Sadness in The Solomon Islands and Peru

     In the Solomon Islands dolphins are legally hunted from January to March.  The fisherman capture the dolphins by forming a U-shape around a school of freely swimming dolphins and then push them towards the mangrove swamps.  Dolphins are highly sensitive to loud noises, and just like the Japanese in Taiji they create a loud noise under the water.  Because the dolphins are closed in on one side by the men in canoes, the dolphins have no other place to flee the noise except that shore.  The dolphins are so frightened by the noise so they won't even go through widely spread apart canoes because the noise is too loud and scary.  These hunts are much more unsuccessful than the hunts in Taiji, Japan, and the fishermen usually leave the water with nothing.  However, when the fishermen to catch dolphins, it is typically around one hundred.
     After the kill, most of the meat is shared between the villagers and the remainder of the meat is bartered and sold.  Dolphins teeth are very important in the Solomon culture and are used as a type of currency.  It is common to see a native wearing  dolphin teeth as jewelry, normally necklaces.  In 2003 and 2007 the fishermen exported live dolphins to large corporations such as Sea World after the ban on live exports was overturned.
     In Peru, one thousand dolphins are slaughtered annually, even though this practice was banned in 1995 due to a large increase in dolphin slaughter in the eighties and nineties. Despite the new law, the Peruvians continue to hunt and sell the meat through the black market.  Much of the dolphin meat is also sold to restaurants in Lima, Peru.  When catching the dolphins, in contrast with Taiji, Japan and the Solomon Islands, the Peruvians encircle them in the waters with nets, harpoon them, drag them on board, and then club them to death.  It can take up to five minutes for the innocent animals to die and suffer every minute of it.
    Taiji, Japan, the Solomon Islands, and Peru kill and sell dolphins and their meat without a care.  They are very influenced by the fact that big corporations, such as Sea World, are interested in buying dolphins for large amounts of money.  If "dolphin shows" were banned there would be a much smaller death rate for the dolphins and could be more easily stopped because there would be less of an incentive to kill the animals.
  

The Killing Begins

      On September 26, 2010, Ric O'Barry reported that the Japanese government has decided to allow the dolphins slaughter to begin again. It's upsetting that the government would allow this tragedy to continue especially after learning that it has been proven that there are dangerous amounts of mercury in the dolphin meat. In the beginning months of the hunting season only fifteen dolphins were killed total. However, the hunters carried on with capturing dolphins, choosing the ones fit for selling, and then releasing the ones that were not chosen for the market back into the wild. Although the killing has begun again there is still hope for stopping it. The Japanese people are gaining more and more knowledge about the atrocities being committed and are volunteering to help out with the Save The Dolphins team. A recent Japanese activist interviewed several people on their opinion about "The Cove" and was pleasantly surprised to find out that many more people know about it than before. The Save The Dolphins team is working hard to get the Japanese version of "The Cove" distributed throughout Japan and Barack Obama is planning to visit Japan in November.  With the help of the community and government it is possible to stop this senseless murder and free the dolphins

The Dangers of Captivity

      The dolphin smile is its greatest weakness.  One would think that because dolphins are always smiling that they must always be happy.  But that isn't the case at all.  Almost all dolphins in captivity suffer greatly and long to be free.  Only around 53% of dolphins survive being captured and typically die ninty days after being in captivity.  A free dolphin can live to be forty-five years old, but captured dolphins are lucky to like for two years and normally never live past five.  If a dolphin does however live past five years in captivity, it is likely that they will develop diseases such as pnuemonia, chlorine poisoning, ulcers, ect.   Dolphins are also known to go blind due to the chemicals in the pool water.  

      An average dolphin swims over forty miles a day, but dolphins in captivity are confined to small pools that give them little room to play and excersise in.  That would be like putting a person in a six by six room everyday.  Ontop of being stuck in a confined room, you are ordered around to jump in front of crowds and are forced to do tricks.  Dolphins swim for the fun of it and love surfing waves and bring free, so living in a tank that is poked and prodded at all day and being told what and when to do it can't compare to their freedom.  Because dolphins are confined to such a limited area, it isn't unusual for them swim in circles with their eyes closed or bang their head on the glass just to pass the time.  Many dolphins born in captivity rarely survive.  Therefore, so calf births aren't announced until they have survived for a certain amount of time  In many wild parks, the dolphins aren't fed until during the show so that they will perform or "work" for their food.  In the wild, a dolphin is catching wild fish which not only provides more excersise but it is healthier compared to eating dead fish.
    An easy way to get involved with freeing dolphins is not support dolphin shows of any kind, even if its just to look at dolphins in a tank.  No dolphin deserves to be taken from their home and forced into a lifestyle that isn't natural to them.   

Blood Dolphins

        In 2009, Ric O'barry starred and released his movie "The Cove," which exposed what senseless acts the Japanese have been committing in Taiji, Japan to innocent dolphins and porpoises.  The Cove reveals that the Japanese have been capturing, selling, and violently murdering these animals.  After they are killed, the dolphin meat is sold illegally and put in markets.  The meat contains a dangerous amount of mercury and can result in sickness and death if one is exposed to it too much.  The movie won an oscar and helped to teach people about the atrocities being committed and the dangers of eating dolphin meat.
     Today, Mr. O'barry has again made it his mission to stop the killing.  The hunt starts in September and goes through March and in that time over 23,000 dolphins are killed.  This September he traveled to Taiji, Japan to help prevent the slaughter from starting.  With him he brought the Japanese media.  He was lucky enough to temporarily stall the killings and he was aired on the Japanese news.  Unfortunately, it's going to take a lot more than a few cameras and Ric O'barry's drive to stop the Japanese from killing because the hunt began the moment Mr. O'barry took a trip to Tokyo.
    Tune into Animal Planet every Friday night at 9 PM e/p to learn more about Ric O'barry's cause and mission on his new show, "Blood Dolphins."