Read this issue of Whales Alive! in PDF format.

Vol. XVIII No. 4
A publication of Cetacean Society International
October 2009
Celebrate With Us: Robbins Barstow Is 90 On October 24, 2009!
In celebration of this remarkable man’s life all of us at
Robbins recently converted decades of whale films and vidCSI would like to share with you some of the reasons Robbins
eos he has produced into the Internet-accessible “Barstow
is universally admired, respected, cherished and loved. A ConTravel Adventure” whale film series, occasionally shown as
necticut resident from the age of eleven, Robbins and his wife
part of his local cable access television programs, and availof 67 years, Meg, have lived at Fairacre, 190 Stillwold Drive,
able through CSI. In fact, if you marveled at Ken Burns’ reWethersfield since 1951. Robbins graduated from Dartmouth
cent National Parks series on PBS you will have seen six clips
in 1941, received his PhD in Educational Administration from
from Robbins’ movies, more than any other amateur’s work
the University of Connecticut
selected for the project!
School of Education in 1967,
Robbins is a Treasure of
and worked for 34 years as
international renown within
Director of Professional Dethe community of nations and
velopment for the Connectiadvocates working to “Save
cut Education Association;
the Whales”. In 1974 he cothen he “retired”, busier than
founded the Connecticut Ceever.
tacean Society, and edited its
Robbins has advocated
newsletter, “The Connecticut
for social justice throughout
Whale”. Thanks to his tireless
his life, for example, with his
work the sperm whale was
1941
movie,
“The
named Connecticut’s state
Abbakadabba Coop-no”,
mammal, marking the signifiabout an inter-racial group of
cance of the whale to
children from the slums of
Connecticut’s heritage, as
Newark, NJ being offered a
well as the majesty of the
summer farm camp experiwhale itself. Robbins’ innovaence. Robbins’ innate talents
tive leadership of an entirely
as an amateur filmmaker also
voluntary effort of 400
Meg and Robbins Barstow
produced a series of family
people, using donated matefilms, which were so innovarials, produced “Conny”,
tive and brilliant that ten of his family chronicles have been
West Hartford’s beloved landmark of a life-sized, 60 foot,
registered by the Library of Congress, and his 1955
ferro-cement sperm whale, who still graces the Children’s
“Disneyland Dreams” has been named to the National Film
Museum of West Hartford.
Registry as one of the finest examples of the home movieThrough ceaseless inspiration and leadership as Execumaking genre. One of the industry professionals viewing the
tive Director and Director Emeritus, Robbins mentored CCS’s
Registry’s selections was delighted to see himself in a
evolution into Cetacean Society International (CSI) so well
“Disneyland Dreams” scene, as Robbins’ panning included
that CSI in 1988 was appointed to the United Nations Envithe then-teen actor-comedian Steve Martin, who wrote
ronment Program Global 500 Roll of Honor.
Robbins to thank him!
While serving as CCS/CSI Observer at IWC meetings
Typically abreast of technology (he even uses a Mac!),
from 1976 to 1994, he was appointed four times to serve on
Whales Alive! • October 2009 • Published by Cetacean Society International • Page 2
the US IWC delegation, including participating directly in what
became the IWC’s global moratorium on commercial whaling.
Bill Rossiter remembers standing in for Robbins at an IWC
Intersessional in Brighton in 1983, recognizing that just saying
“for Robbins Barstow” opened doors and smiles!
Robbins is legendary for his elegant, eloquent and diplomatic
communication skills, but few people know how many official
documents are built around his words. His strategy was to give
carefully drafted language freely to officials that wanted to appear
knowledgeable and wise. His language and purpose can be found
in many, many official documents, from the Law of the Sea Treaty
to many Resolutions of Congress. At a recent meeting he told us
of his 1987 letter to Walter Cronkite, which inspired Cronkite’s
radio broadcast we reproduce in this Whales Alive!, and their subsequent meeting and friendship.
Only Robbins could have conceived of and produced 1983’s
“WHALES ALIVE Global Conference on the Non-Consumptive
Utilisation of Cetacean Resources”, a first-ever collaboration by
the US government, the IWC and an NGO, with extraordinary
support by CCS member Stephen Chelminski.
WHALES ALIVE brought the world’s leading whale experts
together in Boston that November in a program that so deserves
renewed attention that CSI will soon reproduce the full report
online as published by CCS and the Animal Welfare Institute.
Whales Alive!
A publication of Cetacean Society International
Editor: Brent S. Hall
CSI is an all-volunteer, non-profit, tax-exempt conservation,
education, and research organization with representatives in
over 25 countries. Our goal is the “optimum utilization of
cetacean resources,” as called for in the 1946 Treaty of the
International Whaling Commission, through the protection
of viable habitat and the cessation of all killing and captive
display of whales, dolphins, and porpoises. We support and
promote benign activities such as regulated whale watching,
nonlethal and humane research, and widespread educational,
environmental and observation programs relating to freeroaming cetaceans internationally. Our ultimate objective is
the global acceptance of peaceful coexistence and mutual
enrichment for both humans and cetaceans.
Cetacean Society International
P.O. Box 953, Georgetown, CT 06829 U.S.A.
Phone: 203-770-8615 Fax: 860-561-0187
E-Mail: [email protected]
Web: csiwhalesalive.org
CSI is a member of WhaleNet
President: William W. Rossiter
Vice-President: Brent S. Hall
Secretary: Jessica L. Dickens
Treasurer: Barbara Kilpatrick
Director Emeritus: Robbins Barstow
Most of us at that meeting also recall how Robbins could get
all sorts of people in pictures and videos with him, everyone smiling! The trove of history in Robbins’ snapshots and videos now
encompass the full decades of the “Save the Whales” movement
and the people that have made it happen.
Robbins has not only authored Meet the Great Ones, a
children’s book on whales, he has donated his entire collection of
historical and valuable cetacean and marine related books and other
memorabilia to the University of Connecticut Avery Point Campus Library Marine Science Program, Mystic Seaport, and Mystic Aquarium, and is currently managing the “Robbins Barstow
Marine Science Book Awards” to Connecticut high school seniors.
Whales Alive! • October 2009 • Published by Cetacean Society International • Page 3
It’s no wonder then that Connecticut’s Governor M. Jodi Rell
has issued a Proclamation that October 24th, 2009 is “Robbins
Barstow Day” for the State of Connecticut, and congratulatory
letters arrived from dignitaries like U. S. Senators Christopher J.
Dodd and Joseph I. Liberman, and U.S. Congressman John B.
Larson.
We all are honored to celebrate this truly gentle man, a man
of wisdom and wit, of foresight and historical perspective, of joy
and determination, of quiet reason and powerful expression. Happy
Birthday, Robbins! God Bless and Carry On!
A sample of the congratulatory messages to Robbins we
are pleased to share with you include:
As we celebrate Robbins Barstow’s 90th birthday here’s an
“event” I have always enjoyed sharing: In the early 70’s a perfect
storm of sorts was forming. Environmental protection and The
Save the Whale movement were picking up steam. Tom Callinan,
Chris Morgan, Tomy Morris, Steve Roys, Mark O’Donnell and I
were performing as “the Morgans” every Sunday evening at “Mad
Murphy’s” in Hartford, CT, with the help of others. We talked
about whale protection from the stage, and passed around petitions to be signed. Real grass roots.
At about the same time Connecticut began to select a state
mammal. A number of critters were considered, including the deer,
squirrel and even humans (honest)! The whale was promoted by
some. One day there was a wonderful Letter to the Editor in the
Hartford Courant, written by Dr. Robbins Barstow of the Sperm
Whale Education Association, from Wethersfield, Connecticut.
Wow! At last the six of us with the Connecticut Cetacean Society
had a real organization to work with. After contacting Dr Barstow
it was decided to meet at the “White Swan”, a pub in Hartford
where the Morgans were performing that night. Rob and his wife
Meg arrived and I think they enjoyed the music. Later we all gathered at their table for a wonderful conversation, including the issue of the state mammal. Rob felt the sperm whale in particular
would be a great candidate, with its connection with Yankee whalers out of New London, and being the iconic whale (Moby Dick).
It seemed like a great idea. Then the subject of membership came
up. In a rare sheepish moment I asked Rob about the membership
in his group. I expected to hear in the hundreds. His answer, “myself and Meg.”
To this day, and as I write, I break out in laughter in telling
this. Well, from the acorn the mighty oak. On May 27, 1975 Governor Ella T. Grasso signed the bill making the sperm whale
Connecticut’s state mammal. The acorn took root.
Over the years Robbins’ friendship and leadership have been
a gift to human and cetacean friends alike. Also one “Moose”.
Happy Birthday, Rob!
Don Sineti
First President of the Connecticut Cetacean Society
For Robbins: You have been a true inspiration and force in
the campaign to save our remaining whales and dolphins. As a
scientist/philosopher, you among many understand the need for
continued effort to save the balance of our Oceans and the importance of cetaceans in that balance. Congratulations on making 90
orbits around the sun on planet Earth. I still remember your congratulation on stopping Iceland from slipping a Quota discussion
into the 1990 IWC proceedings. Good Luck, Fair Winds and Following Seas.
Bill Evans
Executive Director, Hubbs-Sea World Research Institute,
Chairman of the U.S. Marine Mammal Commission, Associate
Administrator, NOAA, Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans
and Atmosphere and Administration, U.S. Commissioner for the
International Whaling Commission. Dean of the Texas Maritime
College, currently adjunct professor at the University of Notre
Dame and Managing Editor of The American Midland Naturalist.
CONNY, the ferrocement sperm whale, from wire frame to completion.
Whales Alive! • October 2009 • Published by Cetacean Society International • Page 4
I am delighted to have the opportunity to add my voice to
others on the occasion of Robbins’ 90th birthday. We have worked
together for so many years, pulling in the same direction though
occasionally at slightly different angles. Whales Alive at Boston
was a fundamental turning point in our campaigns. I particularly
remember 1994 in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico where we had somewhat differing ideas about the French proposal for a Southern
Ocean Whale Sanctuary, and one way and another we came out of
it on the same side and pulled off a great victory. I cherish Robbins’
videos of various IWC meetings, and now wish him well on his
way to becoming a centenarian.
Sidney Holt
A Tribute to Robbins Barstow
I hate to be corny but as I wrote Robbins’ name, it occurred to
me that a more appropriate last name might have been Bestow. I
say that because, as everyone knows who ever met Robbins, he
has bestowed his enormous energy and unflappable positive outlook on whomever came his way. I can’t recall the exact date of
my first encounter with this whirlwind of a man, but suffice it to
say it was memorable.
In the mid to late 70’s, a small but dedicated group of individuals was hard at work trying to achieve a ten year moratorium
on commercial whaling. Robbins entered the fray full of enthusiasm and with a willingness to put in hard work and long hours. At
that early stage, and throughout his decades of involvement, he
was often the lone voice that kept saying whale watching must be
emphasized. Candidly, in those early years, whale watching seemed
to many of us to be low on the list of concerns. But Robbins has
turned out to be right on target. The “business” of whale watching
has eclipsed, in every way imaginable, the “business” of whale
killing. He kept that issue alive and on the agenda. Thank you,
Robbins, for your persistence!
Robbins and I worked together in another crucial arena for
whales. That was the Law of the Sea (LOS) negotiation conducted
from 1978 through 1982. At times we were the only two people
working in this forum. The whale community realized that, as we
were garnering strength and protection for whales at the International Whaling Commission, another negotiation was underway
that had the potential to undermine our successes. A group of us
met with the U.S. Ambassador to the LOS negotiations, Elliot
Richardson, to express our concerns. He appointed me to his advisory committee and Robbins became our “point man” on the
outside. I don’t know how Robbins managed to do all of the organizing but he put together a big rally at the UN and presented
petitions. He delivered a number of members of Congress ... especially the Connecticut senators ... and he did kids’ rallies for whales.
I think a few whale balloons and sculptures were involved along
the way. As a result, some of the best legal language for whales
now exists in the LOS Treaty. Thank you, Robbins, for your tireless organizing efforts!
One cannot think about the work done by Robbins without
mentioning his ceaseless moviemaking. No matter the time or the
weather, Robbins was memorializing the IWC and its ups and
downs. As everyone knows, this is now a wonderful record of
events that would otherwise be lost to posterity. Again, Robbins
had the foresight to record them and share with everyone. Thank
you, Robbins, for your unparalleled cinematic work!
As you enter your ninth decade, I am sure there will be more
Barstow successes ahead for whales and the earth. Both continue
to need your boundless positive energy to make things right for
new generations to come.
Happy Birthday, Robbins!
Patricia Forkan
Currently, Senior Envoy to the Executive Branch, The Humane Society of the United States. Previously: President of Humane Society International and Executive Vice President of The
Humane Society of the United States.
While I knew of Robbins for many years when I was growing
up with the Connecticut Cetacean Society, I first met him and his
darling wife Meg in person when they answered my request to
organize Wethersfield Peace and Justice on a freezing winter night
in 2003. He and Meg sat together on the couch in my living room,
acted like newlyweds and told me the story of how they met. Their
love and energy emanated from them and warmed the room, and I
swear I felt like a better person after having been with them.
Robbins was the best half of WPJ; he was the lifeblood of the
many activities we organized, such as A Walk for Peace through
Wethersfield after a February blizzard; Sunday evening candlelight vigils on the Wethersfield Green for the troops in Iraq; weekend protests and picketing on Wethersfield street corners and at
larger Hartford rallies; a live broadcast with Wethersfield cable
television where Robbins spoke for the causes of peace and justice in Iraq, and answered Wethersfield residents’ calls with his
signature grace, eloquence, passion and flair. In their eighties, he
and Meg were among nearly a half million others who braved the
cold on February 15, 2003 in midtown New York City to join
millions worldwide to protest the imminent invasion of Iraq.
Several years later, I witnessed yet another tender example of
Robbins’ and Meg’s profound love for one another: I was visiting
them in their Fairacre home; Meg’s friend had just picked her up
and was driving her to their weekly water aerobics class (twice
my age and so vibrant!); Robbins and I watched from the picture
window. As the car turned out of sight, Robbins sighed, and sang
Paul Digangi, Patricia Sullivan, Robbins and Meg Barstow
Whales Alive! • October 2009 • Published by Cetacean Society International • Page 5
sweetly, There goes my everything...
Robbins, you are truly the consummate comrade, mentor,
humanitarian and champion. It’s an honor to call you my friend.
My deepest gratitude and love for all you have done for me, for
others, for the planet and for the whales.
I wish you 90 more years of happy birthdays!
With warm aloha,
Patricia Sullivan
Education Director, Cetacean Society International
A Still Relevant Voice from the Past:
Commentary on Dolphins
by Walter Cronkite
Note: Thirty-one years ago, on May 2, 1978, the late Walter Cronkite broadcast this commentary over the nationwide CBS
radio network. The text was published, with his permission, in the Fall 1978 issue of WHALEWATCHER, the Journal of the
American Cetacean Society, with whose authorization CSI is reproducing it here. The moral issues addressed by Cronkite are
the same as those raised again, after more than three decades, by the new documentary movie “The Cove.”
This is Walter Cronkite reporting with news and commentary on the CBS radio network.
Earlier this year television film of Japanese fishermen stabbing and clubbing to death a thousand or more
dolphins brought cries of outrage from many viewers and
a proposed resolution in the House of Representatives
deploring the slaughter. All that has been reported. But
one reaction, received by this Correspondent, deserves
special attention.
Last week the CBS EVENING NEWS aired a story
on the Japanese dolphin kill which presented the
fishermen’s side of the story, noting that they felt forced
to act because the dolphins had been eating much of the
fish catch on which the fishermen depend for a livelihood. Following the broadcast, this Correspondent received a letter from Dr. Robbins Barstow, the director of
the Connecticut Cetacean Society, which is a voluntary
group dedicated to the preservation of dolphins, whales
and other species of air-breathing marine mammals. However, he wrote not to criticize or condemn our story, but
to praise it, saying it’s important for all of us to try to
understand the fishermen’s problem.
As most letters responding to news stories tend to be
polemics, Dr. Barstow’s reasonable evenhandedness is
something of a rarity; but it also supports one of the most
powerful and effective arguments against the killing of
cetaceans we’ve seen.
The cetaceans — dolphins in particular — appear to
be the most highly developed and intelligent animals on
earth, excepting man. Throughout history, human beings
have felt an affinity for dolphins, evoked by their playfulness, friendliness, and even apparent altruism (the fact
that they care for one another in distress) — all remarkably human-like traits. Moreover, the fact that dolphins
and the other cetaceans have a brain capacity comparable to man’s, demonstrate learned behavior, and a highly
complex and sophisticated form of communication or language has led Dr. Barstow and many others to urge that
cetaceans should be recognized as a higher form of life
and in a different moral category than other animals.
Barstow presented this argument recently to a House subcommittee in support of a resolution expressing strong
concern over the Japanese dolphin kill. At the same time,
he noted the Japanese friends of the dolphin might want
to register a similar concern over the incidental killing of
dolphins by the U.S. tuna fleet. The number last year was
26,000. Obviously, Americans have no right to be morally arrogant.
The dolphin fish kill is an international problem, and
around the world, governments are working on ways to
keep the dolphins out of principal fishing grounds without harming them — a sort of benevolent cetacean 200mile limit. Barstow cautions against moral purism or absoluteness. He counts himself among the growing number of people around the world who’ve come to believe
it is morally wrong to kill cetaceans, but says that rule
should not apply without exception or regardless of circumstance, such as killing whales solely for subsistence,
as opposed to killing them commercially. He notes that
even the rule against killing human beings has its exceptions, such as self-defense and wars that are deemed justified.
Barstow’s defense of the dolphin is not an example
of sentimentality run amok. In fact, the power of his argument stems from the fact that it is as much humanist
as humanitarian. It is concerned not just for the preservation of the cetaceans themselves, but also with the preservation and encouragement of something in humanity’s
ethical development, something that is done violence to
when men kill without compunction intelligent creatures
which a growing number of people consider almost human.
Whales Alive! • October 2009 • Published by Cetacean Society International • Page 6
Legislative Update
Congressional Hearings are being awaited in Washington on H.R. 2455, the “International Whale Conservation and Protection Act of
2009.”
CSI Legislative Chairperson, Dr. Robbins Barstow, has received the following letter from Connecticut First District Congressman
John B. Larson, regarding the current status of this comprehensive and far-reachng bill. CSI members are urged to write or phone their
Representatives to sign on as co-sponsors of this bill, to help bring about public hearings on the critical issues in the bill.
Whales Alive! • October 2009 • Published by Cetacean Society International • Page 7
The Time Is Now For A National Ocean Management Plan
By Heather D. Rockwell, CSI Board Member
On September 24th, I travelled to Providence, Rhode Island
to attend one of six regional public meetings being held around
the U.S. to introduce the recently released Interim Report by the
Obama Administration’s Interagency Ocean Policy Task Force.
President Barack Obama appointed the 24 member Task Force in
June with the mandate of developing recommendations for the
first-ever national policy for our oceans, coasts and the Great Lakes.
They are charged with developing a framework for improved policy
coordination between Federal agencies, and an implementation
strategy for a national ocean policy. The Task Force is led by the
White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) and
through public meetings, consultations with stakeholders and expert briefings, the Task Force is to ensure that the national ocean
policy will be comprehensive and will protect, sustain and restore
our national waters and resources.
My cohort for the public hearing was Regina Asmutis-Silvia,
Senior Biologist for the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society. When we arrived at the meeting venue, we saw lots of familiar
faces milling about in the foyer. From whale biologists to environmental activists to business leaders, I was impressed to see more
than 250 attendees invested in the issues.
The meeting was chaired by Nancy Sutley, Director of CEQ.
She introduced the members of the Task Force, which included
NOAA Administrator Dr. Jane Lubchenco and representatives from
the Department of the Interior, Navy, Coast Guard, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 1. Each of the Task Force members
had several minutes to present their comments on, and Agencies’
involvement with, the Interim Report.
Dr. Lubchenco spoke to the need for healthy oceans and coasts,
as well as a responsibility for stewardship and a collaborative process between all agencies involved. U.S. Navy Rear Admiral
Herman Shelanski stated that the Navy were responsible environmental stewards, but that the oceans must be used for continuous
military training to protect the U.S. Additionally, human health
issues related to harmful algal blooms and the diverse resources
available for harvesting from the oceans including food and drugs
were mentioned by Dr. Sharon Hrynkow, Associate Director of
the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences.
Next up, a panel of local experts addressed the Task Force on
their particular area of interest. Cheryl Andrews-Maltais, Chairwoman of the Aquinnah Wampanoag Tribe, discussed the connections Native Americans have with their local waterways, how
policies and laws impact traditional and cultural practices, and
how shared knowledge of “old tribal” ways combined with new
technology and science can lead to better stewardship of the oceans.
John Torgan, Narragansett Baykeeper, spoke to the importance of
regional coordination of coastal waters and rivers, and the need
for improved habitat restoration and environmental monitoring,
and the balance between private and public interests and benefits.
Beth Gedney speaking for marine recreation and the maritime industry commented on the conflicts between navigation routes, the
protection of endangered species and industrial development. Less
clear, however, was the statement put forward by Peter
Mandelstam, chairman of the American Wind Energy Association’s
Offshore Wind Working Group. Mr. Mandelstam’s comments provided little insight into how the Wind Energy Companies would
work with the Task Force, but did indicate that more offshore sites
for wind turbines were being considered along the East Coast.
Upon the completion of the comments by the Task Force and
Expert Panel, the session began for public comments. It was clear
that, even with comment times reduced from three to two minutes
each, not all of the 77 public attendees that signed in would be
allowed to speak. A wide spectrum of people stepped up to the
microphone - including the director of the Conservation Law Foundation, a woman surfer who had paddled the eastern seaboard of
the U.S., a marine policy lawyer, a young man swimming from
Maine to Washington, D.C., as well as countless fishermen, advocates and concerned citizens. The Task Force heard about the need
for consistencies between ocean policy and laws; the dirty coastal
waters along the east coast; the problems associated with sea level
rise and ocean acidification; the need for increased protection;
and the need to protect fisheries.
Specific comments regarding the critically endangered North
Atlantic Right whale probably best summed up the challenges faced
by the Task Force. According to the statement put forward by
WDCS, “For right whales, as well as other whales, waterfowl,
migratory passerines, fish and turtles, it is critical to do more forward thinking, and consider cumulative impacts to species and
habitats, rather than proceeding with site specific
development, only to regret it later. The promise made by President Obama, to return to science–based management and act as a
steward for the ocean, must be kept.”
Additional hearings are scheduled to take place in Cleveland,
New Orleans, and Honolulu, while the public may continue to
submit online comments through October 17, 2009. For more information, visit http://www.whitehouse.gov/oceans.
IWC Update
The Small Working Group (SWG) meeting of the International Whaling Commission is scheduled in St. Petersburg, Florida
from December 8-10, followed by a possible intersessional Com-
mission meeting that would end on the 11th. The SWG will continue several years of discussions on the IWC’s “way forward”,
but the intersessional may decide the contentious schedule amend-
Whales Alive! • October 2009 • Published by Cetacean Society International • Page 8
ment proposal for an aboriginal subsistence whaling quota for
Greenland of ten humpbacks.
Denmark’s persistent effort for Greenland’s quota is the current hot issue in the IWC, at least on the surface. The IWC has
mulled over concerns for the legality of Greenland’s disgraceful
commercialization of whale meat supposedly intended for subsistence use, and documented evidence, for example, that up to 80%
of fin whales are wasted. A Scientific Working Group is drafting a
report based on their recent Greenland visit, and much depends
upon how it is received by member nations.
The Dominican Republic recently joined the IWC, aligned
with anti-whaling nations. After decades of a few Caribbean nations and officials succumbing to Japan’s aid-with-a-catch, and
denigrating themselves with IWC votes orchestrated by Japan, the
Dominican Republic’s unfettered participation is most welcome.
As the humpbacks wintering near the Dominican Republic spread
out northward in summer, some keep whale watchers excited off
Provincetown, while a few others head for Greenland’s waters,
where whale watching and nature tourism is a growth industry.
CSI recently joined the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society’s
initiative to implore the cruise ship industry expecting great success with nature trips in Greenland to become aware of the conflict with whaling, particularly as it will turn away tourists.
The Dominican Republic is well aware that Greenland’s proposed take of humpbacks is unlikely to have an effect on the population that winters in Dominican Republic waters. So is CSI, but
we also expect that the public’s perception that “their” whales might
be eaten may influence political policies throughout the Caribbean region. There is no better way to grasp what is at stake if
Greenland gets a humpback quota than the IWC61 Report by
Lesley Sutty, Observer for the Eastern Caribbean Coalition for
Environmental Awareness. The report can be downloaded from:
http://www.eccea.org/index.php/news/13/44. If you don’t have time
for all of her wisdom just word search for “Greenland”.
* * *
Iceland resumes large scale whaling, governments and
NGOs protest, by Kate O’Connell, WDCS.
Iceland has killed more than 200 whales this summer, including 125 endangered fin whales and at least 79 minke whales. The
Hvalur whaling company owned by Kristjan Loftsson - the only
company licensed to hunt fin whales in Iceland - has indicated
that it plans to export as much as 1500 tons of whale meat and
blubber to Japan, even though Japan had 4,500 tons of whale meat
in freezer storage as of June 2009. Even though the market in
Japan has declined, it is possible that whaling interests there would
accept the imports to support commercial whaling. Both nations
use reservations to evade trade bans under CITES (Convention
on International Trade in Endangered Species).
In early September, CSI joined with eighteen other members
of the Whales Need US (WNUS) coalition to send a clear message to Iceland’s government that the US public does not accept
Iceland’s whaling. In a letter to Ambassador Hjálmar W.
Hannesson, the groups protested that Iceland’s whaling was taking place without approval by the International Whaling Commission (IWC), and contrary to the legally-agreed whaling moratorium. Iceland’s reservation to that decision, taken when it rejoined
the IWC in 2002, is disputed by many governments and the quotas that Iceland has issued to itself are not supported in any way
by the IWC.
The groups called on Iceland to refrain from issuing any further whaling quotas, and not to allow any trade in whale products.
The WNUS coalition, along with conservation and animal welfare groups around the world, also began calling on the US and
other governments to make clear to Iceland that its whaling must
stop.
On October 2nd, 2009, a group of 26 governments issued a
diplomatic letter (known as a demarche) of concern to the government of Iceland regarding its whaling activities. The Governments
of Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Chile, Costa Rica, The
Czech Republic, Ecuador, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Israel, Luxembourg, Mexico, Monaco, The Netherlands, New
Zealand, Panama, Peru, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, The United Kingdom, The United States of America and Uruguay all expressed
their “deep disappointment” in the decision by Iceland to issue
Whales Alive! • October 2009 • Published by Cetacean Society International • Page 9
such large whaling quotas.
The demarche called on Iceland “to respect the IWC’s global
moratorium and end its commercial whaling” and asked the Icelandic government to withdraw its reservations to the CITES Appendix 1 listings of whales, and to “safeguard these species from
international trade”. The letter also highlighted the growing importance of whale watch tourism to Iceland’s struggling economy,
and CSI is proud to have been one of the first NGOs to help the
country move in the direction of whale watching as the “optimum
utilization” of whales (see for example Whales Alive! vol. VI, no.
2, 1997, and the full report of the 1983 WhalesAlive conference
available soon on CSI’s web site).
Iceland’s move to increase its whaling comes on the heels of
its decision to apply for membership in the European Union. Under EU law, whaling is prohibited and CSI has supported a letter,
drafted by the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society, calling
on the EU commissioners to make it clear to Iceland that its whaling, and trade in whale products, must stop if it hopes for membership.
This is a critical time for whales in Iceland, and we urge our
readers to contact the Embassy or Consulate of Iceland in your
country to make your feelings known. You can find a list of these
addresses worldwide at http://www.iceland.is/diplomatic-relations/
. For those Whales Alive! readers in the US, please contact:
Ambassador Hjálmar W. Hannesson
Embassy of Iceland
2900 K Street NW
Washington, DC 20007
Email: [email protected]
* * *
The United Nations’ International Maritime
Organization’s (IMO) 26th Assembly is expected to adopt three
regulations that may convince Japan to stop killing whales in the
Antarctic Treaty Area, which encompass all waters below 60 degrees South. The Marine Environmental Protection Committee of
the IMO in July approved a ban on the use of heavy fuel oil in the
Area by July 2011, except for vessels involved in safety or searchand-rescue operations. The other two regulations focus on hullstrength and safety, for example requiring double hulled construction, and prohibiting the dumping of offal in the Treaty Area. As
logical and critical as these seem, it took the sinking of the MS
Explorer and a series of lesser accidents involving cruise ships to
prompt the changes.
Andrew Darby, a widely respected journalist for the Sydney
Morning Herald, broke the story after his investigation confirmed
that the 22-year-old single hull Nisshin Maru, the last factory
whaling ship in the world, fails to comply with all three new IMO
regulations for Antarctic shipping. The 8,000 ton vessel is owned
by the Tokyo company Kyodo Senpaku Kaisha, in turn owned by
the government-funded Institute of Cetacean Research (ICR).
Three crew members have died in accidents, and the ship has suffered two major fires. The 2007 fire prompted New Zealand’s
then conservation minister, Chris Carter, to express concerns that
the ship might spill 1,000 tons of heavy fuel oil into the Ross Sea,
generally considered the last pristine sea on Earth.
The Nisshin Maru has no ice-strengthening, according to
Lloyd’s Register, and routinely dumps offal at sea, forbidden by
Antarctic Treaty rules, but also now violating the IMO’s Guidelines For Ships Operating In Ice-Covered Waters, which calls for
them to use industry-best-practice rules against “operational discharges.” Greenpeace’s review of ICR records found that bones,
blood and other body parts amounting to 40 per cent of whale
carcasses were dumped routinely, 2,118 tons in the 2005-06 season.
Will Japan multiply its current whaling subsidy to convert a
polar-compliant vessel, or even construct a replacement vessel to
comply with new design requirements for polar operations? Because Japan’s large shipping industry is considered compliant with
IMO regulations, and the logistics, safety and economy of Antarctic whaling are burdensome, the new rules may offer Japan an
opportunity to save face by withdrawing ostensibly for environmental reasons, without giving in to anti-whaling sentiments, and
without the expense of modernizing the whaling fleet. Rest assured that in return Japan will demand the right to kill more whales
elsewhere, in closer, less dangerous waters.
* * *
This Statement on behalf of NGOs was presented by Dr.
Sidney Holt at the Annual Meeting of the International Whaling
Commission (IWC) in Madeira, June 2009. CSI regrets not including it in July’s Whales Alive!, because it demonstrates the renewed solidarity and spirit of IWC NGO’s.
Mr. Chairman, Delegations and Observers,
My name is Sidney Holt. I am observer for the Antarctic and
Southern Ocean Coalition, ASOC. But I am honoured to have been
chosen to address you by the NGOs here concerned with animal
welfare, conservation and the environment. We intend to be proactive, not merely re-active. We wish to focus on the future of
whales and the ecosystems they inhabit, not just the future of the
IWC. Still, we want the IWC to survive.
By the way, this is a multiple anniversary year.
It’s important to me because I first became involved with the
IWC exactly half a century ago - 1959. It was decided then that
Antarctic baleen whale catches would be reduced to sustainable
levels, by 1964 at the latest, in accordance with scientific advice
to be provided by three independent scientists of which I was one...
But that reduction didn’t happen until the early 1970s.
Then, 2009 is the thirtieth anniversary of the creation of the
Indian Ocean Whale Sanctuary. Next month the first symposium
on the cetaceans of the region will be held in The Maldives, attended mostly by young scientists from the region.
Most importantly it’s exactly eighty years since the eminent
Argentine international lawyer, José Leon Suárez, proposed to the
League of Nations that a sanctuary for whales be established in
the Antarctic. Suarez reported that if nothing were done the fin,
blue and humpback whales would be practically exterminated in
the Southern Hemisphere. That took rather longer than he thought
it would, but it had happened by 1959.
Then the sei whale resource was plundered in the 1960s.
Demolition of the minke whales was begun in the 1970s.
Whales Alive! • October 2009 • Published by Cetacean Society International • Page 10
The biomass of the still numerous minke whales is less
than one percent of the biomass of the Southern Hemisphere
baleen whales at the time Suarez reported to the League of
Nations.
Think about that. We’re talking endlessly about how to sweep
up the crumbs left on the table after the feast. If anything’s dysfunctional, that’s it.
All the NGOs for which I speak unreservedly support at this
time the continuation of the moratorium, with no arbitrary catch
limits being set. But they think it’s time to move on: to end all
commercial whaling under unilaterally issued Special Permits, all
whaling in sanctuaries, all whaling under objections. And all international trade in commodities from Appendix I CITES-listed
species.
An end is justified by the improvement of scientific knowledge about whales, using non-lethal methods, and by the increase
in scale and extent of non-lethal uses of whales. Furthermore, increases in threats to the survival and welfare of whales - resulting
from the intensifying and growing diversity of human activities in
and around the ocean - mean that relieving the ecological stress
caused by whaling is now even more urgent.
The wondrous, vulnerable whales will never contribute substantially to the food security of humans. Nor do they threaten it.
Despite insistent propaganda they’re not responsible for the
troubles of the fishing industry.
Commercial whaling is now unnecessary, is inhumane, and is
even unprofitable, continuing - subsidized - for minimal financial
gain.
Nevertheless, we in civil society insist on being conciliatory
and constructive. The three-year phase-in of zero catch limits after 1982 allowed six whaling countries to make the social and
economic adjustments needed to fold their operations. That should
be long enough now for a phase-down, and –out, of residual commercial whaling. The catches in that period should be fewer than
in recent seasons; no new whaling vessels should be brought into
service, and no new whaling operations begun. The phase-down
and -out should be fair to the whaling countries that did abide by
the IWC’s 1982 decision. Intransigence should not be rewarded.
If you decide to extend the life of the Small Working Group
we suggest you revise its terms of reference to include consideration of this option. And some other useful things could be started
during the phase-down and -out.
They include resuming negotiations for revising the ICRW.
And also launching more research - as promised to the United
Nations in 1972 - on the recovery of the whale populations and
ecosystems that were severely impacted by poorly regulated commercial whaling, as well as to gain more knowledge about the new
threats to cetaceans.
Those are our suggestions, from all six continents and many
small island states, including from all whaling countries.
A fuller version of them can be made available to delegations
and to the media in the normal way. It is also, posted on the ASOC
web-site.
Thank you.
Endorsed and Supported by:
American Cetacean Society, Animal Welfare Institute,
Asociacion de Biologia Marina de Guatemala**, Campaign Whale,
Canadian Marine Environment Protection Society, Centro de
Conservacion de Cetacea**, Cetacean Society International**,
Committee Ballena Azul**, Conservación de Mamíferos Marinos
de México**, Cousteau Society, Dolphin Connection, Environmental Investigation Agency, Eastern Caribbean Coalition for
Environmental Awareness**, Fundacion MonteCarlo Verde, Global Ocean, Humane Society International, The Humane Society
of the United States, Instituto de Conservación de Ballenas**, International Fund for Animal Welfare, International League for the
Protection of Oceans, International Marine Mammal Project of
Earth Island Institute, International Ocean Institute, Irish Seal
Sanctuary, Iruka and Kujira Action Network, LegaSeas International, Natural Resources Defense Council, NOAH, Norwegian
Society for the Protection of Animals, OceanCare, Pacific Orca
Society/Orcalab, Pew Environment Group, Pro Wildlife, Society
for the Conservation of Marine Mammals, Werk Groep Zeehound,
Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society, The Whaleman Foundation, World Society for the Protection of Animals, WWF*.
(* Some NGOs do not work on animal welfare issues, and as
such have no position on the welfare or cruelty aspects of whaling.)
(**direct support from CSI)
* * *
The Indian Ocean Cetacean Symposium was convened in
Maldives, 18-20 July 2009, to mark the 30th anniversary of the
1979 declaration by the IWC of the Indian Ocean Sanctuary (IOS).
Sixty delegates, from 15 government agencies, 13 NGOs, 6 IGOs
and 11 academic institutions, travelled from 22 countries to participate in the symposium. Results of cetacean research carried
out in 18 coastal countries (South Africa, Mozambique, Tanzania,
Mauritius, Madagascar, Comoros, France (Mayotte), Seychelles,
Oman, Pakistan, India, Maldives, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh,
Myanmar, Thailand, Indonesia and Australia) and the high seas
were presented at the symposium.
The IOS provides protection from commercial whaling for
all large whales and orca. However, whales now face threats from
other human activities in addition to whaling, for example pollution (including sound pollution), ship strikes and entanglements
with fishing gear. Small cetaceans are not covered by the provisions of the IOS, but are also facing many threats, including bycatch, direct catches in fisheries and habitat degradation.
Lankanfinolhu (Maldives) Declaration:
Celebrating the 30th anniversary of the International Whaling Commission’s Indian Ocean Sanctuary,
Noting the important role the IOS has had in stimulating cetacean conservation research in the region and in bringing together
the participants from coastal states for this symposium,
Recalling the substantial and illegal catches of large whales
taken from the Indian Ocean, especially during the 1960s,
Recognizing that more than two billion people live in countries bordering the Indian Ocean, many of whom depend upon its
marine resources for their livelihoods and food security,
Conscious of the ecological role of cetaceans in ensuring
Whales Alive! • October 2009 • Published by Cetacean Society International • Page 11
healthy coastal and marine ecosystems,
Valuing the welfare and continued existence of cetaceans in
the Indian Ocean,
Concerned by the declining health of Indian Ocean ecosystems and its impacts on all cetaceans, and in particular by the
continued by-catch of small cetaceans in the fishing gears of many
nations,
Noting the migratory nature of many cetaceans within the Indian Ocean,
Mindful of the growth of whale and dolphin watching within
the Indian Ocean, and the increased opportunities it provides for
employment, education and recreation in coastal communities,
Cognizant of the need for improved coordination,
prioritisation and cooperation in efforts to improve conservation
outcomes for all cetaceans throughout the Indian Ocean,
The participants in the Indian Ocean Cetacean Symposium,
Congratulate the International Whaling Commission on the
formation and the continuation of the Indian Ocean Sanctuary;
Recognize the important role played by the Republic of
Seychelles in the formation of the Indian Ocean Sanctuary;
Call upon the International Whaling Commission to ensure
the continuation of the Indian Ocean Sanctuary in perpetuity;
Stress the importance of improved education and awareness
at all levels of society for the conservation of cetaceans and the
sustainable use of marine ecosystems;
Encourage all fishing nations that have by-catches and directed catches of Indian Ocean cetaceans to greatly increase efforts to determine the scale of these catches and to reduce them to
the minimum level possible;
Urge all Indian Ocean coastal states to strengthen national
legislation and compliance (and where necessary enact new laws)
to protect all cetaceans and their habitats within their exclusive
economic zones;
Reiterate the commitments made under the United Nations
Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), Compliance Agree-
ments, the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation’s Code of Conduct on Responsible Fishing, and the UN Highly Migratory and
Straddling Stocks Agreement to conserve highly migratory species (a category which includes almost all cetaceans) and also the
marine mammals, and to manage fisheries for prey species in such
a manner as not to impede the biological productivity of dependent species;
Suggest that Indian Ocean coastal states promote implementation of the provisions under the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS) and further
foster regional arrangements/agreements to ensure the improved
conservation of all cetaceans;
Remind all Indian Ocean parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity of their commitments to protect at least 10% of
all ecosystems, including marine and coastal waters, and the opportunity this presents for the protection of cetacean hotspots and
critical habitats;
Urge organizations using seismic surveys for offshore oil, gas
and mineral exploration and production (and the countries in which
they operate) to adopt international best practice to minimize impacts on cetaceans;
Support the wider adoption of responsible whale and dolphin
watching guidelines and regulations, for the long-term benefit of
both cetaceans and humans;
Encourage Indian Ocean states, in collaboration with the IWC
and other relevant organizations to develop a collectively agreed
action plan to improve conservation outcomes for cetaceans in
the IOS;
Draw attention and agree to the fact that a small steering committee has been convened at the IOCS to assist in the scoping and
initiation of a possible action plan.
Adopted this 20th day of July 2009
Paradise Island Resort
Lankanfinolhu
Republic of Maldives
Report From The Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic’s Peter Sánchez has sent the following letter, which we are pleased to share as one of the many results
achieved from CSI’s grant program, and the exemplary collaboration between the Dolphin Fleet Whale Watch and Provincetown Center
for Coastal Studies. Thanks to the efforts of Dr. Carole Carlson, Dolphin Fleet Education Director, and Dr. Jooke Robbins, Director of
PCCS’s Humpback Whale Research, CSI grants since 2007 have assisted several specialists from the Dominican Republic to learn from
the world’s finest whale watch company and the phenomenal PCCS research team. CSI’s full grant program has awarded 59 new grants
since July, some of which may have ripple effects as significant as these reported by Peter Sánchez.
Dear Cetacean Society International,
I am writing to thank you for the incredible opportunities that
you have given me. In the summer of 2007 I was an intern of the
Dolphin Fleet Whale Watch and trained in photo-identification,
data collection and conservation messaging by Dr. Carole Carlson
and colleagues. When I returned home that year I wanted to apply
my new knowledge of whale research to studies of the humpback
whales and whale watching operations of Samaná Bay, Dominican Republic. In coordination with other students and local scientists, the project ‘From where do our whales come?’ was devel-
oped during the winter of 2008. The project was conducted on
local whale-watching vessels and collected data on the distribution of humpback whales in Samaná Bay as well as the photo identification of individuals. As a result of this project and through
collaboration with other institutions such as College of the Atlantic (COA) and Provincetown Center for Coastal Studies (PCCS),
we have identified more than 20 humpbacks from various regions
in the North Atlantic and developed an interactive, ongoing website.
Because of my experience in Provincetown in 2007 and
Samaná Bay in 2008, the Minister of Environment requested an
Whales Alive! • October 2009 • Published by Cetacean Society International • Page 12
interview and I was designated Coordinator of Operation of the
Marine Mammal Sanctuary Silver Bank, Navidad Bank and
Samaná Bay for the 2009 whale-watch season. My responsibilities included an evaluation of all whale-watch permits and the
monitoring of all scientific research conducted during the season.
At the same time I coordinated a team of volunteers to collect
photo-identification data for the 2008 project - A Catalogue of the
Humpback Whales of Samaná Bay.
This summer, again with support from CSI, I had the opportunity to receive more training, now in a comprehensive, joint effort of the Dolphin Fleet and the Provincetown Center for Coastal
Studies. It was the most amazing internship ever, to be trained on
the cutting edge of whale research, including disentanglement training, photo-identification, and database management. The highlight
was a research cruise through the Gulf of Maine. We visited the
College of the Atlantic where I looked through the Humpback
whale Catalog and the Bay of Fundy where I encountered species
that I had never seen before. I had an incredible time learning
from Dr. Jooke Robbins from PCCS who provided me with all the
information I needed to learn about conducting whale research.
I also was given the opportunity to navigate on the NOAA
vessel R/V Auk with the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary staff during an acoustic buoy survey, on the Dolphin Fleet
whale-watch boats for photo-identification and opportunistic data
collection, and the R/V Ibis from PCCS and R/V Shearwater for
photo identification, disentanglement calls and out of the United
States territorial waters cruises.
This internship, developed by PCCS and the DF, is an excellent way of teaching young scientists not only how to conduct
responsible research but how science can help the conservation
and protection of marine mammals throughout the world. CSI funding has reached far into the Dominican Republic where my colleagues and I are using the training I received on the Sister Sanctuary initiative for conservation, research and protection of our
shared marine mammals.
I now am home and renewing my contract with the Ministry
of Environment for coordinating the whale season of 2010. None
of this would have been possible without CSI and its supporters.
My sincere thanks to all of you in Cetacean Society International - you made all of this possible for me and made the difference in my story.
Sincerely,
Peter Sánchez.
Peter’s mention of the “Sister Sanctuary” is very significant
to CSI, especially for CSI Director Nathalie Ward, Ph.D., External Affairs Coordinator for the Stellwagen Bank National Marine
Sanctuary, where many humpbacks and CSI members enjoy watching each other. Because humpbacks also summer in Canadian
waters and winter in the Caribbean, Nathalie coordinates projects
with the Dominican Republic, French Antilles and Canada. The
big picture is an exemplary proof of the benefits derived from the
local public’s awareness about and concern for “their” whales,
and the nation’s recognition of the benefits of sophisticated, benign tourism.
Whales Alive! • October 2009 • Published by Cetacean Society International • Page 13
The Cove: Catch the Wave
By William Rossiter
The Tsunami now striking Taiji needs you. Tsunamis are
immensely powerful, move fast and far, but rarely have any effect
until they reach a shore, where they leave a wake of death and
destruction.
This tsunami instead intends to stop death and destruction.
Begun decades ago by heroic efforts to stop the slaughters of cetaceans by Japan, the wave is breaking on Japan right now, thanks
to the public and political awareness generated by “the Cove”
documentary. For weeks “The Cove” has swept film festivals, finally opening in public theaters, and it should be up for an Oscar
nomination! Bowing to relentless pressure even the Tokyo International Film Festival will screen “The Cove” on October 21st.
This magnificent film is giving Japan’s government and people a
new perspective.
Waves move fast. You either catch it or you don’t. If you don’t
renew your personal resolve to stop what Japan is doing to whales,
dolphins, and porpoises you will miss the wave. If you think you’re
too busy, or can’t contribute, or enough people are already on the
wave, you are wrong. This is the time to act.
OK, so what can you do? First, support the people leading
the wave. CSI recommends:
savejapandolphins.org, a consortium of the Animal Welfare
Institute, Campaign Whale, Earth Island Institute, Elsa Nature
Conservancy, In Defense of Animals, and Ocean Care. Ric O’Barry
is their dedicated and tireless campaign director and spokesperson, reluctant star of “The Cove”, and an absolutely brilliant communicator. As a sample, when asked: “With all of the ills of the
world, why do you think we should focus on dolphins?”, he replied: “The dolphin is a reference point in our relationship with
nature. The movie isn’t just about dolphins or the cove. The cove
opens to a bay, the bay opens to the sea, life goes on. The economy
is bad, but these problems are very real and serious. When this
kind of cruelty is absolute, people should oppose it.” “The Cove”
is making change happen, first by attracting a wave of worldwide
attention on the issue, and second by the way Japan is reacting to
that attention. Follow Ric O’Barry’s blog on Taiji at http://
www.savejapandolphins.org/blog.html
bluevoice.org, led by Hardy Jones, includes a focus on shifting the battle to the Japanese consumer, and the nation’s obsession with food safety. Much cetacean meat sold for human consumption is contaminated beyond government limits; it is risky
for humans to eat it. Hardy’s documentaries have been getting the
message out on major channels as the food safety issue sweeps
Japan’s consumers, bypassing any interference built against the
drives, or whaling. Jones works with many on this issue, such as
Tetsuya Endo, a professor at the Health Sciences University of
Hokkaido. Endo has documented cetacean meat sold at market as
having mercury levels far above Japan’s health limits, which allow higher levels than the World Health Organization. Endo documented mercury concentrations sufficient to cause nerve damage
in Taiji residents who ate the meat, even if only a few times per
month. Taiji residents had mercury levels about 10 times the na-
tional average. Underlying the government’s failure to issue adequate warnings, and efforts to suppress media articles on the hazard, may be a deep concern that the consumers will link contaminated cetacean meat with fish, which some Japanese eat three times
a day. What would happen if they were afraid to eat fish! Hardy
was one of the first activists at Iki Island, and he’s chronicled the
history of the slaughters there at Blueviews Blog.
Second, know the facts: For example, the Japan Fisheries
Agency reported that in 2008-09, Taiji fishermen caught 2800
dolphins and 20 false killer whales. 1,623 dolphins were killed in
2007 in Wakayama, the second-highest number in Japan after Iwate
Prefecture. Eight prefectures are permitted to hunt dolphins and
porpoises, over 20,000 small cetaceans per year. The majority are
Dall’s porpoises, killed at sea near Hokkaido.
Do not be misled by the propaganda, for example, that no
dolphins have been killed in the Taiji drive since September. The
increasingly secretive operation has captured hundreds of dolphins
and small whales since then, killed all the small whales for food,
kept well over 50 dolphins for sale to captive displays, and released the remaining dolphins with no concern for their survival.
Japan decries criticism of the continuing drives as an insult to the
nation’s culture and heritage. But all enlightened nations routinely
reject what is no longer acceptable in the modern world. Japan,
for example, no longer permits armed Samurai warriors to maintain order by violence, but it used to be acceptable for them to kill
people just to verify the grade of their swords.
For the scientific perspective on the drives see http://
www.actfordolphins.com/, the “Scientist Statement Against the
Japanese Dolphin Drive Hunts”. Citing scientific literature on the
mental, emotional, and social characteristics of dolphins, this consortium of scientists and zoo and aquarium professionals formally
condemned Japan’s dolphin drive hunts in August 2006. With exceptionally potent words they argue with facts that the hunts are
“an astonishingly cruel violation of any reasonable welfare standards and should end immediately,” because “The methods of
slaughter employed on these highly intelligent and sentient beings
constitute a level of cruelty that any nation should find intolerable.” To be clear, some of the signers represent captive display
and military interests, some with a prior history of acquiring cetaceans from the dolphin drives.
Third, don’t support the slaughters by supporting the captive
display industry with your ticket to see the show, or “swim with”
captive dolphins. The worldwide industry is expanding because
people want to be entertained, without thinking about the price
the dolphins and whales pay to be locked up waiting to perform
tricks, even if the tricks are called “behaviors.” Many of the dolphins and small whales plucked from the killing bays for sale for
display end up in Asia, where animal welfare issues should make
any caring person shudder. But don’t think that’s too far away to
be linked with someplace closer to home; the international shuttle
trade would astound you.
Whales Alive! • October 2009 • Published by Cetacean Society International • Page 14
The World Association of Zoos and Aquariums (WAZA) is
the world’s largest network of zoos and aquariums, including the
Japanese Association of Zoos and Aquariums (JAZA). Several of
JAZA’s members trade and display cetaceans captured in the drives.
WAZA’s high-sounding self-description carefully avoids their refusal to pressure or expel JAZA for actions far outside WAZA’s
Code of Ethics.
The Alliance for Marine Mammal Parks and Aquariums and
its members now “strongly condemn the Japanese drive fisheries”
in a statement on its web site. Ironically found in the “What’s
New!” section, and coincidental to the success of “The Cove”,
this policy only recently appeared, years after CSI first urged the
Alliance’s officers to condemn the drives, but they wanted to keep
all sourcing options open. The reason “Not one animal in an Alliance member facility or interactive program is from Japan” is true
now is that they have all died!
CSI’s Bill Rossiter didn’t know these false killer whales at
SeaWorld San Diego likely were survivors of Taiji or Iki Island
slaughters when he took this picture, thinking he just was documenting the demeaning, dangerous “petting pools” that CSI and
other NGOs are still fighting to shut down. Nor did he know that
the Miami Seaquarium, Indianapolis Zoological Society, and the
US Navy then had bottlenose dolphins, Risso’s dolphins, and false
killer whales obtained from drives at Iki Island and Taiji. Give
thanks to Earth Island Institute’s successful fight to prevent Marine World Africa USA (now Six Flags Discovery Kingdom,
Vallejo, CA) from importing four false killer whales sourced from
these drives in 1993. NMFS denied that permit, the media picked
up the story, and imports to the US stopped. But Japan markets
the drive survivors worldwide, each worth around US$150,000
after basic training. Stop the market by stopping the profit. Just
don’t support cetacean captivity, and convince others to stay away
also.
Meanwhile, you can expect Japan to fight all opposition as a
matter of national interest. When Broome, Australia announced in
August that “it will be unable to fulfill its pledge as a sister town
with Taiji while the practice of harvesting dolphins exists,” the
pressures from Japan must have become intense, because by October three Broome Shire councilors had manipulated the reversal
of that policy, bringing the council and town international shame
for announcing that Broome “unreservedly apologizes to the Japa-
nese community in Broome and Taiji, their families and friends
for any disrespect caused by the council’s resolution (and) the
haste with which the decision was made.” We expect that, as the
reasons for this humiliating capitulation become media fodder,
Broome will become a synonym for expediency over principle.
Each of us has many reasons and ways to oppose Japan’s
drives and whaling. CSI Director Jean Rioux’s Nantucket Marine
Mammal Conservation Program this summer solicited thousands
of signatures on petitions opposing the drive. CSI Director Taffy
Williams, President of the New York Whale and Dolphin Action
League, http://www.ny4whales.org/, produced a successful Dolphin Day Protest in New York City on September 1st. At least 35
activists gathered in front of the Japanese Consulate to protest the
slaughter of dolphins and whales still sanctioned by the Japanese
government. Members of NY4Whales.org, WAR (Win Animal
Rights), and Sea Shepherd Conservation Society passed out flyers, gathered petition signatures and held signs, while chanting
protest songs at the entrance to the consulate. The youngest activist was eight, energetically passing out flyers and gathering signa-
The New York Dolphin Day Protest.
Photos courtesy of Taffy Williams.
Whales Alive! • October 2009 • Published by Cetacean Society International • Page 15
tures for Cetacean Society International’s Petition to Stop the
Slaughter of Dolphins in Japan. You don’t have to be eight to find
a way to express yourself about Japan’s slaughters! Join the wave
now!
Non-Invasive Research
By William Rossiter
CSI is an animal welfare organization that yearly, with foundation support, gives away over ten times our basic operating budget in grants for science, conservation and education projects that
benefit cetaceans. Because of ethical and welfare issues we don’t
fund invasive research.
CSI respects and uses data from, for example, biopsy samples
from a dolphin to define the impact of marine contaminants, but
that’s not where our money and other support goes. Instead we
enthusiastically support innovative projects that do no harm, and
especially the young people who don’t want to use invasive methods during their developing careers. But the current trend within
the marine mammal sciences is to develop and deploy invasive
techniques and gadgets that gather data faster and easier than noninvasive methods, occasionally rationalizing the cost to the animals as compared to the benefit from the data. Welfare issues officially are considered in such projects, but not stringently enough.
Again, CSI is an animal welfare organization; we advocate for
social values that question the necessity of research that causes
suffering and death. We support that advocacy with grants. We are
purposefully fostering a generation of professionals who will provide benefit to cetaceans and the marine environment without doing
harm. But many students are directed by advisors to use invasive
methods for their masters or PhD projects, because options don’t
seem to exist. But in many cases options do exist:
Non-Invasive Study of Mammalian Populations, by William E. Evans and A. V. Yablokov, provides those options for all
mammal species, not just marine varieties. This no-nonsense scientific book is the first to advocate for a non-invasive approach to
the study of mammalian populations in nature. It is remarkable
for the authors’ credentials alone, which should empower the book
to reach out to the many scientists who want to do no harm, as
well as those who prefer to believe non-lethal, non-harmful research options don’t exist. But few people know of this 2004 book
(CSI didn’t, and just received a copy, thanks to Dr. Evans), and
fewer have read it, because its 142 pages, including indexes, costs
$122.50 on Amazon.com! It is frustrating to have eminent, eloquent arguments opposing invasive research that will never reach
the people who need them, because it’s just too expensive.
The book challenges invasive research techniques, for example, by emphasizing the “phenetics” approach over the genetics approach. “Phenes” are any character of individual animals
which can be used as genetic markers; they express the genetic
makeup of an individual. Of course there’s a lot more to it, but
you have to read the book. It’s too expensive, so CSI is willing to
loan our copy to people who can convince us of their need. Try us.
Notes
• Individualized photographic certificates are now available for new CSI members. If we know their favorite species of
whale or dolphin we will use an appropriate and dramatic image
as a background. These are particularly suited to gift memberships, so if you know of someone who might enjoy being part of
CSI please let us know.
• CSI’s educational flyer on cetaceans in captivity is still available. We will be glad to send one as a sample to anyone who
requests it. Contact: CSI, P.O. Box 953, Georgetown, CT 06829
U.S.A.
• Current and previous issues of Whales Alive! as well as our
Photo Gallery and other features can be found on CSI’s web site.
Check it out at:
csiwhalesalive.org
Cetacean Society International
c/o Brent Hall
460 Wallingford Road
Cheshire, CT 06410
U.S.A.
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