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karen roseme
Mountain climber
san diego
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Topic Author's Reply - Feb 8, 2014 - 05:54pm PT
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This Is a First: Japanese Newspaper Op-Ed Condemns Taiji Dolphin Hunt
For the first time, a Japanese newspaper has denounced the slaughter of dolphins in the cove at Taiji, a move that has heartened activists and put the Japanese government on notice that the tides may be changing within the country.
On Friday, The Japan Times, the country’s oldest and largest English-language newspaper, ran an editorial that stated, simply, “The dolphin hunt is an inhumane practice that should be stopped.”
The editorial breathed new life into the controversy over the Taiji slaughter, in which roughly 900 dolphins are killed annually in the tiny fishing village, and it led activists to declare a small but significant victory.
“It surprised me,” says Ric O’Barry of Earth Island Institute’s Dolphin Project and star of the Academy Award–winning documentary The Cove.
http://www.takepart.com/article/2014/02/05/stunner-japanese-newspaper-op-ed-condemns-taiji-dolphin-hunt?cmpid=tpanimals-eml-2014-02-08-japan
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bluering
Trad climber
Santa Clara, CA
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Karen, I sympathize only lightly with you. Here's why:
Dolphins, and to a lesser degree, whales, are the closest thing to human-kind that we have in the seas. They are like 'water-dogs'.
Dolphins are especially dear to me because I've seen them close-hand. They are curious and even protective of other warm-blooded creatures. They often times follow our fishing boats too as we return from fishing when I'm in Florida w/ my Dad. They will surface and you can look them in they eye, as they watch you!
What the f*#king Japanese do to whales and ESPECIALLY dolphins is a crime against human nature.
Why? They don't have to kill dolphins! They've already raped the sea of tuna on their part of ocean. They raped albacore, and they're encouraging the raping of abalone on my shores here.
They have no regard for how to preserve a habitat, which is the definition of a conservationist. They just destroy, they don't preserve the habitat or the species for future harvesting.
Can we nuke Japan again?
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bluering
Trad climber
Santa Clara, CA
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Rsin, you have demonstrated that you're an Asshole. Stop going over the proving grounds, bro.
The Japs, in their quest for fish, are destroying their very dinner table. They are blind if they can't see they're killing the traditional Goose that is laying their eggs.
Maybe we don't have to nuke them again, they're killing themseleves. Look at their population rates and their culture. They are dead.
Sad stuff. We're next.
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karen roseme
Mountain climber
san diego
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Topic Author's Reply - Feb 10, 2014 - 10:19am PT
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rottingjohnny
Sport climber
mammoth lakes ca
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Feb 10, 2014 - 12:48pm PT
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I stumbled across blackfish last night and got sucked into watching it...Amazing how many killer whale attacks and deaths have occurred at these venues ...Even more amazing is how Sea World has swept it under the rug while continuing to provide a dangerous work environment for its' trainers...I worked with this high school kid back in 80 cutting firewood..He moved on and became a trainer at sea world in San Diego..
..He was interviewed in the documentary stating that there was no inherent danger working with the killer whales...Sounded like a company man..
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karen roseme
Mountain climber
san diego
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Topic Author's Reply - Feb 10, 2014 - 01:08pm PT
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rottingjohnny you are so right!
The reason they continue is money!, 2.7 billion dollars per year!!!
They need a new business model.
Build some rides! build an Imax movie theater.
Making wild animals do tricks for food is archaic and just plain cruel.
It is also extremely dangerous for the trainers who's credentials are that they are good swimmers.
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nature
climber
Boulder, CO
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Feb 10, 2014 - 01:11pm PT
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Mark Simmons?
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rottingjohnny
Sport climber
mammoth lakes ca
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Feb 10, 2014 - 01:31pm PT
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Nature...Wasn't Mark Simmons..The guys mom lives in town here so i take the 5th....Tanked whales..? Anything to make a buck eh...?
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karen roseme
Mountain climber
san diego
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Topic Author's Reply - Feb 10, 2014 - 01:31pm PT
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I couldn't agree more Locker!
Nature, what do you know about Mark Simmons?
Seems like he is on the take to me.
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Risk
Mountain climber
Olympia, WA
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Feb 10, 2014 - 03:10pm PT
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http://seattletimes.com/html/localnews/2022166728_orcaferryxml.html
**Orcas circle ferry transporting tribal artifacts to Bainbridge Island
A large pod of orcas swam around a Washington state ferry in an impressive display as it happened to be carrying tribal artifacts to a new museum at the ancestral home of Chief Seattle.**
By DOUG ESSER
The Associated Press
A large pod of orcas swam around a Washington state ferry in an impressive display as it happened to be carrying tribal artifacts to a new museum at the ancestral home of Chief Seattle, and some people think it was more than a coincidence.
Killer whales have been thrilling whale watchers this week in Puget Sound, according to the Orca Network, which tracks sightings. But they were especially exciting Tuesday when nearly three dozen orcas surrounded the ferry from Seattle as it approached the terminal on Bainbridge Island. On board were officials from The Burke Museum in Seattle who were moving ancient artifacts to the Suquamish Museum.
The artifacts were dug up nearly 60 years ago from the site of the Old Man House in Kitsap County, the winter village for the Suquamish tribe and home of Chief Sealth, also known as Chief Seattle. The Burke, a natural-history museum on the University of Washington campus, is known for Northwest Coast and Alaska Native art.
Also on board the state ferry was Suquamish Tribal Chairman Leonard Forsman, who happened to be returning from an unrelated event. As the ferry slowed near the terminal, it was surrounded by the orcas, Forsman said Wednesday.
“They were pretty happily splashing around, flipping their tails in the water,” he said. “We believe they were welcoming the artifacts home as they made their way back from Seattle, back to the reservation.”
The killer whales have been in Puget Sound feeding on a large run of chum salmon, he said. “We believe the orcas took a little break from their fishing to swim by the ferry, to basically put a blessing on what we were on that day,” he said.
Forsman believes there’s a spiritual tie between the tribe and the orcas. “They are fishermen like we are,” he said. It was an auspicious arrival for about 500 artifacts that The Burke Museum had held for nearly 60 years, Suquamish Museum Director Janet Smoak said.
They include tools, decorative items and bits of bone and rock that date back 2,000 years.
The Old Man House — the largest known longhouse on the Salish Sea — was located at Suquamish on the shore of Agate Passage, about 13 miles northwest of Seattle. Chief Sealth, for whom Seattle is named, is buried there.
The longhouse was burned down by the U.S. government in the late 1800s. The artifacts were collected by a University of Washington archaeological investigation in the 1950s, according to the Burke Museum. In 2012, the tribe completed its new museum, which includes a climate-controlled environment. The artifacts will be displayed to illustrate Suquamish culture in an exhibit called Ancient Shores Changing Tides.
Everyone was talking about the orcas at the Tuesday museum-blessing ceremony and feast, Smoak said. “Everyone was really excited and moved by the event,” she said.
The orcas, identified from their markings as members of the J and K pods, were seen this week along several routes between the Seattle area and the west side of Puget Sound, according to Howard Garrett of the Orca Network at Freeland, Island County. He thought their intersection with the ferry carrying tribal artifacts was uncanny.
“I can’t rule out somehow they could pick up on the mental energy that there is something special there. Or it could be a coincidence,” he said. “I don’t know.”
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atchafalaya
Boulder climber
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Feb 10, 2014 - 05:05pm PT
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"Poor SOBS nearly killed us.. I sick of the WHOLE OF ASIA myself. Japan? Korea? China? fekk em all."
The shithole of moundhouse is probably safe Ron. I thought you only hated Hispanic and African Americans? Guess we can add Asian to the list...
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rottingjohnny
Sport climber
mammoth lakes ca
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Feb 10, 2014 - 06:42pm PT
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Ron..do you still keep guppies in your water bed...?
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bluering
Trad climber
Santa Clara, CA
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Feb 10, 2014 - 08:43pm PT
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The shithole of moundhouse is probably safe Ron. I thought you only hated Hispanic and African Americans? Guess we can add Asian to the list...
So I cannot criticize anybody for illegal or unethical behavior if they're a minority? Pretty typical liberal bullsh#t.
Illegal aliens breaking immigration laws and abusing our freebies = racist, you hate brown people.
Asians raping our oceans to quell their appetite for fish = racist, you hate the yellow folks.
African-immigrants telling Christian cultures they have to accept their culture after the minority culture is accepted into country = racist, you're intolerant of 3rd world cultures. You hate black people.
You people are stupid and are promoting the destruction of a vibrant culture, that ironically, so many come to embrace, or take advantage of.
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karen roseme
Mountain climber
san diego
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Topic Author's Reply - Feb 10, 2014 - 10:36pm PT
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Judgment Day has arrived for SeaWorld—well, at least in the court of public opinion.
Tonight, the documentary about captive orcas, Blackfish, premieres on CNN. The film centers on the 2010 death of SeaWorld trainer Dawn Brancheau by Tilikum, raising serious questions about the highly profitable practice of keeping killer whales in captivity. While SeaWorld has criticized film, they have declined requests by CNN to be interviewed on camera. But, this week, company spokesman Fred Jacobs did provide written answers to a few of the most poignant issues in the documentary.
Most of these topics are discussed in my book, Death at SeaWorld: Shamu and the Dark Side of Killer Whales in Captivity. Readers will recognize SeaWorld’s latest attempt at positive spin as part of its eternal drive to make orcas in swimming pools appear to be a good thing, especially for the whales.
Here are some of the main points raised in the CNN Q&A with Jacobs, paired with what I discovered researching Death at SeaWorld.
Killer Whales in Captivity: 7 Reasons They Should Be Free
Conservation
Jacobs wrote SeaWorld has “assisted whales many times, including killer whales,” who were lost or stranded. But in at least three cases, SeaWorld seemed more interested in sending these orcas into a life of captivity to entertain tourists, rather than releasing them back into the ocean.
First there was Springer, a young female discovered in Puget Sound in 2002, alone and undernourished. As I reported, the main organizations working to help Springer were the U.S. National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), the Vancouver Aquarium, the Center for Whale Research, and OrcaLab, on Johnstone Strait in British Columbia, the summer home to Springer’s pod.
Springer was eventually caught and transferred to a netted-off pen, where she could be fed and cared for. Many scientists and activists wanted to see her returned to her family, but her fate was uncertain.
According to my sources, SeaWorld wanted to see Springer taken captive. “The SeaWorld vet tried his best to find something wrong with Springer that would dictate that she be moved to a SeaWorld tank,” Howard Garrett of the Orca Network told me this week. He and his wife Susan Berta spent time with Springer in Washington.
Springer had settled near the Vashon Island ferry dock. “She chose one of the best fishing spots in Puget Sound, and was seen catching salmon with ease,” Garrett recalls. “She was always very active and alert. In the hour Springer was captured, we watched her do half a dozen breaches or half breaches. We didn't see anything about her condition to worry about.”
But, at the time, SeaWorld veterinarian Jim McBain told The Seattle Times that, "We're still worried about the next step. Her condition is a concern. This is not a robust killer whale.”
According to Garrett, "It was only the resounding voices of orca experts and conservationists who absolutely opposed captivity that turned efforts toward finding a way to transport her back to Johnstone Strait, where she did rejoin her family within 24 hours. She soon became an adopted member of her aunt's matritine and returned this year with her own newborn."
Shouka, ‘World’s Loneliest Whale,’ Relocated to SeaWorld San Diego to Live With Fellow Orcas
Jacobs also mentions a young female rescued off the coast of the Netherlands, named Morgan. Despite attempts by scientists and activists to win the whale's freedom, Morgan was sent to the Loro Parque theme park, in the Canary Islands, where she remains.
All killer whales at Loro Parque belong to SeaWorld, and now the company lists Morgan as part of their "collection" in papers filed with the SEC. There will be another legal hearing on Morgan's fate next month, but it's clear that SeaWorld has no intention of letting Morgan go. SeaWorld and Loro Parque claim that Morgan is "hearing impaired," but have not released data on how severe the impairment is.
Education
Millions of SeaWorld visitors, Jacobs wrote to CNN, "have experienced killer whales in a way that is personal, enriching and inspirational," adding that it is "our hope" that every SeaWorld visitor will leave the park "with a greater understanding of and appreciation for all the animals we display, including killer whales."
And while SeaWorld is certified by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, meaning they meet minimum conservation requirements, during the several times I visited the park to research my book, I heard virtually nothing that would educate people about killer whales in the wild, how long they live, their social bonds, their hunting patterns, and ways to conserve their threatened natural habitats. Instead, I “learned” that whales like blaring music, roaring crowds, back-flips and French kissing.
Dr. Lori Marino, a prominent whale and dolphin scientist, says there is no reliable evidence that people get educated, or motivated to take action, after visiting a marine park.
“It is not proper to simply ask people whether they have learned or what they think they have learned, or how much they enjoyed the class,” Marino testified in a 2010 Congressional subcommittee hearing on killer whales in captivity. Direct testing of acquired knowledge, and not feel-good public opinion polling, is the only way to properly assess any education program. Industry-sponsored papers “typically involve asking visitors whether they think they have been educated. But they do not actually test knowledge,” she said. “There is no compelling or even strongly suggestive current evidence that visits to zoos and aquariums promote positive attitude change, learning or conservation actions.”
Research
"Much of what is known about the killer whale's anatomy, reproductive biology and capacity to learn was learned at SeaWorld and other accredited zoological institutions," Jacobs wrote.
There is no question that some killer whale research could only be conducted in a tank, and SeaWorld is to be commended for adding to our body of knowledge on the species. But a scan of the scientific studies cited by Jacobs reveals that several were conducted in the ocean, not at SeaWorld. Many studies conducted with SeaWorld orcas pertained mostly to animal husbandry and keeping whales in captivity. Others weren’t really studies at all.
Quality of Life
While Jacobs conceded that "a killer whale can and occasionally might travel as much as 100 miles in a day," he wrote that "swimming that distance is not integral to a whale's health and well-being.” And he added this: "They adapt very well to life in a zoological setting."
One wonders if Jacobs read the science on this issue. As I wrote in Death at SeaWorld: "Any species’ home range is as large as needed to support its food requirements. Animals with all their energy needs met in the immediate area evolved to have a small home range. But animals with energy requirements that were met only by widely dispersed sources evolved to cover a larger home range. Restricting an orca’s foraging range was precisely the reason why killer whales did not thrive in captivity. You cannot switch off millions of years of evolution just because an animal is captive."
All carnivores that are wide-ranging do poorly in captivity. One 2003 study analyzed data from predators with small home ranges, and those with large ranges and widely dispersed prey. The former did well enough in captivity: their health was good, they didn’t develop behavioral stereotypies (pacing, etc.), and they had lower infant-mortality rates. The latter fared much worse.
In Killer Controversy: Why Orcas Should No Longer Be Kept in Captivity, Dr. Naomi Rose writes “The science is in, and we should realize that nothing—not profit, not education, not conservation – can justify keeping this large, social, intelligent predator in a small box.” Her paper highlighted “the growing body of scientific evidence showing that orcas do not adapt to captivity,” including the example of captive female orcas giving birth too young and too often, which lead to a higher death rate for both mother and child.
Alternatives
Many opponents say the best thing for these animals is gradual retirement to netted-off sea pens. There, they wouldn’t have 100-mile-a-day ranges, but at least they would catch and eat live fish and live to the rhythms of the natural world. SeaWorld would still own the animals and could charge people to observe them from shore. It would be a win-win-win situation: for SeaWorld, for the public, and especially for the whales.
But SeaWorld disagrees. "Sea pens are not appropriate for long-term care," Jacobs claimed, without providing any supporting data. Apparently, we should just take his word for it.
"Our killer whale habitats are the largest and most sophisticated ever constructed for a marine mammal: 7 million gallons of continually filtered and chilled water," Jacobs said.
One expects that SeaWorld, at minimum, can filter and chill its own artificial seawater. But before deciding whether seven million gallons is sufficient to sustain these top oceanic predators, watch Blackfish and then make up your own mind.
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bluering
Trad climber
Santa Clara, CA
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Feb 10, 2014 - 11:10pm PT
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I'll give them this, the military has made awesome use of dolphins for mine recon and intel gathering.
The Orcas, yeah, they should release them.
Heard about the military sea-lion program? Pretty rad.
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nature
climber
Boulder, CO
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Feb 11, 2014 - 01:10am PT
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Simmons and the rest of the Sea World employees of the century attempt to dismiss the facts that #blackfish has put forth. They've failed miserably. They continue to dig their own grave. At ever turn it's obvious.
It's getting close to the tipping point. I think Louie's next movie - The Heist - is going to really rock some worlds.
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rottingjohnny
Sport climber
mammoth lakes ca
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Feb 11, 2014 - 08:34am PT
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The documentary pointed out that female orcas can live to 100 in the wild and in captivity they live to 35..It also talked about the knucklehead that snuck into the tank after hours and tried to swim with the killer whale...they found the guy the next morning , dead , skinned , and on the back of the orca....
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