World Oceans Week, Soul Planet, The Sea, Mercy Videos, The Great Pacific Garbage Patch, Dolphin Outlook, American Express, Dr. Sylvia Earle, Helene Hesselager O’Barry, Dolphinaris Arizona, The Damanzaihao, Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, Ryan Zinke and yes, what 'A Whale of a Week'...much, much more to report!
Are Captive Dolphins Really ‘Happy’? A Look Into the Daily Lives of Dolphins at the Duisburg Zoo (an article by Helene Hesselager O’Barry, The Dolphin Project)
A dolphin trainer attaches a blue rubber ring to a dolphin’s beak. A piece of rope connects the ring to a blue rubber boat. A young girl, wearing an orange life jacket, sits in it, laughing with delight. The spectators, too, burst into laughter. Their cheers and applause grow to a soaring roar as the dolphin races around the tank, pulling the boat. As soon as the dolphin completes the task, he rushes back to his trainer to receive his reward: a dead fish.
To the dolphin, however, it holds no other meaning than that of being the key to obtaining a fish. They are well aware that humans are their only source of food. And that hunger is precisely what drives dolphin shows all over the world. Without it, and without the dolphins’ powerless predicament created by depriving them of the ability to forage on their own like they would in nature, it would not be possible to train them to sing, dance and jump on command. The dolphin trainer who holds the bucket of fish holds tremendous power over the dolphins.
Today, seven bottlenose dolphins and a single river dolphin live at the zoo. While the lone river dolphin spends its time swimming in endless circles in its minuscule confinement, the bottlenose dolphins are contained in a concrete tank inside a roof-covered stadium. With their sleek, streamlined bodies, they have evolved to swim many miles each day in a vast ocean world that has no boundaries. At Duisburg Zoo they can swim only a few feet before a concrete wall stops them. Two of the dolphins were captured from the wild. Five are the result of the zoo’s captive dolphin breeding program, which provides an ongoing supply of dolphins to be used in shows. These dolphins have never even seen the ocean, and the only world they will ever know is an artificial one made of glass, metal, and concrete.
Ivo’s Plight
One of the dolphins is named Ivo. Ivo was captured in 1981 as he was swimming alongside his mother in the Gulf of Mexico. Dolphin hunters that were targeting show-quality dolphins for a growing captive dolphin industry in Europe also yanked his mother out of the ocean that day. Ivo and his mother spent several years performing at the Antwerp Zoo in Belgium. The dolphin stadium in Antwerp was finally closed, and in 1999 both dolphins were sent to Duisburg Zoo. Ivo’s mother died in 2003.
Ivo continues to perform in front of spectators who never hear where he came from, or how he ended up in a small tank at a German zoo. All they see are seven ever-smiling dolphins who engage in what they perceive as a session of harmless fun and games. During the entire show, the trainer wears a fixed smile, and his cheerful chatter and upbeat announcements are meant to reassure the paying audiences that a trainer’s relationship with dolphins is based on mutual respect and understanding. His we-are-all-one-big-happy-family performance creates a fake surface of happiness that the spectators willingly accept as honest and real. They are easily fooled, as they have not come to ask questions about animal welfare or make an attempt at seeing beneath the surface of the superficial dolphin spectacle. They have come to obtain 30 minutes of casual amusement and when the show is over, quickly move to the next attraction or activity. ”Where are we going next?” a child impatiently asks his mother and pulls at her hand.
The dolphins, of course, have no such thing as a “next” destination. Their journey ends here: in a barren, concrete tank inside a stadium where the ear-deafening cheers and applause from spectators fill the air several times a day, day after day, year after year. Removed from everything that is natural and purposeful to them, they will spend the rest of their lives here, and in between shows will be swimming in pointless circles, going nowhere.
According to dolphinariums, the captivity of dolphins serves the noble purpose of promoting a better understanding of dolphins, thus helping to conserve them in the wild. Duisburg Zoo makes a half-hearted attempt at making the dolphin show appear educational. Some posters about ocean pollution are plastered on the wall, and at some point during the show, a dolphin is commanded to beach itself onto the concrete platform. The trainer then points out to the audience where his blowhole is located.
Destroying the quality of a dolphin’s life by incarcerating him in a concrete tank to tell people where his blowhole is located is absurd. All it does is enable Duisburg Zoo to say, “Look, what we are doing is educational!” But the captive dolphin spectacle does not teach the spectators about the true nature of dolphins. What it does teach them is that humans can treat these beings in whichever way they see fit, even if it means turning once-wild opportunistic foragers of the oceans into begging circus clowns in the name of entertainment. We are living in a spectators’ society, and the dolphins that languish in stadiums all over Europe are a symptom of the resulting consumerism. Hundreds of dolphins have died in these stadiums, and hundreds have been captured to replace them.
Next, Agents from the Peruvian Environmental Prosecutor’s Office boarded the Damanzaihao on the night of May 30th, 2018, as part of an federal criminal investigation based on presumed acts of illegal fishing. Acting on a formal request filed by the Ministry of Environment, the Environmental Prosecutor’s Office has ordered the vessel detained pending further investigation.
Over the past week, the Damanzaihao has twice requested permission to leave port in an obvious attempt to escape the tightening noose. On April 20, 2018, Sea Shepherd delivered a formal letter to the Peruvian Ministry of Production (the agency that issued the multi-million dollar fine) imploring the government to take additional steps to ensure the ship pay for its crimes.
The Damanzaihao is the largest fish factory vessel in the world, capable of processing 547,000 tons of fish per year.
Sea Shepherd Vessel M/V John Paul DeJoria was recently in Peruvian waters, investigating and gathering intelligence to assist the Peruvian Government in its fight against Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (“IUU”) Fishing. Keep reading at: https://goo.gl/KqrXY1
Alia the Dolphin Died Young in Captivity - Save Her 6 Friends!
Alia was a 10-year-old bottlenose dolphin living a sad life in captivity at Dolphinaris Arizona when she tragically died. The dolphinarium has not released the cause of death but we know that captivity is horrible for these intelligent, fun animals. Six other dolphins are still there and at risk.
Sign the petition to urge Dolphinaris Arizona to do the right thing and release the remaining six dolphins to a sanctuary where they can live out their days in a happy, natural habitat.
Bottlenose dolphins normally live at least 40 years so it's not a stretch to imagine some kind of death due to living in captivity. In fact, Alia is the second dolphin to die there in the last year - Bodie was only 7 years old when he died last year. Dolphins are not meant to live as human entertainment.
One huge fear for having dolphins in Arizona is the risk of them contracting a deadly fungal disease called Valley Fever, especially because the stress of living in captivity weakens their immune systems.
According to Care2 writer Alicia Graef, "Dolphins aren't cute little playthings, performers or ambassadors; they're highly intelligent, social, far-ranging predators. Sadly they are continuously treated like commodities by the captivity industry, who are taken from the wild, bred in captivity and shipped around with little regard to their wellbeing. Ultimately, they spend their entire lives being deprived of everything that would enable them to truly thrive." Sign the petition to help free Alia and Bodie's six dolphin friends!
Sign the petition to urge Dolphinaris Arizona to do the right thing and release the remaining six dolphins to a sanctuary where they can live out their days in a happy, natural habitat.
Bottlenose dolphins normally live at least 40 years so it's not a stretch to imagine some kind of death due to living in captivity. In fact, Alia is the second dolphin to die there in the last year - Bodie was only 7 years old when he died last year. Dolphins are not meant to live as human entertainment.
One huge fear for having dolphins in Arizona is the risk of them contracting a deadly fungal disease called Valley Fever, especially because the stress of living in captivity weakens their immune systems.
According to Care2 writer Alicia Graef, "Dolphins aren't cute little playthings, performers or ambassadors; they're highly intelligent, social, far-ranging predators. Sadly they are continuously treated like commodities by the captivity industry, who are taken from the wild, bred in captivity and shipped around with little regard to their wellbeing. Ultimately, they spend their entire lives being deprived of everything that would enable them to truly thrive." Sign the petition to help free Alia and Bodie's six dolphin friends!
Last Year, Japan Murdered 120 Pregnant Minke Whales. Thousands More Could Be Next If We Don't Act Now!
It wasn't the first time this slaughter has occurred, and if we don't act now, it certainly will not be the last.
The Japanese government conducts this annual whale hunt every summer in the name of scientific research. But non-lethal surveys have been shown to be just as effective for "biological sampling." In reality, many of the whales are ending up at the dinner table.
This week is World Ocean's Week and the summer hunt is just around the corner. There will be no better time to raise your voice for these whales.
Japan plans to slaughter at least 4,000 whales over the next decade. But according to a 2014 ruling by the International Court of Justice, Japan is breaking the law by continuing their Antarctic whaling program. We must continue to shine a light on Japan's horrific, criminal hunt. Please sign and share the petition today!
Care2 is celebrating World Oceans Week by taking action for our blue planet every day from June 3 - 9.
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is growing exponentially and is now twice as large as Texas. At least two sperm whales have been found dead with dozens of pounds of plastic trash in their stomachs. The turtle from the heart-breaking image above had a cocktail straw stuck up its nose.
For World Oceans Week, we need to build a massive movement to save our blue planet from plastic.
Stephanie is a Care2 community member and works at a Starbucks in New Jersey. She loves her job, but hates the huge number of straws used by the store. She knows straws are largely unrecyclable and can be devastating to wildlife.
The movement to save our seas from plastic trash is growing. Over a hundred cities have already banned styrofoam take-out containers, and California has banned single-use grocery bags. But we need more leadership from the world's largest corporations. Sign Stephanie's petition to ask Starbucks to step up for our oceans.
President Trump and his Secretary of the Interior are doing everything they can to expand oil and gas drilling off U.S. coasts, even in special places like the Arctic's Beaufort Sea. The photo above is of a pod of dolphins swimming through BP's oil at the height of the 2010 Deepwater Horizon offshore drilling disaster. If Trump and Zinke get their way, this will happen again.
The Department of the Interior (DOI) just asked the oil industry where they want to drill in the Beaufort Sea, even as the DOI is putting together their 5 year drilling plan for all coastal waters. DOI's request clearly communicates that this remote and dangerous location will be open for drilling under Trump and Zinke's new plan.
Secretary Zinke has shown his ability to be influenced by anti-drilling pressure. The new DOI plan initially included every coastal area. However, Zinke publicly backed off including Florida when the state's Republican leaders told him that FL drilling was unacceptable. Faced with a similar response from Oregon leaders, Zinke again opened the door to removing that state's coast.
We need Zinke to understand that EVERY coast is vulnerable to dirty, dangerous, deadly oil disasters, and that our energy future needs to exclude offshore drilling.
During World Oceans Week, Congress is considering a variety of amendments which would either support or oppose coastal drilling.
Sign this petition to show and share your opposition to opening up sensitive coastal areas, and we'll turn your signature into an email to your Senators and member of Congress as well as Secretary Zinke. Read petition letter.
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| Plastic-Filled Whale a Sobering Sight on World Oceans Day  Some of the 17 pounds of plastic extracted from the short-finned pilot whale. Photo: www.ThaiWhales.org Can you imagine seeing a whale die before your eyes after spending five days trying to save its life? Unfortunately, that’s the tragic ending our colleagues in Thailand faced recently. What’s worse? A necropsy revealed the whale had swallowed more than 17 pounds of plastic. This plastic-filled whale is certainly a sobering sight on World Oceans Day, but it’s also a reminder that our actions on land have a huge—and sometimes deadly—impact on marine mammal and ocean health. When you throw away your trash, there really is no “away.” What changes will you make to ensure a healthy ocean for marine mammals and humans alike?  Spend Father’s Day with the Sea Lions  Did you know more than half of California sea lions are born on June 15 each year? Join us for a birthday celebration complete with interactive activities and multimedia showcasing the life and history of sea lions in the Bay Area. This special June 17 Marine Science Sunday event, Summer With the Sea Lions, is the perfect way to help celebrate Dad too!  Camp Sea Quest: Summer Day Camp  Summer campers at The Marine Mammal Center will enjoy hands-on science, explorations in the Marin Headlands and behind-the-scenes opportunities at our marine mammal hospital. Come dive in with Camp Sea Quest! Act now to grab your spot for rising 5th and 6th graders.  Go Behind the Scenes!  Have you heard the story of how a retired missile base was transformed into the largest marine mammal hospital in the world? Join us at one of our Behind-the-Scenes experiences to learn more about the history of our hospital in Sausalito and the marine mammals receiving state-of-the-art medical care here thanks to your support.  Marine Science Sunday: What Are Marine Mammals Saying?  Did you know marine mammals make the craziest sounds? And some of these vocal artists have even been featured in films like “Jurassic Park” and “Lord of the Rings.” You can learn more about haunting whale songs, silly seal squawks and more at our Marine Science Sunday events on June 10 and 24. Join us to find out what marine mammals are saying and test your knowledge with a game of Name that Tune! Then take a docent-led tour to meet our current patients.
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