Heartlessness

The whole act of murdering innocent creatures is heartless. There are some very heartless acts in the Taiji slaughter. Trainers can do some of the cruel things. Here are some incidents:


Trainers have been seen participating in the brutality.

Once, there was a pilot whale calf that swam over two low placed nets. The pilot whale's mother immediately joined the calf. The two could have easily fled, but stayed close to the their still trapped pod members. A trainer had noticed that they had escaped and alerted the fishermen. Aided by the trainer, the fishermen brought out their boats and chased the pilot whales back into the net. The entire pod was killed and butchered the next morning.

When all of the dolphins are caught, trainers come to the scene to inspect them and help the slaughterers drag them to shore. They only take the ones that are not too old, too young, the wrong sex, or have too many blemishes. The ones who do have flaws are not worth saving to them, even pregnant females, so they let the fishermen kill them. They don't bother to inspect the very young calves either, for they are too young to be put into shows. Using ropes and physical force, the trainers separate the mothers from their babies. They haul the mothers to the rocky beach to inspect and measure them. The calves cry for their mothers, but they are doomed. They will not be spared but killed just as viciously as all of the others, no matter what age. The dolphin trainers don't care about them. But if a mother doesn't meet the expectations, she will die with her calf. If a dolphin breaks or dislocates a pectoral fin, they are worth nothing to dolphinariums. Thus, only the 'perfect' dolphins are worthy of being in shows. A dolphin can't help it if it's in it's senior years, just a baby, or if it has scars on it's body. They don't deserve to be killed because they have 'flaws'. I also feel bad for all of the ones who are taken to dolphinariums. They are taken away from their family and are smart enough to wonder what's happening to them. I'm sure that mothers are worried sick if they're taken from their babies.


Now, I have decided something. Dolphin trainers in Taiji are not trainers because they love dolphins. They are trainers because they love money. If a dolphin makes them money, they like it. But if there's one that isn't worth anything,  they could care less about it.

Hunted or Not?

Here is the conservation status of the six porpoise species:

Harbor Porpoise: Until the end of the 19th century, these porpoises were hunted in Denmark for meat and blubber. In prehistoric times, it was hunted in Sweden. Today, it is hunted for food and Greenland. Fishing nets, overfishing, and pollution are the biggest threat to this species. Fortunately, it is listed as Least Concern on the IUNC Red List.

Harbor Porpoise

Dall's Porpoise: Many of these species are killed as bycatches in fishing nets. They are harpooned each year by Japanese whalers. The number of species killed in 1988 was 40,000. Today, 16,000 are still killed in Japan in hand harpoon hunts, but it is listed as Least Concern on IUNC Red List.

Dall's Porpoise

 Spectacled Porpoise: This species lives in the waters of Antarctica and is not known to be hunted. The total population is not known, and it is listed as Data Deficient on the IUNC Red List.

Spectacled Porpoise

Finless Porpoise: Like other porpoise species, many of this species are killed in fishing nets. They were hunted briefly after World War ll, but have never been widely hunted in Japan. Due to ships in the lakes they live in in China, they sometimes have difficulty finding their food. The IUNC Red List has the species listed as Vulnerable.

Finless Porpoises

 

Vaquita: This species has never been hunted directly. Many are killed in fishing nets each year though. They are said to be the most endangered marine mammal, and is listed as Critically Endangered on the IUNC Red List.

Vanquita

Burmeister's Porpoise: Like all porpoise species, this species is vulnerable to be entangled in fishing nets. This is common in Peru, Chile, and Uraguay. The annual estimated catch of these porpoises is largest in Peru, being 2,000. They are also harpooned deliberately for food and to be used as bait to catch sharks. The number of the animal's population is unknown, and is listed as Date Deficient on the IUNC Red List.

Burmeister's Porpoise

Fishing Nets: Another Threat by man

Slaughter isn't the only threat that we pose towards cetaceans. Fishing nets are very dangerous to dolphins and porpoises. Very often, dolphin or porpoise pods will be chasing a school of fish that fishermen in boats with nets are trying to catch. When the net is drawn up, the dolphins or porpoises will get tangled in the net and drown because they are unable to swim to the surface to breathe. We can not forget that they are mammals and need to breath air!

Fishing nets kill hundreds of dolphins and porpoises every day, and can be just as dangerous to species' populations as slaughter. Sometimes, divers will get in the water and help the pods out before the net is drawn up, but sometimes they won't either. Many other creatures become tangled in these fishing nets, such as seals, sealions, sharks and small whales.

Why no Baleen Whales?

You might be asking why I don't talk about baleen whales on my blog. Well, let me tell you why. Whaling is probably going to be coming to an end soon (according to Whale Wars on Animal Planet). The Taiji slaughters are also probably going to be ending soon, but there are many other slaughters of toothed whales around the world that will probably go on for many more years. Also, many people are aware of whaling. Not very many are aware of narwhal killings, pilot whale massacres, and other killings. I only talk about toothed whales because it as not as well known.

The Importance of sharks

        You may think of sharks as monsters. The majority of people think so. Like them or not, they are very important to the ocean. The ocean has a balance, and if one species is taken out, it will put the balance out of whack. Sharks are the “sea vultures”, getting rid of the sick, dead, weak, and dying. They are only second to Orcas as apex predators (followed by dolphins), and are extremely important. If they didn’t exist, fish would eat everything, causing them to go hungry and die. This would affect humans, cetaceans, and all other marine creatures.

        People don’t understand that you are more likely to be killed by a dog, horse, deer, or rabid raccoon or squirrel. We call lion “king of beasts” thinking that they are magnificent. They are no less dangerous than sharks.

       The filter feeding sharks such as Whale sharks, Basking sharks, and Megamouth sharks keep the plankton population balanced. The predatory sharks such as Great White sharks, Shortfin and Longfin Makos, Bull sharks, Tiger sharks, Porbeagles, Salmon sharks, Lemon sharks, Hammerhead sharks, Greenland sharks, Sixgill sharks, Goblin sharks, Blue sharks, Thresher sharks, and Sandtiger sharks keep the fish populations balanced.

       Sharks have been around for 450 million years. Some of the first being the Megaladon, Helicoprion, Orthacanthus, Paleocarcharias, Symmorium, Echinochimaera, Belantsea, Scapanorhynchus (a resembling relative of the goblin shark), Hybodus shark, Stethacanthus, Falcatus, Acrodus, Erquitaia, Cretoxyrhina, Squalicorax, Physogaleus, Otodus, Tristchius, Cobelodus, Anomotodon, Cladoselache, Glikmanius, Akmonistion, Cardabiodon, Wodnika, Triodus, and Dunkleosteus. But since the 1970s, 95% of the ocean’s oldest predators’ populations have decimated.

      In the shark/human relationship, we think that sharks are monsters. In fact, we’re the monsters. We think that killing them for meat and fins is a delicious, tasty decision. Actually, it’s not. Only 8-10 people are attacked and 3-5 killed by sharks each year. We kill 100 million of them a year. As we kill them, we are slowly messing up our world. We need to start thinking before we slaughter them.

       When caught, their dorsal  pectoral, and even caudal fins are sliced off and the mutilated animal is thrown back in the water alive and either drowns, is eaten by another shark, bleeds to death, or starves to death. Shark Fin soup is a delicacy in China, and as the Chinese population grows, the demand for the soup also grows.

       Here’s a fact, shark fins are just cartilage. The soup is about the most tasteless, non-nutritional thing to eat. There is absolutely no use for it. But still, the fins alone as well as canned soup are sold in Asian markets, today. Chinese restaurants all over the world (including the USA) sell the soup, averaging $25.00 a bowl. One pound of sharks fins is worth $200 U.S and whale shark caudal fin can go for as much as $10,000 in China. Scientists estimate that sharks may be all gone in 10-20 years, if we don’t act fast. We need sharks. Sharks need us.

WARNING: THERE IS BLOOD

I have seen pictures with LOTS more fins laying out

Copy pasted from my science project

Another way to make money

As you know, most cetacean killings are because of pure greed. And of course, the killings of narwhals is another way to make money, for many men who kill them are poor. Narwhals are most known for the left incisor that grows out into a 10 ft long ivory tusk in males, which is responsible for unicorn legends. Males may seldom produce a second tusk, where the right incisor grows out. Females have a shorter, straighter tusk. Narwhals are hunted for these tusks(and skin and meat sometimes) in summer in Canada and Greenland. They are known as Tuugaaliks in Canada. When a pod comes near the ice, the news is spread throughout the town. The town has been waiting all winter for this moment. Hunters arrive in snowmobiles with high-powered rifles. They take positions along the ice and wait for the whales to surface near the ice. When they surface close enough, they are shot with the rifles. They then retrieve the narwhal with a grappling hook that is thrown by hand. Each man hopes to land a narwhal with a tusk that can sell for more than a thousand dollars. They also look forward to fresh muktuk, the top layer of blubber and skin, which is a delicacy. Even though many shots are fired over many hours, usually only a few are caught. But to kill the whale, they must be shot in the spine or brain the instant it's filling it's lungs. If it's shot at the wrong moment, it's body will sink. If it's wounded, it will swim away and most likely die later. Many of the whales receive multiple shot wound before they actually die. Even whales that are shot just right usually float beyond reach to be hooked and sink. So many that are killed die for no reason.

Along the west coast of Greenland, narwhal's numbers went from 10,500 in 1986 to 1,500 in 2002. Catch rates in Greenland in the 1990's averaged 750 narwhals a year, many others being killed but not hooked and pulled to shore. In Canada, numbers went from 15,000 in 1984 to 5,000 in 2003. Today in Canada, the number killed each year is around 500, many more going unreported. Killing a narwhal is a badge of honer for a young hunter. Once, there was a 13-year old boy who shot narwhals all day with a rifle, wounding many but landing none.      

A nice male tusk can be can be worth over $9,000, and $25,000 for a skull containing dual tusks. I think that if the narwhal had died naturally, a tusk would be pretty neat to have. If it was killed just for that, I wouldn't want one.

Go to this address for more information:

http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2007/08/hunting-narwhals/hunting-narwhals-text

The head of a dead whale on the ice

Pulling a whale up onto the ice

Another topic

I know that my blog mainly focuses on dolphins, but today, I'm going to talk about sharks. Sharks, the thought of the creatures may send shivers down your spine. Most people think of sharks as gruesome, relentless killers. On several nature television shows, i've seen people swimming beside great whites. Sharks are thought to be very dangerous to people, but you are more likely to be struck by lightning than be attacked by a shark. In reality, sharks kill on average 3-5 people a year. Also, sharks usually take one bite and swim off because it doesn't the way that they expected. The deaths are mainly caused by blood-loss. We kill 100 million sharks a year just for their fins. We kill many more just for meat. The number is shocking the first time you hear it, and I still can hardly believe it after knowing it for a long time. Many species are killed, including Blues, Hammerheads, and Porbeagles. But any animal will be taken, no matter the size, age, or species. They are killed for their dorsal, pectoral, and even caudal fins, which are used in a soup which is a delicacy in China (the soup is about the most tasteless, non-nutritious thing to eat). They are also eaten in other places such as Japan and Australia. The fins are sliced off while the shark is still alive and the mutilated animal is then thrown back in the water, slowly and painfully bleeding to death and drowning (they need to constantly move to keep water running through their gills to breathe). While one animal is killed for fins, another is killed for meat and other uses. Thus, two animals are killed when just one could be killed for both things. May not seem like much, but it adds up. If you hate sharks, think about the small number of people that they kill versus how many of them that we take.  I know that sharks aren't people and people are more important, but millions against less than a dozen is a humongous difference. But whether you like them or not, we need sharks. We need the oceans to survive. The oceans need sharks, whales, and dolphins, and the three creatures need each other. Humans need to start thinking before they kill thousands upon millions of the creatures that we need to survive. In order to save ourselves, we must save the animals that we are slaughtering at rapid, alarming rates. More sharks are killed than dolphins, and probably need help faster.

Hate sharks if you like, but just face the fact that you need them. I completely understand if you dislike them because you or a family member's been attacked, because I probably would too. For a long time, I got nervous in murky waters. Now, It doesn't worry me. I know that they kill very few people, and that they are actually afraid of us.I used to not like sharks until I learned more about them. Now, I love them. Ones think that if an animal causes the deaths of a few people means that they should all be wiped out. I do not believe that because an animal is considered dangerous means that we should kill them. The world has dangerous animals, but humans are the most dangerous creature on the planet. Think different if you want, but understand the point I'm trying to make.

Here are some more facts. Three sharks are killed every second and 10,000 are killed every hour. More sharks are killed in three hours than dolphins in a whole year in Taiji. Sure enough, everybody wants to save the dolphins and cares nothing about the sharks. The dolphins have lots of people helping them, the sharks don't. Animals that need the most help are the ones that are getting the least help. WE NEED PEOPLE WHO CARE!!!

Shame

I have been doing lots of research on Japanese and Denmark dolphin hunts, and I am really starting to hate Taiji and the Faroe Islands. I have images of the slaughters stuck in my head as I try to fall asleep at night, I can't stop thinking about them during the day, and I really don't even like the color red anymore. The words 'Taiji' and 'Faroe' just make me sick. Those two small places have the largest and most gruesome killings of dolphins in the world. Taiji shocks me because most of Japan didn't know about the slaughter until recently, and the Faroese shock me because they are poisoning the minds of children by drilling the killings into their heads. Horrible events take place in both countries, and it is very wrong. Number one, there's so much mercury in the meat. Number two, we need the oceans to survive. Number three, it's just downright cruel. I would very much like to go to these countries right before a hunt starts. I would free all of the dolphins and then give the killers a piece of my mind. I would show them a diagram of the human brain next to a dolphin's brain, to show them how much larger the dolphin's is than the human's. They need education on how dangerous it is to eat them, how intelligent their helpless victims actually are, and the meaning of humanity. I know that the Taiji hunt is slowly but surely coming to a stop, thanks to The Cove, but I am beginning to think that the Grindadrap (the Faroe Pilot whale massacre) will not end anytime soon because less people are aware of it.

This photo was found on walrettung.org. They have full credit for the picture. Me giving you the site address is no different than showing this picture. Besides, the WDG (Whale Defenders of Germany) probably want more people to know about their site. WARNING: CONTAINS BLOOD

If you live in Japan, don't feel offended by this. This is only Taiji! I am not against Tokyo and all of the other Japanese who think that this horrible. The same goes for Denmark. This is only the Faroe Islands (that I know of anyway)!

Trainers having a part in the slaughter

In Taiji, dolphin trainers have been seen assisting in the dolphin killings. They have been seen joking and laughing about it after a large number has been killed. Members of the zoo industry and international aquarium get in the water with the slaughters and tie ropes around the dolphins' tail flukes so that the fishermen could tie the them to their boats. The dolphins are so exhausted at this point, they can't even stay afloat. Many of the them have blood coming from their blowholes. The trainers don't seem to have pity for the dolphins. The fishermen then take the dolphins to the killing cove, with the dolphins' blowholes underwater. The dolphin trainers have tormented the dolphins for hours. Some are in shock, others are seriously injured, and they can't breathe. Now, the dolphins are going to be killed. Even pregnant females and young calves won't be spared. The dolphin trainers, who are supposed to "love" dolphins, don't even make an effort to save any of them.