the whalers could reach the site. The Royal Danish Navy immediately dispatched a helicopter and high-speed inflatable boats to the island and arrested the six land-based volunteers who had waded into the water to protect the whales as well as eight crew members aboard three Sea Shepherd vessels. The boats and all camera and video equipment were confiscated, according to Sea Shepherd's Paul Watson.

“There is a new law in the islands that says unauthorized people must stay at least one mile away from the grind,” said Watson in a phone interview. “Our attorney advised us to say we were only there as observers, but we said, ‘Absolutely not.’ We aren’t there to observe. We’re there to try and stop the killing.”

Sea Shepherd’s anti-whaling campaign in the Faroes, dubbed “Operation GrindStop 2014,” deploys drones and live video feeds to document the slaughter while land- and sea-based volunteers attempt to drive the whales away from their would-be killers. (The Faroe Islands campaign is funded in part by the Skoll Foundation, part of the Jeff Skoll Group, which includes Participant Media, TakePart’s parent company.)

The 14 volunteers have been released and their possessions returned, except for the data cards in their photography equipment. The land-based team of six are scheduled to appear in court on Monday, while the eight sea-based crew members will not have a hearing until Sept. 25.

According to Sea Shepherd, the government wants to hold the vessels as evidence until then.

One of the boats is a 40-foot Zodiac, the BS Sheen, donated by actor Charlie Sheen.

“The Faroese whalers brutally slaughtered an entire pod of 33 pilot whales today,” Sheen said in a statement. “I am proud that a vessel bearing my name was there and did all it could to try to stop this atrocity.”

Denmark, he added, “is complicit in the killing.”

Watson noted that Denmark’s defense of the whalers violates its commitment as a European Union member to oppose whaling.

“One good thing is that this gives us concrete evidence of the Danish navy and police supporting the grind,” said Watson. “The Faroes are not part of the EU, but they are a Danish protectorate. They get EU subsidies through Denmark. This now gives us a case to take to the European Parliament for a complaint.”

Despite the whale slaughter and the arrests, Watson said this season has been a success for Sea Shepherd and the whales.

“It was inevitable that they’d have a whale kill, but we managed to stop them for the past 85 days,” he said.

Watson said Sea Shepherd diverted 270 whales from the islands over the summer.

In 2010, whalers killed 964 whales, and last year the number rose to 1,360. This season’s toll has only been the 33 pilot whales, along with five beached beaked whales that were slaughtered by islanders.

“Many Danes continue to argue that Denmark is not a whaling nation,” Watson wrote on his Facebook page. “The actions of the Danish Navy and the Danish police demonstrate that Denmark is very much a whaling nation.”

The Annual Slaughter Begins in Taiji, but the Japanese Are Shunning Dolphin Meat
September 02, 2014 By David Kirby

The marine mammals are severely contaminated with toxic mercury harmful to humans.

The annual dolphin hunt at the cove in Taiji, Japan, began on Monday. For the next six months, hundreds of dolphins will be rounded up and killed, their meat sold in stores and restaurants in Japan and other countries. But butchered dolphins are becoming scarcer on the Japanese market, which is good not only for the dolphins but for public health.

Why? Taiji dolphin products are riddled with mercury.

Seven published studies have found dangerously high concentrations of mercury, a neurotoxin that damages human brain development and the nervous system, in all nine dolphin species. The main source of marine mercury pollution: coal-burning power plants and other heavy industries.

The Environmental Investigative Agency, a London-based nonprofit, purchased nine dolphin products and found that eight of them exceeded Japanese health standards, with average mercury concentrations more than 10 times the limit. One dolphin liver contained mercury concentrations nearly 5,000 times greater than the Japanese government’s limit for daily exposures.

“The consumption of cetacean products contaminated with high levels of persistent organic pollutants and mercury poses a grave health risk to humans,” warned the 2013 EIA report, Toxic Catch. “Ingestion of these toxins have been linked to a range of immunological, cardiovascular and reproductive effects.”

Hair samples taken from residents of Taiji showed that, on average, mercury concentrations among whale eaters were nearly 10 times higher than among non–whale eaters.

Opponents to the hunt are driving that message into Japanese homes.

“When [we] do interviews in Japan we try to use the word 'mercury' in every sentence,” said Louie Psihoyos, director of The Cove, the 2009 Oscar-winning documentary about the Taiji hunt. “That strategy of staying on point about mercury has been working.”

Whether or not it’s due to mercury, one thing is sure: Consumption of dolphin meat is on the decline as the supply out of Taiji dwindles.

Ric O’Barry, the star of The Cove and the director of Earth Island Institute’s Dolphin Project, said that when his group began their campaign against the Taiji slaughter in 2003, about 2,300 dolphins were killed annually. In 2012, that number fell to about 900. Fewer dead dolphins means less mercury contamination among the public.

“My personal feeling is that consumption is slowly reducing, particularly of dolphin and toothed-whale products,” said Clare Perry, a senior campaigner with EIA. “Young people, and in fact many older people, recognize dolphins as wild animals that should be left alone in the oceans. This is my experience from talking to many people over many years in Japan.”

A main factor behind the decline is believed to be growing awareness of high mercury levels in dolphin meat.

Mercury “has been the dolphin hunter's Achilles’ heel,” said Psihoyos. “All dolphin meat, every bit of it, is poison.”

The neurotoxin is also harmful to the dolphins.

Mercury and other toxins “have been linked to increased rates of cancer, increased first calf mortality, immune suppression and a higher susceptibility to infectious disease, [and] are postulated to be a primary factor causing population declines,” according to Toxic Catch.

Mercury is not the only worry. Following the 2011 tsunami and Fukushima nuclear disaster in Japan, “it is possible that cetaceans are bio accumulating very high levels of radioactive elements, presenting a severe risk to consumers, as well as a novel threat to cetaceans,” the report said.

With rising awareness of mercury and fewer animals killed, dolphin products in Japan are more difficult to find.

“It’s now much harder to get dolphin meat if you don’t live in the dolphin-hunting area,” said Perry. “We have stopped most of the major supermarkets, plus Amazon, Google, and more recently Rakuten, Japan’s largest Internet retailer, selling whale and dolphin products in Japan.”
related

As the annual killing begins at Taiji, O’Barry will be there along with Izumi Ishii, a former dolphin hunter who now opposes the hunt.

They plan to visit the town council office to try to persuade local officials that dolphin-watching cruises and other eco-tourism opportunities would be more profitable than the dolphin slaughter.

O’Barry’s team buys and tests dolphin meat so consumers can “make an informed decision as to whether or not they want to buy the tainted product,” he said.

He believes that education about mercury will further reduce demand—and stop the killing.

“There’s no better way to educate the Japanese consumer than to make The Cove available on the Internet in Japan for free,” he said. “There are 27 million people in Japan who have never seen it. They don’t have the information that we take for granted.”

Great! So if we don't beat them bloody and kill them, we sell them to amusement parks to live out their deprived, sterile lives in tiny tanks for entertainment plus we poison the waters they live in and food they eat. Humans are a truly a spectacular species

A friend sent me these quotes:

“WHEN WE RETURN WILD ANIMALS TO NATURE, WE MERELY RETURN THEM TO WHAT IS ALREADY THEIRS. FOR MAN CANNOT GIVE WILD ANIMALS FREEDOM, THEY CAN ONLY TAKE IT AWAY.”
JACQUES COUSTEAU

"No aquarium, no tank in a marine land, however spacious it may be, can begin to duplicate the conditions of the sea. And no dolphin who inhabits one of those aquariums or one of those marine lands can be considered normal."
Jacques Yves Cousteau

'Dolphin's Tale' Aquarium Scraps Plans to Make Its Stars Perform

Clearwater will focus on the rescue and rehabilitation of marine mammals.

September 03, 2014 By David Kirby

Florida’s Clearwater Marine Aquarium, home to the tailless dolphin star Winter, appears to be returning to its original mission of “rescue, rehabilitation, and release,” canceling plans to host dolphin shows in a brand-new stadium.

Clearwater Aquarium chief executive David Yates made the announcement earlier this week when discussing plans for the facility’s multimillion-dollar expansion in downtown Clearwater. The new facility was to include a large dolphin stadium to show off its three dolphins: Nicolas, Hope, and, of course, Winter.

But the aquarium has scrapped the dolphin stadium plan, saving the company nearly $100 million, according to the Tampa Tribune.

“We don’t rescue them so we can have them to show to guests,” Yates told the Tribune. “Our goal is to release them back into the wild.”

Yates said the aquarium would no longer be in the entertainment business. Rather, it would focus on rescuing marine animals and preparing them to return to the wild. “We’re not about the big shows and stuff like that,” he added.

The aquarium does not currently have formal dolphin shows, but crowds can gather around the dolphin tanks to watch whistle-blowing trainers put the animals through various behavioral tasks, including having Nicolas leap from the water. Guests can also pay a $40 to $60 premium to be photographed with a dolphin. For $150, they can spend 15 minutes poolside along with a trainer.

Mostly, though, people come to see Winter, the star of the 2011 hit movie Dolphin Tale. A sequel, Dolphin Tale 2, premieres in September and stars Hope.

At three months of age, Winter was rescued near Cape Canaveral after getting entangled in a crab trap line, which blocked circulation to her flukes. Her tail had to be amputated, and she was fitted with a prosthetic one, thus inspiring the Hollywood film.

Attendance nearly quadrupled following the film’s release, from about 200,000 visitors in 2011 to more than 750,000 in 2012.

When the aquarium announced plans for the new facility and its dolphin stadium, animal-welfare advocates cried foul, accusing Clearwater of emphasizing entertainment over rescue and rehab. They said Winter had become little more than a cash cow for ticket sales, film rights, licensing fees, and merchandise, such as a $22.95 dolphin plush toy with a removable tail.

Last September, videos surfaced on YouTube showing what appeared to be a frightened or stressed Winter cowering in the corner of her pool.

Clearwater officials did not respond to a request for comment.

Some but not all animal-welfare advocates applauded the move to abandon the stadium.

“This is welcomed news and a step in the right direction,” said Courtney Vail of Whale and Dolphin Conservation. “The use of dolphins for entertainment perpetuates the vicious cycle that feeds an industry responsible for the pain and suffering of dolphins worldwide as they continue to be acquired from the wild or confined in substandard or inadequate conditions.”

Vail said her organization remains concerned about the welfare of the Clearwater dolphins, especially Nicolas, who lives alone in his own tank. “The proof will be in how the aquarium chooses to enrich and improve the current and future conditions for the dolphins held in its care,” she added.

Barbara Napoles, a Florida anti-captivity activist who took the video of Winter cowering in her pool, was more skeptical of Yates’ intentions.

“Who’s to say down the road he doesn’t change his mind when the cash stops flowing in?” she asked.

The aquarium says the new dolphin tank will triple the size of the habitat. But the whole enterprise may never come to pass. Clearwater must secure $68 million to finance the aquarium’s expansion by August 2016 or it loses a permit to construct the new attraction.

In addition to donations, loans, and grants, the company is also relying on admission ticket sales, especially after Hope has her star turn in theaters nationwide.
http://www.takepart.com/feature/2014/09/03/another-aquarium-scraps-plans-dolphin-shows?cmpid=tpdaily-eml-2014-09-03

Sounded familiar - I had to Google "Clearwater Marine Aquarium". I plan to move to the area next spring/summer, do you suggest going there with my niece some day Alana?

Not unless they are actually doing rehab for releasing the dolphins and due to Winter's injury, I doubt she can ever be released back into the wild with the prothesis but neither shoud she be displayed for amusement and profit.

At this point, I won't support any Aquarium's that hold marine mammals in captivity.
I learned too much about the industry and their treatment of these magnificent creatures.
I can't support zoo's either. These animals are not ours to own, put in miniscule enclosures for the rest of their lives and be put on display for profit.

“WHEN WE RETURN WILD ANIMALS TO NATURE, WE MERELY RETURN THEM TO WHAT IS ALREADY THEIRS. FOR MAN CANNOT GIVE WILD ANIMALS FREEDOM, THEY CAN ONLY TAKE IT AWAY.”
JACQUES COUSTEAU

And it seems man takes it away quite often.

That is why I am going to ask my local Senator to introduce a bill to make wild chickens our official VI animal and to ban all catching and hunting of them. I think the rooster should replace the banana quit on the flag.

Not even going to bother with that stupidness.

Here's another article on the Clearwater Aquarium:

Another Aquarium Says No to Dolphin Shows

Animal advocates are welcoming an announcement from Florida’s Clearwater Marine Aquarium (CMA) that it will no longer have animal performances at a redesigned facility, and will instead focus on rescue and rehabilitation, but some experts are still questioning the aquarium’s motives and whether what it’s doing is really in the best interest of the animals it takes in.

A few years back CMA was featured in the movie “Dolphin Tale,” which was inspired by the real-life rescue of Winter, a dolphin who was saved in 2005 after losing her tail when she was caught in a crab trap and was later fitted with a prosthetic one. She and another dolphin, Hope, will be featured in the sequel that will be released later this month.

After the movie was released, people went to see Winter in droves. She was a curiosity and an inspiration. According to the Tampa Tribune, after the movie was released, annual attendance skyrocketed from 250,000 to 750,000.

Sadly, marine mammal experts have pointed out that behind all the Hollywood glamour, Winter’s life is pretty bleak and even though she could not be returned to the wild, the aquarium has been exploiting her as a draw instead of keeping her in an environment that would be more appropriate for her well-being.

“CMA could’ve done this the right way, with a seapen, and still made money,” Gigi Glendinning, who runs the Philadelphia-based humane education group, 22 Reasons, told author David Kirby last year. “They underestimate the compassion of the general public to support their efforts without making Winter paint, swim with people, or listen to music.”

Anti-captivity activists have also criticized CMA’s latest plans to build a $160 million facility with dolphin shows before downgrading to its latest plan – a $68 million aquatic center that will instead focus on rescue, rehabilitation and release. The reduced cost is due in large part to ditching a planned dolphin stadium.

“We don’t rescue them so we can have them to show to guests. Our goal is to release them back into the wild,” CEO David Yates told the Tampa Tribune. “We’re not about the big shows and stuff like that. The whole essence of this thing is no matter what animals we have or don’t have, the experience of getting behind the scenes of our work, that’s going to be the draw long-term.”

However, in “A Dolphin Truth,” a short documentary recently produced by Friends of Clearwater, a number of well-known experts including Ric O’Barry, Dr. Naomi Rose, Dr. Lori Marino, Dr. Maddalena Bearzi and former employees question whether CMA’s real motive is rescue or revenue and they make a compelling case against how the CMA is going about its purported mission.

If the aquarium was serious about rehabilitation and release, they argue, it would be using sea pens away from the public and wouldn’t be putting these animals on display. Even those who may never be able to return to the wild should not be kept as a draw for visitors and should be kept in enclosures as close to their natural environment as possible. They also note that there have been zero successful releases by CMA since a Dolphin Tale came out seven years ago.

Rescue, rehabilitation and release are unquestionably an honorable mission and vital to wild animals who need help, but what organizations do with these animals while they’re in their care is something to think about before visiting, or donating to, any organization claiming to have the best interests of its animal residents at heart.

Still, the announcement that shows will no longer be part of its daily activities will hopefully be one among more to come from aquariums and marine parks around the world.

Read more: http://www.care2.com/causes/another-aquarium-says-no-to-dolphin-shows.html#ixzz3CRPhqlth

About the Cove

The Cove is a 2009 documentary that exposes the slaughter of more than 20,000 dolphins and porpoises off the coast of Japan every year. Dolphin meat, containing toxic levels of mercury, is sold as food in Japan and other parts of Asia, often labeled as whale meat. The remaining dolphins are sold to dolphinarius and marine parks around the world into a lifetime of captivity.

Now, 5 years since The Cove premiered, the spirit of activism that Ric O'Barry started and the battle for justice continue. The focus of the Social Action Campaign around this issue is to create worldwide awareness of the annual dolphin drive hunt in Taiji, and to pressure those in power to put an end to the slaughter once and for all.

September 1st marks the start of yet another dolphin hunting season. Take action by signing the petition below, and if you've already signed it, share to help get the word out.

More than half a million people have signed the petition to President Obama, Vice President Biden, the Japanese Ambassador to the U.S., the Prime Minister and Minister of Health in Japan. Help keep the momentum going as we approach the 5th dolphin hunting season since The Cove original film premiered in theatres. The more signatures the petition gets, the more impact it will have.

Sign the petition to send a message that it's time for the dolphin slaughter in Taiji to end. Encourage your friends to do the same!

See link to sign the petition and check out the videos:
http://www.takepart.com/cove

"One can easily imagine how much money and effort we would be willing to devote to preserve an animal species on the moon if the astronauts had found one. No species on earth is less precious. No effort should be spared to save unique and irreplaceable products of millions of years of evolution with which our small planet has been endowed."
--U Thant, former Secretary-General of the United Nations.

Biting the Hand that Feeds - An investigative report by WDCS,the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society and The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS)

Read the entire eye-opening report:
http://sosdelfines.org/uploads/docs/Biting%20the%20hand%20that%20feeds%20-%20The%20case%20against%20petting%20pools.pdf

In the wild, dolphins appear to lead some
of the most active lives in the ocean:
travelling sometimes up to hundreds of
miles a day; using complicated, often cooperative,
hunting strategies to catch fish;
and socializing in constantly changing
groups. The confinement of dolphins is
believed to be a source of considerable
physical and psychological stress.
As if the fact of confinement itself were not
stressful enough for a dolphin - trapped
with associates that it can neither choose
nor avoid, with its movement restricted and
most of its choices removed - dolphins in
human interaction programs must contend
with additional sources of stress that are
currently unregulated by the responsible
authorities. Stress can increase an animal’s
susceptibility to disease. Case studies of
mortality and illness in captive bottlenose
dolphins suggest that stress, resulting from
social instability and ensuing aggressive
interactions inherent in a captive
environment, is likely to contribute to these
effects.

"The Humane Society International and the World Society for the Protection of Animals have stated that they believe that "the entire captive experience for marine mammals is so sterile and contrary to even the most basic elements of compassion and humanity that it should be rejected outright."

You can read "The Case Against Marine Mammals In Captivity by the Humane Society International and the World Society for the Protection of Animals:

http://www.humanesociety.org/assets/pdfs/marine_mammals/case_against_marine_captivity.pdf

What do visitors learn at Petting Pools?

What do visitors learn
at Petting Pools?

Any US facility applying to the government
for a permit to capture or import a marine
mammal for public display must
demonstrate that the facility offers “a
program for education or conservation
purposes that is based on professionally
recognized standards of the public display
community”

However, the requirement is easily satisfied
because education programs have only
to meet standards that are recognized as
benchmarks by the captivity industry.

These standards are not set or monitored
by an independent public institution or
regulatory agency and, not surprisingly,
NMFS has never denied a public display
permit on the grounds of insufficient
educational value.

Sea World claims to be “striving to provide
an enthusiastic, imaginative, and
intellectually stimulating atmosphere to
help students and guests develop a lifelong
appreciation, understanding, and
stewardship for our environment” and “to
instill a respect for all living creatures”

Although information about dolphin
biology, behavior and, to a lesser extent,
conservation, is provided through display
boards and narration by Education staff,
the context in which the information is
delivered at a Petting Pool seriously
diminishes its value and impact.

Hand-feeding dead fish to obese dolphins
in a cramped, overcrowded and featureless
tank of chemically-treated water provides
visitors with scant insight into normal
dolphin behavior in the natural
environment.

By reducing dolphins, and
indeed other species, to a theme-park
attraction, Petting Pools may be
perpetuating a dangerous indifference
towards their welfare and that of their
wild counterparts.

The above is a quote from the study at http://sosdelfines.org/uploads/docs/Biting%20the%20hand%20that%20feeds%20-%20The%20case%20against%20petting%20pools.pdf

Activists say demand by water parks and aquariums for dolphins is driving the slaughter now under way in Taiji, Japan.

September 12, 2014 By David Kirby

As the annual dolphin-killing season begins at the cove at Taiji, Japan, the focus will be on the slaughter. Far less attention will be paid, however, to the fate of dolphins captured and sold to marine-mammal entertainment parks worldwide.

But some activists are bringing their fight to facilities that fuel demand for live dolphins.

Live dolphins are far more lucrative than dead ones. Taiji fishermen can earn $150,000 or more from selling a single live animal, while one butchered for meat fetches only $500 to $600, an economic reality that keeps the drives in business, opponents say.

It is impossible to know the final fate of all dolphins captured in Taiji. The Japanese government does not keep figures, nor does the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums (WAZA). Most information comes from newspapers, activists on the ground, or people in countries where dolphins are destined to perform for or swim with tourists.

One website, Ceta-Base, tracks captive cetaceans and documents about where some, but not all, Taiji dolphins go. There were about 300 live captures in Taiji in 2013, according to the site, but information only exists on about half of those animals. Here’s the count: 92 dolphins were transferred to Japan, 36 went to China, 20 to Ukraine, 11 to Russia, six to South Korea, and five to Vietnam.

Worldwide, 105 facilities in about 20 countries import or display dolphins obtained from Taiji, according to Ceta-Base. (Note: This will soon include St. Thomas's Coral World if their ACE permit is allowed.)

Kish Dolphin Park in Iran, for example, imported 12 dolphins in 2008. Dolphinarium NEMO, in Ukraine, bought 36 dolphins between 2010 and 2013; Saudi Arabia’s Fakieh Aquarium purchased six dolphins in 2013; and Cabo Adventures, a swim-with park in Baja, Mexico (the only site in the Americas with Taiji dolphins), imported seven animals in 2005.

Many animals never leave Taiji, including Angel, an albino calf captured in January and now on display at the Taiji Whale Museum.

Ric O’Barry, star of the Oscar-winning documentary The Cove and head of the Dolphin Project, is one of the activists fighting against the demand side of the dolphin trade.

Sometimes he wins; sometimes he loses.

In 2006, O’Barry learned that 12 Taiji dolphins had been sold to Ocean World Adventure Aquatic Park in the Dominican Republic. The park paid $154,000 per animal but never took delivery, following an international outcry.

“As soon as I found out, I came here to the DR and bought a full-page ad in the largest newspaper, an open letter to the president at the time, [Leonel] Fernández,” O’Barry said in an interview at the time.

Fernández rejected the permit and Ocean World lost $1.85 million, O’Barry said.

In 2010, while in Taiji, O’Barry and his son Lincoln were alerted by an Egyptian environmental group that four dolphins captured in the cove had been placed in the swimming pool of a private villa in the Red Sea resort of Hurghada.

Lincoln was producing an Animal Planet series, Blood Dolphins, so father, son, and crew hopped a plane to locate and film the dolphins.

“When we got there, they were transferring the dolphins from the pool to a hole in the ground they dug out in the desert,” O’Barry said.

O’Barry wanted to contest the importation. “We read in the newspaper that they didn’t have the necessary permits and thought maybe we could get them sent back to Japan,” he said.

He didn’t mean Taiji: He travelled to Mikurajima Island, part of Tokyo, where residents celebrate, name, and even grant citizenship to local dophins. “I went to look for a place to build a sanctuary to get them returned from the desert,” he said.

But political unrest was exploding into widespread violence in Egypt. “A full-blown war was going on,” O’Barry said. “So we just gave up.”

The “Taiji Four,” as they were known, remained in the sun-scorched, dusty hole in the Eastern Sahara. “This is where Taiji dolphins go,” O’Barry said. “It’s despicable.” The site is now a dolphinarium. “We’re not sure if the four are still alive,” he added.

Meanwhile, the number of dolphins sold into captivity continues to rise. “It’s clear that demand continues to drive these brutal hunts,” Courtney Vail of Whale and Dolphin Conservation said in an email.

O’Barry recently learned that some Taiji-caught dolphins currently in Russia are slated for export to a park in Phuket, Thailand.

“Russians built the facility, but the permit hasn’t been approved yet,” he said. “This may be a chance to block the dolphins like we did in the DR.”

http://www.takepart.com/article/2014/09/12/map-shows-where-dolphins-captured-cove-2013-were-sold?cmpid=tpdaily-eml-2014-09-12

Hopefully, Coral World will be denied the permit.
They plan on displaying Dolphins for entertainment and breeding more for sale for the captive industry or they would not have included the breeding pens in their plans.

Ric O'Barry: 'These Dolphins Are Doomed to a Tragic, Tormented Existence'

The world’s preeminent marine mammal specialist, Ric O’Barry, is calling for the immediate release of 25 wild dolphins captured two years ago in the waters off the Solomon Islands and sent to live in captivity in the Philippines.

"These dolphins were taken from their families in the wild using barbaric drive fishing techniques, and have been kept in inadequate holding facilities ever since," said O'Barry. "Two have already died, and the rest are doomed to a tragic, tormented existence."

The bottlenose dolphins, known collectively as the 'Sentosa 25,’ are destined for Resorts World Sentosa (RSW), an oceanarium currently under construction and scheduled to open in Sentosa, Singapore, later this year.

O’Barry, who shot to international fame in 2009 as the star of the Academy award-winning documentary The Cove, has been at the front lines of a major international campaign to pressure RWS to release the dolphins.

In a June 23 message posted on his website, SaveJapanDolphins, O’Barry urged activists to telephone individual high-ranking RWS shareholders.

A Change.org petition asking for the immediate release of the dolphins has more than 92,000 signatures.

"Tens of thousand of people, who have taken action on Change.org to free the 25 dolphins being held captive for Resords World Sentosa, are part of the growing movement against tourism that capitalizes on the mistreatment and exploitation of these intelligent marine mammals," says Stephanie Feldstein, Animals Editor for Change.org, which will make a big media push once the petition reaches 100,000 signatures. "By freeing these dolphins, Resorts World Sentosa has the opportunity to become a leader in compassionate tourism."

Even the trafficker who sold the dolphins to RWS, Chris Porter, has reversed his position, saying “RWS is using the animals primarily to make money while telling the public that its aim is to educate the public on marine conservation.”

O’Barry told The Straits Times in May that the hunt that captured the Sentosa 25 “is not that much different than what happens in Taiji.”

As depicted in The Cove, fishermen in Taiji, Japan, lure between 1,500 and 2,000 dolphins into the shallows of the cove and separate out the ones deemed worthy of selling to an aquarium.

The rest are harpooned and slaughtered, their meat sold in supermarkets.

Purchased by RWS in December 2008 and January 2009, nine of the original 27 dolphins were housed in tiny, rusty sea pens in Langkawi, Malaysia. The other 18 were holed up in Ocean Park Adventure in Subic Bay, Philippines.

Tragedy struck in October 2010. Two of the Langkawi females, one aged five and the other aged 10, died from an acute bacterial infection of melioidosis. Experts say the virus can be transmitted through contact with contaminated soil and surface waters. Several months later, the remaining seven were shipped to their current pen in the Philippines.

In the limitless waters of the open ocean, a free, wild dolphin can live up to 50 years. Highly social creatures, it is not uncommon for dolphin pods to swim up to 100 miles per day hunting for food.

A captive dolphin, on the other hand, often circles its tank without purpose.

Even in the largest facilities, caged dolphins have access to less than 1/10,000 of 1% (0.000001) of the space available to them in their natural environment.

According to Animal Concerns and Research Society (ACRES), a Singapore-based charity organization that launched the Save the World’s Saddest Dolphins campaign, non-wild dolphins faces a life of “boredom, stress, claustrophobia, and frustration.”

In conversations with various media outlets, representatives from RWS have maintained that the company is following international guidelines regarding the care of captured marine mammals.

In addition to traditional dolphin shows, RWS’ plans call for an exhibit that allows humans to swim with dolphins as a form of physical therapy.

Lori Marino, a longtime marine mammal researcher at Emory University, told ACRES, “dolphin-assisted therapy is not a valid treatment for any disorder.”

In a June 25 letter to RWS, O’Barry wrote, “there is absolutely no evidence that swim-with-dolphins programs work.”

In spite of RWS’ steadfast refusal to release the animals, there remains a glimmer of hope.

Two years ago, a planned RWS whale shark exhibit was cancelled in part because of public outcry.

O’Barry has offered to personally rehabilitate and release the Sentosa 25 back into the wild.

The question now becomes, when, if ever, will RWS give him that opportunity?

7 Disturbing Videos Caught on Tape by SeaWorld’s Visitors

Read more: http://www.seaworldofhurt.com/features/disturbing-videos-caught-tape-seaworlds-visitors/#ixzz3DobhM66V

Here's another tragedy:

Another SeaWorld orca has died prematurely in captivity—this time, heartbreakingly, the deceased was a mere 10 months old. The infant, Vicky, died over the weekend at Loro Parque, an amusement park in Spain’s Canary Islands. The cause of death is not yet known—there are reports that she had been behaving unusually in the preceding days.

Vicky was the offspring of Kohana and Keto, two SeaWorld orcas on display at Loro Parque. Senior SeaWorld employees oversaw orca training at Loro Parque when Keto killed trainer Alexis Martinez by ramming him and dragging him underwater. Kohana, who is Keto’s niece—inbreeding is another sad outcome of captivity at SeaWorld—rejected Vicky, as she had previously done with her first calf, a male named Adan. It likely didn’t help that Kohana had been taken away from her own mother after just 19 months—ocean-dwelling orcas carefully guard their calves, and young females help the mothers care for them.

What You Can Do

SeaWorld’s reckless disregard hurts orcas and endangers those who come into contact with them. Please tell SeaWorld that you won’t visit its parks so long as it imprisons marine animals, and spread the word on Facebook, Twitter, and other social networks, urging everyone to follow suit.

Read more: http://www.seaworldofhurt.com/rip-vicky-10-month-old-seaworld-orca-dies-captivity/#ixzz3DocLyWE

First Dolphins Are Killed at the Cove as Japanese Hunt Begins:

September 19, 2014 By David Kirby

More protesters demonstrate at Taiji, and SeaWorld condemns the slaughter.

It took 17 days for the annual dolphin killing to begin in Taiji, Japan.

On Tuesday, fishing boats headed to sea and herded 12 Risso’s dolphins into the town’s cove, where the marine mammals were quickly dispatched with blades and carved into pieces for sale as meat.

The annual dolphin hunt in Taiji officially began on Sept. 1, but for two and a half weeks, no dolphins were driven into the cove, which remained blue, instead of the deep crimson it turns during the slaughter.

“First pod of 2014–2015 being driven into cove now,” tweeted Cove Guardian volunteers with the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society at 10:30 a.m. Tuesday.

“First dolphin murder of the drive hunt season is complete as dead bodies are dragged to Taiji butcher house,” they tweeted an hour later.

Agence France Press confirmed the killings with an official from the local fishermen’s union. “We caught 12 Risso’s dolphins,” he told AFP, adding that the fleet would resume hunting in the coming days.

Meanwhile, anti-drive activists say things are different this year because more protesters are attracting more media attention.

Melissa Sehgal, Sea Shepherd’s senior Cove Guardian leader, attributed the increased news coverage to United States Ambassador Caroline Kennedy, who last January sent a tweet condemning the hunt as inhumane. Sehgal called it “the tweet heard 'round the world.”

“Today there is increased global awareness and criticism of the hunts, proving it is not just a Japanese issue,” Sehgal said in an email. “The public can no longer say they don't know, and clearly they care.”

Louie Psihoyos, director of The Cove, the 2009 Oscar-winning documentary on the slaughter and executive director of the Oceanic Preservation Society, gave credit to Blackfish, an acclaimed documentary about killer whales.

“Because of the success of Blackfish, there’s far more outcry this year than past years, and now the protests are coming from within Japan,” Psihoyos said in an email. “I think we're going to win this battle, but it’s going to take a few years, not months.”

Ric O’Barry, star of The Cove and director of the Dolphin Project at Earth Island Institute, also said the situation has changed for the better.

“There are more and more Japanese people getting involved, or at least trying to get involved,” O’Barry said in an email. “We need to make it easy for them to do that.”

Not all dolphins driven to the cove are butchered. Some are released, and others, usually the young and attractive, are captured and sold to aquariums in Japan and 20 other countries.

A live dolphin can fetch $150,000 or more, whereas a dead one is worth as little as $500. Critics say the capture and sale of dolphins is what keeps the hunt afloat, especially as demand for mercury-riddled whale and dolphin meat appears to be falling in Japan.

Zoos and aquariums have remained reluctant to confront the practice. But on Friday, SeaWorld sent an email to supporters titled “We're opposed to the dolphin drive hunts. See why.” The email included a YouTube video interview with Mike Boos, SeaWorld’s vice president for zoological operations.

"It really is a horrendous practice," said Boos, noting that SeaWorld does not own any animals acquired from dolphin drives.

Words are not enough, critics contend. They argue that SeaWorld and the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums should use their influence to stop the dolphin trade that underwrites the killings at Taiji.

"WAZA and their industry hold the key to stopping the captures," O'Barry said. "But they are still missing in action."

http://www.takepart.com/article/2014/09/19/first-dolphins-are-killed-cove-japanese-hunt-begins?cmpid=tpdaily-eml-2014-09-19

A documentary that tells the TRUE story of Winter of the Dolphin Tale movies. Don’t get fooled by all that Hollywood Glitz! Produced by the Friends of Clear......

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=-nC4dCVChik

Heartbreaking!

Also see this link: https://www.rebelmouse.com/MaralKalinian/a-dolphin-truth-700879689.html#MaralKalinian/a-dolphin-truth-700879689.html

Speak out AGAINST Coral World's proposed Dolphinarium!
Remember they (ACE) are not interested as we are in the ethics of keeping Dolphins and other Marine Mammals in Captivity.

See this link for a copy of letter that you can send to ACE requesting the denial of Coral World's Dolphin jail and breeding pen.

I tried to post it in its entirety but kept getting a Phorum data error message:

https://www.rebelmouse.com/MaralKalinian/last-chance-to-voice-protest-f-712572053.html#MaralKalinian/last-chance-to-voice-protest-f-712572053.html

A lot of local people worked together to compile the info presented in the letter to ACE.

"The single largest pool of untapped resource in this world is human good intentions that never translate into action."
--Cindy Gallop

Re: ACE Public Hearing

Water Bay has endangered corals. That is fact.
Dendrogyra is within the impact zone of the Coral World project, as is the already-listed Acropora palmata, so a Section 7 consultation will be necessary. The main coral to be impacted, Montastrea annularis (boulder coral), which is actually within the footprint of the project and will need to be translocated. It is now called Orbicella complex of corals and is also on NOAA's new list.

These coral are presently healthy and thriving in Water Bay due in part to the fact that there has been considerably less human made impact in this area due to the Renaissance Grand being closed for so many years.

Now these endangered Corals are being threatened on 2 fronts.
The rebuilding of the new Margaritaville in place of the old structures presently there and Coral World's proposed dolphinarium.

These corals have managed to thrive and survive in spite of epic runoff conditions due to heavy rains that storms and near brushes with hurricanes have brought over the last several years. However, we will find them challenged even more to continue to do so with the building of Coral World's dolphin pen directly impacting those corals that lay within the actual foot print of the pen, not to mention those in the surrounding areas. These corals will not survive the translocation that Coral World wishes to do. There is a 95% mortality rate for relocated corals. There is a reason they and the sea grass beds are where they are and presently as healthy as they are. Moving them will likely kill them.

Additionally, we will then have impact from the construction of the proposed facility as well as that coming from Maragritaville whose property was originally a mangrove lagoon and floods heavily with runoff during storm and gets massive beach erosion. Their entire parking area and beach front is inundated with flood waters, thigh high, during heavy rains and it all goes into Water Bay.

Then we will have additional impacts on these endangered corals from human activities once Margaritaville is up and running as well as from Coral World.
These include humans wearing sunscreen while swimming in the water of the bay, increased boating activities with wave runners, charter and fishing boats, dinghies coming and going, people peeing in the water and dumping all kinds of things plus the waste from a min. of 6 dolphins, not to mention the 6 additional ones they wish to import. Then they shall proceed to breed even more. Who knows how many dolphins they will actually end up with and all of their fecal matter and food wastes impacting a once clean bay and thriving corals, if any remain, from the construction and ill advised relocation.

We shall have increased traffic both at Margaitaville and Coral World which will likely increase the contaminants from car exhausts and dripping vehicular fluids on the roads and parking areas that will end up in the bay after any rain, in addition to heavy pesticide and waste laden runoff waters from heavy rains and storm occurrences. We also have Pt. Pleasant on the other side of the bay so we could call this a triple threat to Water Bay from all the increased proposed human activity.

Coral World also refuses to realize that public opinion has changed regarding the ethics of keeping large marine mammals in captivity thanks in large part to documentaries such as Blackfish and The Cove as well as the many scientists and organizations that have educated the public to the stark realities of the deprived and sterile lives these creatures must endure in captivity.

SeaWorld continues to lose profits while parks that do not have captive marine mammals on display doing entertainment tricks for food are making money. "SeaWorld Entertainment’s stock fell 33 percent on August 13, in response to the company’s announcement of fewer ticket sales and lower second-quarter earnings, an indication that the controversies surrounding recent trainer deaths, profiled in the “Blackfish,” were scaring investors. SeaWorld’s shares are currently trading at their lowest price since it went public last year." This downward trend continues and Coral World is way behind the times in believing tourists and locals will support this endeavor.

Please.....................Just say NO to Coral World's proposed Dolphinarium.

Thank You,