All of these threats have one thing in common, they are all caused by...us!
Ireland was decclared a Dolphin & Whale Sanctuary back in 1991, so this means to us and to many that these animals can travel through and reside in our waters without suffering any deliberate threat. However, even though we like to refer to it as a "Sanctuary", our large baleen whales every year are subjected to having a small samples of their flesh ripped from their backs with a crossbow in the name of 'science'. In our opinion Biopsy sampling is a money making racket and nothing more as our sources have informed us that the flesh samples sit in a lab literally rotting away. We are asking people out there not to support groups who carry out Biopsy Sampling in our waters. It is a pointless exercise, one that has been banned in other nations after the WDCS led successful campaigns to end it.
BY-CATCH
This issue is of particular concern to us, as it threatens the lives of not just wild pods of Dolphins, Whales and Porpoises but also our wild & friendly Dolphins Fungi, Dusty, Duggie & Sandy
By-catch is the term used for animals that have lost their lives when they became entangled in fishing nets. Fishermen do not intentionally kill these animals. Every year many cetaceans lose their lives after drowning in nets, some have even caused themselves fatal injuries trying to break free of the nets to surface for air.
At this time By-catch is one of the major issues facing Ireland. There are no laws set in place to try to tackle this issue. We have been informed by Dr. Simon Berrow of the IWDG that they are hoping to push for Pingers to be fitted to Irish fishing nets that will send out a sonar frequency that will repel cetaceans from approaching the nets. When we have more solid news on this issue we will post it here and let you know how you can help. In the mean time you can write to the Department of Marine fisheriesand the Department of the Environment encouraging them to address the issues of By-Catch in Ireland.
CLIMATE CHANGE
This is one we should all be taking action with right now. We are so quick to condem the drive hunts and whaling of Japan but are we not as bad when we refuse to reduce our energy usage which in turn is going to kill Cetaceans around the globe. As we burn more energy and fuels our oceans are warming up and causing a huge threat to our Cetaceans. For example evidence in North Scotland has shown that sand eels are unable to survive in warmer waters and so they are relocating or dying. Harbour Porpoise eat these eels and are starving to death as a result of our clumsy and careless behaviour. The more energy we burn for our own luxury the more cetaceans will strand and die. I don't know about all of you but we couldn't live with their blood on our hands. So here are few things you can do to help them to survive!
1. Take a quick shower instead of a bath.
2. Turn off the water while you lather up.
3. Switch off all appliances when they are not in use.
4. Do not leave them on stand by.
5. Put your heating on at intervals through out the evening, rather than constantly on all night.
6. Use candles instead of lights (nicer and more atmospheric)
7. Don't take the car for short trips, throw on the Ipod and walk.
8. Do two large washes a week at a lower tempreture, rather than smaller ones each night.
If we all make these small changes, we will give these animals a better & stronger future.
MARINE PARKS
This is one very close to my heart, I am ashamed to say that I have paid money to watch dolphins turn tricks in a show for me. I did it once and never again after that. Marine Parks are opening all over the world and forcing beautiful Dolphins and Orca's to perform unatural tricks for us and our children to watch. Have you ever considered where the Dolphins and Whales came from. They were taken from the wild and torn away from their families. Taiji bay in Japan has become very well known for its drive hunts, did you know the fishermen are also paid a small fee to catch dolphins for interactive swims and shows for Marine parks around the globe. The stress that is caused to these animals is unbareable and when you pay your money at the gate to see these beauties do what is not natural for them, you are supporting & increasing their pain. Please next time you go on holidays think of the famous 'Keiko' the killer whale and put your money back in your pocket and walk away.
THE STORY OF KEIKO
Keiko the Orca was kidnapped for a good price by Icelandic fisherman when he was just two years old and taken to a Marine Park in Mexico where he remained alone for twenty years performing for the public. Keiko became famous after he was cast as Willy in the movie Free Willy. After the huge success of 'Free Willy', attention turned to the fact that Keiko had been used in a movie telling the story of a captive Orca set free by a child. Children began to write to Warner brothers asking for them to free keiko. After the world turned their attention to Keiko he was removed from his small tank and brought to a special facility in Oregon where he no longer had to perform for the public. Warner Bros and the Keiko foundation decided to go one further and fought to have Keiko freed back into the wild. He was, but sadly he died in the wild from Pneumonia in a fjord in Norway. Man destroyed the life of Keiko and why because people paid to see him dance. If no one paid to see these animals perform then they would still be with their families in the wild. My personal thoughts are that freeing Keiko back into the Ocean was a huge mistake and Keiko paid for it with his life. He was in captivity too long to be freed. I feel that the organisations involved just wanted to be seen to do something. Lets not have another Keiko story, please don't support Dolphinariums or Marine parks with Cetacean Shows!
The Story of Luna coming soon