A few days ago, a colleague of mine passed on a video that may just be the most disturbing footage I've ever seen in my life. Half a world away, dolphins and whales are being chased, trapped and killed by the thousands. At the end of the day, the only trace of the slaughter is an ocean stained red and videos like this one.
I've taken action on this important issue. Will you do the same? Check out this message I got from Oceana:
From October to April, Japanese fishermen will kill more than 20,000 dolphins and porpoises as part of their annual hunt. Officials claim the slaughter is a form of “pest control” to offset the amount of fish the dolphins eat. But, the reality is, the butchered dolphins are sold off to supermarkets and grocery stores.
Japanese fishermen have admitted that they are worried the government will soon shut them down in light of international outrage over the hunt. Contact the Japanese Embassy today and tell Japan to stop the slaughter.
Dolphins and whales that are targeted in this hunt include bottlenose dolphins, pilot whales and striped dolphins. Several of the species are considered to be threatened with extinction. The truth is the impact of these hunts on the marine mammal populations is unknown due to the lack of good population size estimates for the various targeted species. Scientists also don't know the extent of the disruption the massacre causes on the complex social structure of the dolphins or the effect on the ecosystem of removing so many large animals out of a small area.
As the publicity grows, the hunters are forced to hide their actions. They erect fake signs to divert the general public from the coves where the dolphins are ultimately trapped and have outlawed photos and videos of the killing.
I understand if you just can't bear to watch the video (see below), part of me wishes I hadn't. For those of you that do choose to watch it, remember the 3 minutes and 16 seconds it takes is about half as long as some of the dolphins take to die. Please take action today.
For the oceans,
Maureen Bonner
E-Activism Manager, Oceana
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