10.01.06
Posted in Uncategorized at 6:32 pm by allan
If the Earth…
If the Earth, were only a few feet in diameter, floating a few feet
above a field somewhere, people would come from everywhere to marvel
at it. People would walk around it, marvelling at its big pools of
water, its little pools and the water flowing between the pools.
People would marvel at the bumps in it, and the holes in it, and they
would marvel at the very thin layer of gas surrounding it and the
water suspended in the gas. The People would marvel at all the
creatures walking around the surface of the ball, and at the
creatures in the water.
The people would declare it as sacred because it was the only one and
they would protect it so that it would not be hurt. The ball would
be the greatest wonder known, and people would come to pray to it, to
be healed, to gain knowledge, to know beauty and to wonder how it
could be. People would love it, and defend it with their lives
because they would somehow know, that their lives, their own
roundness, could be nothing without it. If the Earth were only a few feet in diameter?
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10.08.06
Posted in Solitary Sociables at 7:57 am by allan
For reasons that are not understood, some bottlenose dolphins are sometimes encountered which are living on their own. This seems very odd for what is normally a highly sociable species, and which more usually lives in a group. However, the same thing has been recorded for other species of social cetaceans including belugas and orcas and solitary dolphins are actually quite common around the world, including in UK waters.
Solitary dolphins typically stay in a particular region for some time (perhaps weeks or months) and have certain localities that they regularly frequent, and this can include seemingly unlikely places such as marinas and busy shipping channels. Often they seek human company or interactions with boats and this may come more pronounced over time.
Not surprisingly, people will often flock in large numbers to see them and sometimes they will get into the water and attempt to swim or play with the dolphins. Unfortunately, the animals’ fascination with people (and visa versa) often gets the animals into trouble. The dolphins are large powerful marine predators and they may accidentally (or deliberately if they are frightened or frustrated) injure people in the water particularly by biting or butting but sometimes also just by trying to swim around them. There is also a risk of disease transmission.
Sometimes the dolphins become fascinated by boats and this may lead to them being struck by hulls and propellers.
Whilst the animals are in areas of high human activity the chances are that they will be harmed. There are exceptions to this and the bottlenose dolphin known as Funghi, who has been resident in Dingle Bay for many years, has come to little harm. He is, however, the exception to the rule and has a large range in the area.
Generally, the more human interactions that occur with the animal, the bigger the problems tend to get, and the less likely the animal is to survive. So, our basic advice is to stay away from them if possible. If there is a good shore-based viewing site then it may be possible to watch the animals from the shore (which is unlikely to harm the animal or encourage further human interactions), but people and their pets should not enter the water.
If the animal is constrained in a small area – for example in a marina – it may be trapped. Even if there seems to be a way open to the sea the animal may perceive an obstacle and/or, for reasons that may not be clear to us, be too scared to exit. Such animals need to be treated very careful to ensure that they are not further stressed.
There are strict laws and severe penalties that protect dolphins and the bottlenose dolphins in the UK are relatively rare now and may well be in decline.
Please don’t feed wild dolphins
A problem in many countries around the world, feeding wild dolphins is potentially dangerous to the animals and to you. In addition to the risk of poisoning or other food-related hazards, wild dolphins that approach, or rely upon humans for food are at risk of collision with boats and their propellors, entanglement in nets, or attack by sharks. Furthermore, wild dolphins conditioned to seek food from humans can become less willing to hunt for themselves and may not teach their young vital hunting skills. They are also in danger of becoming targets of irritated fishermen or boaters who perceive their begging as a nuisance. Dolphins have even been shot by fishermen.
Humans trying to interact with wild cetaceans also put themselves at risk of physical injury and swimmers and other water users may be at increased risk of aggression from dolphins looking for a handout. In two separate incidents in the USA, members of the public were badly bitten by wild dolphins. One needed 20 stitches in her leg, and the other need emergency treatment for a deep wound in her hand.
If you encounter an animal that you think may be in trouble in UK waters, let us or the RSPCA, or British Divers Marine Life Rescue know and we will ensure that it is monitored and if necessary rescued.
Source: WDCS
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Posted in Solitary Sociables at 8:00 am by allan
Jean Floc’h is a solitary dolphin who lives on the French Brittany coast and been causing controversy over his so-called ‘bad behaviour’.
Jean Floc’h has been tamed (or habituated) to human beings. People have been keen to interact with him and he has, subsequently, lost his natural fear and now looks to people to provide his social contact. Experts have criticised reports which suggest he is bad tempered pointing to how vulnerable he now is.
WDCS’s Mark Simmonds said “His attempts to play – and he is particularly interested in boat oars and propellers - are causing some difficulties. However, it is not true that he is attacking people or boats or that he is rabid, bad tempered or belligerent. At worst he might be described sometimes as frustrated and whilst his behaviour has caused complaints from some in the fishing community, many tourists have also come to the area to see him and he also has many local fans.The story of Jean Floc’h is a salutary one and reminds us all about how careful we need to be with solitary dolphins.”
In the attached article, French dolphin expert, Monika Wilke, provides an explanation for this behaviour and describes Jean Floc’h’s history.
Source: WDCS
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Posted in Solitary Sociables at 8:07 am by allan
A dolphin who had to be rescued from a Cumbrian port will die unless she is left alone, marine experts have warned.
Marra, a bottlenose, became a tourist attraction when she had to be freed from Maryport harbour in January.
Recently she has been seen with wounds around her tail and eye, possibly caused by ropes or boats, and a life-threatening wound under her tail.
British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDLMR) said people trying to befriend Marra were putting her at risk.
Other people had also been deliberately abusing her, a spokesman said.
He added: “It is possible to tame solitary dolphins and through this summer many people have gone out of their way to ‘make friends’.
Marra’s wounds may have been caused by ropes or boats
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“Unfortunately, the tamed dolphins not only lose their natural fear of people but also come to look to humans for companionship and entertainment.
“This inevitably leads them into trouble. Then there is people behaving badly around the dolphins - for example crowding them in with several vessels, chasing them or even driving straight at them.
“Essentially, Marra, like other fully human-habituated dolphins, is unlikely to survive.”
Marra, named after the local word for “mate”, had to be rescued because of her flagging health in the cold marina.
A 100-strong crowd gathered to watch the operation which was also overseen by the police, the RSPCA and the RNLI.
The Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society has also been trying to protect Marra since her rescue, but said it could not watch the animal “round-the-clock.”
Source: BBC
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Posted in Solitary Sociables at 8:10 am by allan
A dolphin that has become a tourist attraction off the Kent coast could be injured or die because of the attention being lavished upon it.
Dave has become a frequent sight in past months, swimming along the reef between Folkestone and Seabrook.
Conservationists said if Dave became tame, looked to people for contact and lost his fear of boats, he would be in danger from sea vessels.
Last month, police urged people to stay at least 100m away from the mammal.
Mark Simmons, of the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society, said that watching Dave from the shore was not a problem.
But he said: “The problem is when people get in the water and when boats go out to sea, because these solitary dolphins tend to become habituated and tame.
“Once they become tame they lose their natural fear.
“They then start to look to us to provide their social contact and their entertainment and this just leads them into trouble.
“In particular they tend to get struck by boat propellers and that is not something that they are going to come well out of.”
Kent Police asked people to keep their distance after receiving reports that Jet Skiers, kayakers and other people in motorised boats were getting too close to Dave.
People were also not to approach, grab, touch or try to swim with him.
This week, the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society and British Divers Marine Life Rescue said solitary, friendly dolphins were growing in number around the coast and were hugely popular.
But they said: “Not surprisingly, people will often flock in large numbers to see them, feed them or swim with them.
“Sadly, the fate of these solitary dolphins is usually not a happy one and it is often the attention from people that leads to their injury and eventual death.”
Source: BBC
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Posted in Solitary Sociables at 8:12 am by allan
The growing number of solitary, friendly dolphins that live around our coasts are hugely popular, however WDCS is warning that by lavishing them with attention we are harming them.
Typically these solitary dolphins stay in a particular region for some time and may seek the company of people. Not surprisingly, people will often flock in large numbers to see them, feed them or swim with them. Sadly, the fate of these solitary dolphins is usually not a happy one and it is often the attention from people that leads to their injury and eventual death.
One such dolphin, Marra, who lives off the coast of Cumbria shows how vulnerable solitary dolphins are. This year, so far she has been:
- trapped in a dock, from which she had to be physically removed;
- stranded on the shore, from which she had to be rescued;
- struck by at least one boat (one strike was observed – the marks on her body indicate that there may have been more);
- entangled in a rope, from which she freed herself;
- most recently she has sustained a very nasty, probably life-threatening, wound under her tail – the cause of which we don’t know.
Essentially, Marra, like other fully human-habituated dolphins, is unlikely to survive.
A friendly dolphin was killed in Portsmouth harbour in February when it was accidentally struck by a boat propeller. And it was the latest in a long line of solitary whale and dolphin casualties around the world.
Dave, the dolphin seen on the Kent coast, is also at increasing risk as he starts to associate more with people and there are at least two others in this region in similar circumstances (one in France).
WDCS’s Mark Simmonds says there are two issues at the heart of this matter. “Firstly, it is possible to tame solitary dolphins and through this summer many people have gone out of their way to ‘make friends’ with these UK solitaries. Unfortunately, the tamed dolphins not only lose their natural fear of people but also come to look to humans for companionship and entertainment. This inevitably leads them into trouble. Secondly, comes the issue of people behaving badly around the dolphins – for example crowding them in with several vessels, chasing them or even driving straight at them – and again the solitaries, which typically have small home ranges are very vulnerable to this.”
British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR) and WDCS have been working hard throughout this winter and summer monitoring these animals with the help of local people and trying to provide advice and guidance to swimmers and boat users. We have also had to intervene to save the life of Marra on several occasions as indicated above. However, we are unable to provide round-the-clock protection and in many cases our advice has not been heeded. Whilst the majority of people are not acting out of any cruel intent the ultimate consequence of taming solitary dolphins is to condemn them to a life where they are constantly at high risk of being wounded and killed in our busy seas.
We ask people now not to swim with them and not to go up close to them in any water vessels. It is also essential that they are not fed. The solitary dolphins can in most cases be watched from land and this is what we recommend.
If you do help to tame a dolphin, you are responsible for its fate!
Source: WDCS
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10.17.06
Posted in Whaling at 9:07 pm by allan
REYKJAVIK (Reuters) - Iceland decided on Tuesday to resume commercial whale hunts for the first time in two decades, ignoring an international moratorium.
“The decision to resume sustainable whaling involves takes of 30 minke whales and nine fin whales” in the year ending August 2007, the Icelandic Fisheries Ministry said in a statement. Conservationists say fin whales are endangered.
“The Icelandic economy is overwhelmingly dependent on the utilization of living marine resources in the ocean around the country,” it said of the decision.
Iceland joins only Norway in sanctioning commercial hunts of the giant marine mammals. Both nations argue that stocks have recovered since the International Whaling Commission (IWC) banned commercial hunts in 1985.
“I am very pleased … we are ready to start hunts immediately,” Kristjan Loftsson, managing director of the Icelandic whaling company that received the hunt permit, said in a statement.
Since 1985, Iceland has sometimes caught whales for scientific research, skirting the IWC moratorium despite opposition from some environmental groups. Iceland’s research permits included 200 minke whales from 2003-07.
Oslo broke in 1993 with the IWC ban on full commercial hunts and allowed a quota of 1,052 minke whales in 2006. The whales are eaten as steaks.
Japan, the other main whaling nation, caught 850 minke whales and 10 fin whales in Antarctic waters last season as part of a research program.
Source: Reuters
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10.19.06
Posted in Whaling at 11:29 am by allan
ICELAND TO RESUME COMMERCIAL WHALING
In a backwards step for the conservation of whales, Iceland has announced that it will resume commercial whaling in defiance of the international ban. It plans to kill nine fin whales, an endangered species, and thirty minke whales a year.
The hunt will be in addition to Iceland’s current whaling programme, which it says is for scientific purposes, and which will end with the killing of at least 30 minke whales in 2007.
Iceland is also clearly planning to resume international trade in whale meat, as like Japan and Norway, its domestic market is stagnant and it cannot even sell the minke whales that it is currently killing.
Commercial whaling is cruel, unnecessary and threatens the survival of whale populations.
Iceland believes the world has stopped caring about whales. We need to send a message loud and clear that we still care and that we do not support the resumption of commercial whaling and international trade in whale products.
Please send a protest e-mail to the Icelandic Government now by going to: http://uk.wdcs.org/go/NL061019whaling
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10.22.06
Posted in Whaling at 7:44 am by allan
OSLO (Reuters) - Icelandic whalers broke a 21-year-old international ban on whaling on Saturday when they harpooned the first fin whale since the moratorium was imposed in 1985, a whalers’ spokesman said.
Fin whales are rated an endangered species on a “Red List” compiled by the World Conservation Union but Iceland says they are plentiful in the north Atlantic.
Reykjavik decided on Tuesday to catch nine fin whales and 30 minke whales in the year to August 31 2007 despite the 1985 moratorium imposed by the International Whaling Commission.
“One fin whale was caught today and will be landed tomorrow,” said Rune Froevik, spokesman of the Norway-based High North Alliance which represents the interests of Arctic hunting and fishing communities.
He said the whale was a large specimen, 65-70 ft long. Whales are caught for food, often favoured as steaks.
Iceland, which has hunted minke whales since 2003 as part of scientific research, has joined Norway as the only nation that sanctions full-blown commercial whaling. Japan allows whaling, but says it is for research purposes.
Reykjavik argues that it is merely harvesting whales in line with other marine resources, such as cod, around the volcanic island of almost 300,000 people.
Many countries say that whale stocks are still too uncertain to allow catches or argue that harpooning the world’s largest mammals is cruel. Blue whales, bigger than any dinosaur, are among species that have been hunted close to extinction.
Whaling nations argue that stocks of some species have recovered since the moratorium. Iceland says there are about 70,000 minke whales and 25,800 fin whales in the central North Atlantic region.
Froevik said that Iceland had hunted some fin whales as part of a scientific research programme in the late 1980s but had not caught any in a commercial hunt since 1985.
Source: Yahoo News
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10.31.06
Posted in Mass Strandings at 9:16 am by allan
JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - Dozens of bottle-nosed dolphins have died after beaching themselves on a remote Mozambique coastline, mystifying environmentalists who say mass beachings are very rare in the area.
“It’s very unusual but even when one or two are beached you very rarely find the cause of death,” Peter Best of the mammal research institute at the University of Pretoria said on Monday.
Witnesses said 47 dolphins came onshore on Bazaruto Island off mainland Mozambique early on Saturday. Rescuers managed to return six of them to the water.
Source: Reuters
Full story: http://news.scotsman.com/latest.cfm?id=1607252006
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