Good sources for whale news:
American Cetacean Socety http://www.acsonline.org/
underwatertimes.com http://www.underwatertimes.com/whales/whales.php
tursiops.org http://tursiops.org/modules.php?name=News&new_topic=3
animalnews.info http://www.animalnews.info/whale_news.htm
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From: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7099720.stm
Sunday, 18 November 2007
|
Japanese whalers hunt
humpbacks
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||
The fleet is conducting its largest hunt in the South Pacific - it has instructions to kill up to 1,000 whales, including 50 humpbacks. The humpback hunt is the first since a mid-1960s global ban and has drawn strong protests from environmentalists. Commercial whaling was stopped in 1986 but Japan is permitted whaling in the name of scientific research. Four whaling ships, including the lead craft Nisshin Maru, set off from the southern port of Shimonoseki on Sunday. The 239-man mission plans to kill more than 900 minke whales as well as fin whales and humpbacks, in a South Pacific whale hunt that will run until mid-April. The 8,000-metric ton Nisshin Maru was crippled by a fire on a whaling mission in the Antarctic in March. One crew member was killed. A Greenpeace campaign ship will be following the Japanese fleet. Sensitive mammals Tokyo's plan to target the humpback - which was hunted to near extinction four decades ago - has drawn condemnation from environmentalists.
"Humpbacks are very sensitive and live in close-knit pods so even one death can be extremely damaging," Greenpeace spokesman Junichi Sato said. Japanese fisheries officials insist both humpback and fin populations are back to sustainable levels. "Humpback whales in our research area are rapidly recovering," said fisheries spokesman Hideki Moronuki. "Taking 50 humpbacks from a population of tens of thousands will have no significant impact whatsoever." Mr Moronuki said killing whales allowed marine biologists to study their internal organs. Meat from Japan's scientific catch is sold commercially but Japanese officials deny that the mission plans to make a profit. Tokyo argues that whaling is an ancient Japanese tradition, and has pushed unsuccessfully at the International Whaling Commission to reverse the 1986 moratorium on commercial whaling. Environmentalists say Japan's
research programme is a pretext for keeping the whaling industry alive.
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check for whaling updates http://www.greenpeace.org/usa/
Greenpeace made a Japanese anime whaling cartoon... which can be found at http://www.japanprobe.com/?p=2712
http://www.greenpeace.org/usa/campaigns/oceans/whale-defenders
From http://www.ifaw.org/ifaw/general/default.aspx?oid=223123
Wednesday, November 14, 2007
(London, United Kingdom - 14 November 2007) An international panel of independent legal experts convened in London has today issued a detailed
report challenging the legal status of Japan’s whaling operations, particularly the taking of endangered sei and humpback whales. The expert panel also
recommends actions to be taken against the Government of Japan for its violations of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES).
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New Book by Peter Heller http://www.peterheller.net/
The Whale Warriors
"Peter Heller has written a funny, angry, explosive book, which is as much high adventure at sea as it is a portrait of our relationship to the world's oceans.
You're reminded of Ed Abbey's explosive lyrical prose, the antics of Robin Hood, and the wry eye of John Steinbeck. If you've ever wondered about life
aboard a 'vegan attack vessel' The Whale Warriors is your ticket. Heller's world here is so unusual, so wild, that you'd think he'd discovered it across
the far-flung seas, and
you'd be right." --Doug Stanton,
author of the bestselling In Harm's Way, the story of the sinking of the USS
Indianapolis
"There are few human beings worthy of being recognized as heroes. Captain Paul
Watson and his crews are in the van and Peter Heller gives them their
well earned due. Read the book and cheer - and weep!" --Farley Mowat, author of Never Cry Wolf
good interview on the Diane Rhem show Tuesday November 13, 2007 http://wamu.org/programs/dr/07/11/13.php#17957
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DmgRsHn10nc
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From: http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/09/03/2021888.htm click here for full story
Pollution stunts Canada's beluga whales
Posted
![A poisonous cocktail is passing into the Beluga whales and via their placentas to their unborn young [File photo].](http://www.abc.net.au/reslib/200709/r173317_654968.jpg "A poisonous cocktail is passing into the Beluga whales and via their placentas to their unborn young [File photo].")
A poisonous cocktail is passing into the Beluga whales and via their placentas to their unborn young [File photo]. (Getty Images: Junko Kimura)
Beluga whales are a rare sight in southern Canada and chemicals washing into their rivers are keeping them that way.
Most beluga are found in the Arctic, but a rare pocket survives where the river Saguenay river meets the Saint Lawrence some 500 kilometres east of Montreal.
They are the only ones among the 13 whale species in the river to live here all year round.
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August 18, 2007
Beluga whale birth on camera
Crowds have gathered at a Chicago aquarium to see a newborn Beluga whale calf bond with its mother.
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From: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/6697265.stm
Conciliation talk at whaling meet
May 28, 2007
By Richard
Black
Environment correspondent, BBC News website, Anchorage,
Alaska
The annual meeting of the International Whaling Commission (IWC) opens here shortly (1900 BST Monday) with a new spirit of conciliation in the air.
Pro- and anti-whaling countries, including Japan, say they are looking to co-operate wherever possible.
The 21-year moratorium on commercial whaling will not be changed by this meeting, with anti-whaling countries appearing to command a clear majority.
However, conflict appears likely over hunting by some indigenous peoples.
Aboriginal (or subsistence) permits are given to groups judged to have a strong whaling history and a need for whalemeat.
Greenland wants to expand the scale of its indigenous hunt, and include humpbacks and bowhead whales for the first time; with much of the meat being sold,
there are concerns that it is coming too close to being a commercial endeavour.
But the US is desperate to renew quotas for its own indigenous groups here in Alaska, and may find it politically difficult, with its anti-whaling allies, to oppose the
Greenland bid.
"There's a lot of discussion going on with Greenland and others to see if we can reach some compromise that we could support," said US whaling commissioner
Bill Hogarth.
"We realise it's important to Greenland, but you have to be careful of the species you take, and whether you have scientific justification," he told BBC News.
Meeting of minds?
Last year the pro-whaling camp enjoyed its first triumph in 20 years with the passing, by a single vote, of a motion calling for the eventual resumption of
commercial whaling.
This year the balance of power has shifted, with new members such as Croatia, Cyprus, Ecuador, Greece and Slovenia weighing in on the anti-whaling side,
against only Laos as a probable new pro-whaling country.
In recent years, the IWC has been riven by a fundamental divide between the two camps, its meetings marked by emotional and often aggressive language.
Preliminary exchanges here have been in a much more conciliatory spirit, with delegates on both sides talking of finding common ground.
"Whaling will continue in some manner - Norway, Iceland, Japan, even the US and Russia (with their indigenous peoples) - without true control from the IWC,"
said Japan's alternate (deputy) commissioner Joji Morishista.
"We have only two choices - either doing nothing and just fighting in the IWC forever, or we have controlled whaling - and I think the choice should be clear that
controlled whaling is much better than just fighting each other."
The last time the indigenous quotas came up for review, five years ago, Japan blocked them in protest against the refusal of a similar allowance for its own coastal
communities; but it will not do so this time.
Standing firm
Japan has, though, asked that its coastal communities should be permitted to hunt a small number of minke whales commercially, with the meat being distributed
locally. In return it would subtract a similar number of whales from its existing hunt, which it conducts under the banner of scientific research.
It will also seek a strong resolution against the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society which disrupted Japan's 2006-7 Antarctic hunt, holing one of the Japanese vessels.
In the first concrete sign of a new rapprochement, Japan is working on a joint resolution with New Zealand, one of the fiercest critics of Tokyo's scientific whaling.
Many environment groups are deeply unhappy about the message of compromise and conciliation, and about any notion that anti-whaling countries would settle for
less than enforcing and enhancing the current global ban on all scientific and commercial whaling.
"I was under the impression that we had a global whale sanctuary already, namely the moratorium," said Andy Ottaway of the UK-based group Campaign Whale.
"And I feel it quite depressing that here we're talking about having half a sanctuary."
Richard.Black-INTERNET@bbc.co.uk
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interesting articles:
May 11, 2007
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/6642931.stm
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By Richard Black
Environment correspondent, BBC News
website, Japan
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Seagulls Attacking Whales Off Argentina
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2006/12/061204-whales-gulls.html
In the frigid waters off Argentina's southern Valdés Peninsula, the southern right whale is under attack from an odd-sounding predator: the seemingly docile seagull.
Uncovered garbage dumps and waste from fish-processing operations have fueled a spike in the number of kelp gulls in the region's coastal towns (Argentina map).
 | Speed Limit Proposed to Reduce Whale Collisions (June 27, 2006) |
| Endangered Whales Get Protected Area off Alaska (July 7, 2006) |
| Photos: Whale Evolution |
Experts say the birds, which nest near the prime breeding waters for the endangered whales, are causing a peck of problems.
"The gulls are landing on the whales and pecking through their skin to feed on the blubber, which is an important source of calories," says biologist Marcelo Bertellotti of
Argentina's Patagonia University.
"This is causing lesions and impacting whale behavior." The kelp gull is a flexible eater that hunts insects and scavenges through trash heaps.
But it is especially fond of whale blubber, normally dining on dead animals or snatching up blubber dislodged by the whales' trademark somersaults, Bertellotti says.
However, some aggressive gulls go further for a meal.
"Some individuals have developed the capacity to take skin and blubber from live whales," he said.
Mothers and Calves Attacked
Researchers don't know what causes some the birds to get aggressive, but they note that the attacks often create wounds and, in some cases, transmit viruses
and bacteria.
Bertellotti and Fundación Vida Silvestre Argentina (FVSA), an organization associated with the World Wildlife Federation, say the kelp gulls' pesky gouges force whales
to dive and flee.
That interrupts crucial rest and feeding periods, forcing the animals to expend energy normally used to make fat layers for long migrations or to produce mother's milk.
Alejandro Arias, the species coordinator of FVSA's marine program, says 80 percent of the gull attacks are aimed at female whales and calves.
Southern right whale mothers spend a quarter of their day fleeing seagull attacks, according to FVSA.
But Bertellotti, the Patagonia University biologist, says it is unlikely that female blubber tastes better.
"The attacks are directed at all whales," he said. "The mothers receive more attacks because they pass more time along the surface when they are with their claves."
"The calves are the most affected because of [their softer skin] during first days of life and because they spend more time at the surface," he added.
The whales are significantly outnumbered by the gulls.
About 10,000 southern right whales use the coastal waters off Argentina , Australia, and South Africa as nursery areas, according to FVSA.
Meanwhile, 75,000 reproductive kelp gull couples occupy six main colonies along the Argentine coast, the group says.
(See Argentina photos, maps, more.)
Attacks on the Rise
British researchers first observed the attacks in 1969.
The number of aggressive birds has grown as the gull population has increased thanks to an abundance of human-supplied food sources in coastal towns.
Though the number of attacks has gone up, the attacks occur sporadically.
"Without a doubt, the attacks are not constant," Bertellotti said. "There are months when they are more frequent, and at other times they are nonexistent."
Arrias says FVSA is working to raise local awareness.
"In some places we are seeing a decline or stabilization of gull populations thanks to some changes," said Arrias, noting that at least one community, Puerto Piramide,
has covered its landfills.
His group is also studying how the attacks will affect the region's whale-watching industry.
Scientists also want to know if the attacks are changing the whale's regional distribution patterns.
"I don't think the attacks are producing redistribution," Bertellotti said.
But the biologist plans to outfit some whales with specialized "suction caps."
The tracking devices will help chart the whales' movements to better understand the effects of the seagull attacks and other disturbances, he says.
Fellow Patagonia Univeristy biologist Gustavo Pagnoni has also studied the problem.
He notes that the growing gull population can put a territorial squeeze on some bird species.
But Pagnoni maintains that not all human development along the coast has prompted negative impacts.
The same human-supplied free lunch that boosts kelp gull numbers also draws other birds that increase local species diversity, he says.
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From: http://news.scotsman.com/latest.cfm?id=175600200
Humpback whales have "human" brain cells
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Humpback whales have a type of brain cell seen only in humans, the great apes, and other cetaceans such as dolphins, U.S.
researchers reported on Monday.
This might mean such whales are more intelligent than they have been given credit for, and suggests the basis for complex brains either evolved more than once,
or has gone unused by most species of animals, the researchers said.
The finding may help explain some of the behaviours seen in whales, such as intricate communication skills, the formation of alliances, cooperation, cultural
transmission and tool usage, the researchers report in The Anatomical Record.
Patrick Hof and Estel Van der Gucht of the Department of Neuroscience at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York studied the brains of humpback whales
and discovered a type of cell called a spindle neuron in the cortex, in areas comparable to where they are seen in humans and great apes.
Although the function of spindle neurons is not well understood, they may be involved in cognition -- learning, remembering and recognizing the world around oneself.
Spindle cells may be affected by Alzheimer's disease and other debilitating brain disorders such as autism and schizophrenia.
'COMPLEX SOCIAL PATTERNS'
The researches found spindle neurons in the same location in toothed whales with the largest brains, which the researchers said suggests that they may be
related to brain size. Toothed whales such as orcas are generally considered more intelligent than baleen whales such as humpbacks and blue whales, which filter
water for their food.
The humpbacks also had structures that resembled "islands" in the cerebral cortex, also seen in some other mammals.
These islands may have evolved in order to promote fast and efficient communication between neurons, the researchers said.
Spindle neurons probably first appeared in the common ancestor of hominids, humans and great apes about 15 million years ago, the researchers said -- they are
not seen in lesser apes or monkeys.
In cetaceans they would have evolved earlier, possibly as early as 30 million years ago, the researchers said.
Either the spindle neurons were only kept in the animals with the largest brains or they evolved several times independently, the researchers said.
"In spite of the relative scarcity of information on many cetacean species, it is important to note in this context that sperm whales, killer whales, and certainly
humpback whales, exhibit complex social patterns that included intricate communication skills, coalition-formation, cooperation, cultural transmission and tool usage,"
the researchers wrote.
"It is thus likely that some of these abilities are related to comparable histologic complexity in brain organisation in cetaceans and in hominids."
(c) Reuters 2006. All rights reserved.
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40 whales refloated, 38 die on NZ
beach
Forty beached pilot whales were refloated by refinery workers and volunteers in northern New Zealand but another 38 of the whale pod died on the sandy beach,
the Department of Conservation (DOC) said.
By early afternoon the rescued whales were off the shore and "starting to swim strongly" out to sea, spokeswoman Sioux Campbell said from the North Island
city of Whangarei, near the stranding site.
Boats patrolled near the whales to encourage them to continue heading out to sea rather than return to Ruakaka beach - a "typical sandy, gently sloping beach"
on which whales strand, she said.
The department said it was forced to euthanise a young pilot whale who was separated from the pod.
"DOC staff spent most of the day trying to help the lone whale regain its balance, and it didn't seem to be doing well," said stranding controller Steve Goddard.
"We were also concerned it could still be calling the others back, given they hadn't moved further away during the afternoon."
The pod of 40 - milling about only 1.5 kilometres east of where the stranding occurred - moved out to sea following the death of the lone whale, he said.
About 70 volunteers and 15 department staff were standing by in case the whales turned back toward shore or begin to swim into nearby Whangarei Harbor, Campbell
said.
"The real concern is that they might come back and strand," she said. "It is really quite common for pods to restrand, so we are really hoping that won't happen."
"We have not had a stranding of this size for several years," Campbell said, adding that strandings in the area were usually of "a few" whales.
Workers from nearby Marsden Point Refinery together with local volunteers helped to refloat the whales when the department was advised of the stranding.
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From World Wildlife Fund: http://www.panda.org/about_wwf/what_we_do/marine/index.cfm?uNewsID=83460
Iceland to resume whaling
18 Oct 2006Gland, Switzerland – Iceland has recently announced that it would resume commercial whaling despite an international moratorium for over two
decades. Iceland has stated it is to begin issuing licenses to whaling ships to hunt fin and minke whales totaling nine fin whales and 30
minke whales in the year ending 31 August 2007. WWF's understanding is that whaling ships could resume commercial whaling imminently.
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From Grenpeace: http://www.greenpeace.org/usa/news/iceland-resumes-commercial-wha
October 17, 2006
the hunt is sustainable are not
true. An old Icelandic whale processing factory is also reportedly being put
back into service.
Norway used to be the only country openly conducting commercial whaling.
Japan currently conducts a large yearly hunt using the pretence of
"scientific whaling" to keep
its industry alive. Since 2003, Iceland has also engaged in so called
"scientific whaling".
The question of why?
Kristjan Loftsson, managing director of the Icelandic whaling company, is said
to be "pleased" about receiving the hunt permit. But the question remains:
why kill whales?
Why try to revive a dying
industry with a long history of deception and mismanagement?
There is an excess of unwanted meat in Iceland, Norway and Japan. In Iceland,
they haven't even sold the meat from earlier "scientific" hunts. There is
just not
much of a market for the meat.
A Gallup poll, commissioned by IFAW and released last month, found "Only 1.1
percent of Icelanders eat whale meat once a week or more, while 82.4 percent
of 16 to 24-year-olds never eat
whale meat." Not very optimistic numbers for a business venture.
Iceland has a choice
Most Icelanders are environmentally conscious and are in favor of using marine
resources in a way that preserves them for future generations. Iceland's
whale
watching industry is known around the world and brings in more revenue than whaling possibly could. Yet, the Fisheries Ministry has done a favor for a very small
interest group, and granted a
permit for commercial whaling.
This permit should be revoked before the first whale is killed!
What do you think?
Iceland is a stunning, pristine land that attracts hundreds of thousands of
tourists each year, many of them to go whale watching in the clear arctic
waters.
Would you seriously consider taking a vacation in Iceland rather than somewhere else if the Government of Iceland stopped whaling?
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From the BBC:
Monday, 23 October 2006
Workers in Iceland hose down an endangered fin whale, the first to be commercially caught by the nation for more than 20 years. The
Icelandic government announced last week that it was going to break an international commercial whaling moratorium, a move that angered
many countries. see video clip here: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/default.stm
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Science Leads to Whale-saving Shipping Lane Change Proposal
From: http://www.sanctuaries.nos.noaa.gov/news/features/0906_whalewatch.html click here to read full story:
by Walter Bonora
National Marine Sanctuaries
Cutting-edge whale research conducted by Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary and NOAA Fisheries Service scientists indicates that a minor northward
shift in the Boston shipping lanes could significantly reduce the threat of whale-ship collisions in the sanctuary.
The lanes cross the southern half of the sanctuary in an area where endangered humpback, finback and right whales are often observed.********************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************
http://www.ntdtv.com/xtr/en/2006/08/07/a_46357.html
Rare Sighting of Albino Whale
From: http://www.thewest.com.au/default.aspx?MenuID=77&ContentID=2495
Rare treat as albino whale calf and mother shelter at Rottnest7th August 2006, 14:15 WST
An albino whale calf and its protective mother seeking refuge from bad weather proved a rare treat for visitors at Rottnest yesterday.
A southern right whale and its
eight-week-old calf were spotted sheltering in Strickland Bay, a public swimming
beach on the south side of the tourist island.
The Department of Environment and Conservation confirmed the baby whale was the
first albino to be spotted in this part of Australia.
The southern right whale typically lives in the southern and sub-Antarctic
oceans before migrating to warmer temperate waters bordering Africa, South
America and
Australia during the winter breeding season. Calving is thought to occur only every three to five years and the adults can grow to a maximum 17m and weigh up to
90 tonnes.
Senior wildlife officer Doug Coughran said the mammals remained a threatened
species with only an estimated 10 albinos in the world at any one time.
He said it was also unusual for a whale to be born on the west coast rather than
the southern coast of Australia. He urged people to keep their distance if the
nursing
pair swam close to Perth’s suburban beaches during their migration.
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From: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/5143698.stm click link to read full story
Tuesday, 4 July 2006
Whales use sound
waves to navigate, hunt and communicate
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Environmentalists applied for the restraining order to cover a Pacific warfare exercise off Hawaii's coast.
The US Department of Defense had earlier exempted the navy from another law aimed at protecting sea mammals against the use of sonar equipment.
Government lawyers were reviewing the ruling, a naval spokesman said.
Some scientists believe the powerful sound waves emitted by underwater sonar equipment can harm sea mammals.
The navy is carrying out the anti-submarine warfare training exercise, known as Rim of the Pacific (Rimpac) 2006, this week.
It involves 40 ships and six submarines, and the navy was planning to use a high-powered military sonar.
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From the BBC
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/5175970.stm click link to read full story:Thursday, 13 July 2006
|
By Richard Black
Environment correspondent, BBC News website |
Norway's whaling fleet will catch only half of its quota this season.
The government set a quota of 1052 minke whales, but so far only 444 have been landed.
Industry spokesmen predict the final tally for the April to August season will be about 500, and say bad weather earlier in the year prevented hunting.
Western environmental groups say the industry is in crisis, with stores full of unsold meat and a lack of demand from the Norwegian public.
"Norway has some real headaches this summer," said Sue Fisher from the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society (WDCS).
"It dramatically increased its whaling quota this year to make a political statement, but that is backfiring now.
"Middlemen can't sell the meat already caught and have run out of storage space."
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International Whaling Commission News
Pro-whaling nations have won their first vote towards the resumption of commercial whaling for 20 years.
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Information on the world's whales:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/shared/spl/hi/guides/456900/456973/html/nn1page1.stm
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From: http://www.earthisland.org/news/new_news.cfm?newsID=813
A Victory for Whales
Japanese company Nissui agrees to
divest itself of whaling interests
Submitted by
International Marine Mammal Project
April 4, 2006
San Francisco --
Earth Island Institute’s International Marine Mammal Project (IMMP) declared victory in a series of campaigns aimed at Japan’s whaling industry. On Friday,
March 31st, the Japanese company Nissui, owner of whaling ships and a whale meat cannery, announced they would divest their whaling company assets and no longer
participate in Japan’s controversial “scientific” whaling scheme.
Nissui owns part of Sealord Tuna, based in New Zealand. As part of its International Dolphin Safe Tuna Monitoring Program, Earth Island Institute’s IMMP launched
a boycott against Sealord Tuna in New Zealand, urging the company to divest its whaling industry activities.
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From: http://www.oceanfutures.org/ http://www.oceanfutures.org/features/2005/dispatch_08_05_a.asp click here to read full story
Japanese Whaling
Feature Story
by Jean-Michel Cousteau
There is an old environmental yardstick for deciding the true wealth of any nation—pretend the world fell asleep, and in the morning only that particular nation was still
here. How well would it survive?
This hypothetical question makes sense. It reminds us of how vital natural resources are to all of us, of how interconnected we are and that isolation is out of the
question. It also allows us to somewhat predict the behavior and policies of any given nation. Japan, for instance. Always dependent on its surrounding sea,
Japan remains so and will be increasingly so as its population grows. We easily understand that Japan must travel and exploit the sea to prosper.
A walk through the Japanese fish market is a lesson in how resourceful and successful the Japanese have become in using what the sea has to offer.
Everything that swims, crawls or slithers is on sale.
What we don’t easily understand is whether Japan is above the law in what it is hunting. Under provisions made legal by the International Whaling Commission
(IWC) for scientific research, Japan has announced that it now plans to double its annual catch of minke whales to 935 and wants to add 50 fin whales and
50 humpback whales, many in the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary, dedicated to preservation. The IWC passed a world moratorium on commercial whaling
in 1982 because of declining populations and a ban in 1986, but allowed a certain number to be killed for scientific research. Since then, Japan has “officially”
killed more than 8,000 whales. Once the data, from which the world doesn’t seem to have benefited, is gathered from the dead whale, Japan then sells the
meat in its markets.
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From: http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2005/04/0414_050414_egyptwhale.html
Photo in the News: Whale Found in Egypt Desert
|
|
|
RELATED
April 14, 2005—Egypt may not be the first place you'd look for whales, but once upon a time the Wadi Hitan desert was underwater and teeming with the sea giants. Just this week here, geologist Philip D. Gingerich announced his team had excavated the first known nearly complete skeleton of a Basilosaurus isis (pictured). The 50-foot-long (18-meter-long), 40-million-year-old fossil will now be shipped to Michigan, where experts will preserve it. Later they will return the fossil to Egypt along with a complete cast of the skeleton. The first of the truly gigantic whales, Basilosaurus had the serpentine shape of a sea monster and short, sharp teeth for hunting sharks and other prey. Unlike today's whales, it had no blowhole—the ancient behemoth had to raise its head above water to breathe. What's more, Basilosaurus still had the feet it inherited from its land-dwelling ancestors, according to Gingerich, who works for the University of Michigan and is a National Geographic Society grantee. —Ted Chamberlain |
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From: http://www.whales.org.au/ http://www.whales.org.au/news/a-seashep0601.html
January 9, 2006
At 0030 Hours GMT - 09 Jan 2006 (1930 EST Hours - 08 Jan 2006): The flagship of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, the Farley Mowat, continues to chase the
outlaw Japanese whaling fleet out of the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary after sideswiping the Japanese whaling supply ship Oriental Bluebird.
Captain Paul Watson ordered the Japanese-owned Panamanian ship Oriental Bluebird to leave the Antarctic Whale Sanctuary. The Japanese supply ship was waiting to
rendezvous with the Nisshin Maru to continue the off-loading of whale meat for transport back to Japan.
"I informed the Oriental Bluebird that I was acting under the authority of the United Nations World Charter for Nature to uphold international conservation regulations
prohibiting the slaughter of whales in the Antarctic Whale Sanctuary. When they refused, we backed up the message by slamming our starboard hull against their
starboard hull."
There was no damage apparent to either ship aside from a long scratch along the hull of the Oriental Bluebird caused by a device attached to the Farley Mowat¹s hull
called the ³can opener.² The blow was meant as a warning to convey the seriousness of our order for them to leave the area and to stop assisting with the illegal slaughter
of whales.
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http://www.nrdc.org/wildlife/marine/sonar.asp click link to read full story
 |
 |
|
Protecting Whales from Dangerous Sonar According to a report by the scientific committee of the International Whaling Commission, one of the world's leading bodies of whale biologists, the evidence linking sonar to a series of whale strandings in recent years is "very convincing and appears overwhelming." Despite the broad scientific consensus that military active sonar kills whales, the use of this deadly sonar in the world's oceans is spreading. |
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The debate over whether the Navy's use of sonar to detect submarines is harming whales and other sound-sensitive species is back again. This time the battleground is the waters off the southeastern United States, where the Navy hopes to establish a training area for sailors who need to practice their sonar skills in a shallow ocean environment. The plan has aroused justifiable concern not only from environmental groups, but also from the federal and state agencies responsible for protecting marine life. If these concerns cannot be allayed, the project should be denied a permit to proceed as now planned. The Navy's favored site is an area off the coast of North Carolina -- 500 square nautical miles -- but the Navy would settle for backup sites off Virginia or Florida if its first choice is rejected. In a draft environmental impact statement, the Navy argues that the training sites would have negligible impacts on marine life, but that judgment looks far too rosy. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has expressed ''significant concerns'' about the proposed sonar activity, including its potential to injure or kill beaked whales, which are especially sensitive, and its possible adverse impact on right whales, a highly endangered species. The agency also contends that the sound thresholds the Navy deems acceptable are well above the levels known to disrupt marine mammal behavior in the wild. Florida's fish and wildlife agency went so far as to urge that the project be abandoned, and North Carolina's marine and wildlife agencies weighed in with their own concerns. No one can deny that the Navy needs to conduct sonar training in shallow waters, where sound propagates differently than in the deep ocean. But at a time when evidence is mounting that sonar has been responsible for at least some of the whale strandings around the world -- and when we do not yet know what caused a l arge stranding last year in North Carolina -- it behooves the Navy to move with extreme caution. The three sites favored by the Navy were chosen for practical reasons: they were close to home ports, air stations and federal shore facilities; had appropriate water depths; and had a satisfactory climate. Whales were at best an afterthought, but they deserve to be a priority. |
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http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/01/19/AR2006011902990.html
Reference to Sonar Deleted in Whale-Beaching Report
Friday, January 20, 2006; Page A09
draft report to eliminate all references to the possibility that naval sonar may have played a role in driving the whales ashore.
The issue of sonar's effects on whales is a sensitive topic for the U.S. Navy. It has clashed with environmentalists in several court suits seeking to limit use of the
technology because of its possible effects on marine mammals and other sea creatures.
continued by clicking link...http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/01/19/AR2006011902990.html
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From: http://news.independent.co.uk/environment/article362314.ece
Scientists discover 'most important' blue whale colony
By Jude Webber in Buenos Aires
Published: 06 May 2006
for the summer instead of migrating south to the Antarctic to feed according to their traditional migratory patterns.
"What we are seeing is one of the biggest feeding and breeding sources, at least in the southern hemisphere," Ernesto Escobar, a spokesman for the Ballena Azul
(Blue Whale) project, said. The project has been studying the animals in Chile for the past four years.
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From: http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn8886--whale-song-reveals-sophisticated-language-skills.html click link to read full story
Whale song reveals sophisticated language skills
March 23, 2006
Humpback whales use their own syntax – or grammar – in the complex songs they sing, say researchers have developed a mathematical technique to probe the
mysteries of whale song. The team adds that whales are the only other animals beside humans to use hierarchical structure in language, in which phrases
are embedded in larger, recurring themes. This concept echoes scientific suggestions from the 1970s, but the new computer analysis claims to confirm this
who and provides an objective measure of the songs’ structure and complexity. Male humpback whales produce songs that last anywhere from about six to
30 minutes. These vocalisations vary greatly across seasons, and during breeding periods they are thought to help attract female partners. Their eerie sound
and patterns have captured the attention of marine biologists for decades.
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www.ecokidsonline.com/.../
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From: http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2006/01/0118_060118_right_whales.html click link to read full story
Whale Birth Decline Tied to Global Warming, Study Says
By observing more than 1,800 right whales in the southern Atlantic, researchers have determined that changes in climate are affecting the whales' reproductive success.
The problem, experts believe, is not that whales suffer directly from warm conditions, but that their food supply—mainly krill—does.
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| "Devastating" Losses for Right Whales This Winter |
Since 1971 scientists have conducted yearly photo-identification studies of a population of southern right whales. The whales gather off Argentina's Peninsula Valdés
every year between June and December.
Using detailed photographic information on individual females, researchers have created an annual index that charts the deviation of known whale births from the
expected number of calves.
Jane's comments:
In August of 2005, I had the opportunity to meet again with Ann Albers, a wonderfully clear and loving channel who has brought me into
conversation with Archangel Michael, and other angelic presences, several times.
I was being guided to work on taking time to renew and refresh my energy...and this is what was said....
"Let yourself, give yourself what you're giving everyone else. One of them said, it would be really fun for you to have , you know, go by a cheap set of those colored little
, like the vinegar bottles, those little ones you can buy at Big Lots or whatever. They said fill them up and program them with different things....they said, and then you
just hold them and meditate with them depending on what you need that day. On your good days you charge them up, on your down days you hold them, like a battery.
They said, let the water serve you too, you serve the water. The whales thank you by the way. They've been with you, they say, all along in spirit. You have a real
strong connection with the Sirian energy don't you? Yeah, because the whales are around as a spiritual grouping of guides for you....and they said you've had a lot
of connection with them in other lives...in many, many lifetimes. So you can always call on them to heal you when you have a day that is a little down. Because
they said you put out a lot of energy. Some days you get home and your whipped....and they said it is ok to ask for some nurturing back from Spirit and from the
waters of the Earth. You're not taking from anyone. They said oh, you give so easily, but it is so hard to ask...they said, so ask Spirit to replenish you ok?"
I have been meditating and connecting with the whales since this reading, and they have guided me to know more about the conditions
they are existing in. Please join me in loving them. They are quite amazing beings....who even in their own unfortunate circumstances,
offer love and nurturing to us if we ask.