The capture and hunting of dolphins is becoming a serious issue. Why would people do such horrible things? Concrete reasons include bait for other animals like fish and crabs, fishing competitions for fish (dolphins like fish too), accidental trappings in nets, accidental collisions with boats, among others. The most extreme is killing just for the hell of it. A prime example of this would be Taiji, Japan. For those of you who don’t know, Japan gets a bad reputation for dolphin hunting. And they should. This reputation doesn’t stop them though — not by a long shot. Japan isn’t the only country with a history. Places like Peru, Indonesia, Denmark, Vietnam and Tanzania.
I won’t go into too many gory details with the process, but I will give an overview because it must be known. With that in mind, read on at your own discretion. Most of the time the killers will use sounds to throw off the dolphins’ echolocation. This cause distress, confusion and disorientation to the animals. There are led to a cove where they are separated from the families and selected their fate. The main choices are: Slaughter, captivity for entertainment and trading, or being released back into the wild. Don’t get too happy about the last choice. Very few dolphins get the chance, and when they do, they can be permanently traumatized that they can simply die of it. It can actually happen.
With the ones that are picked for entertainment, usually it’s the elders, ones of reproducing age, pregnant females, juveniles, and babies. Once they’re in their new locations, they are even more miserable, if that’s even possible. Their new living conditions are cramped and sometimes not up to par on the proper hygiene. Being confined can turn these once gently creatures aggressive on their trainers. We can also see this with whales. Many die young in captivity. In the wild, they can live up to their 80’s and 90’s, but in captivity, they’re lucky to make it to 20.
The brutality doesn’t end there. We must not forget the dolphins that are outright slaughtered. A gruesome method is stabbing a spike into their spine to cause paralysis. This is to keep the dolphins “in line” for extended death. The killings happen typically behind tarps and curtains to keep passerby from watching and reporting the events. It’s one thing to know you’re doing a bad thing. It’s another to hide it as if you’re ashamed of it. Some hunters kill the dolphins with whatever happens to be at hand. The deaths can take 30 minutes to perhaps an hour. While the poor creatures wait for death, they are lying in pools of their blood as well as their families’.
Dolphins are very social creatures. They can stay with pods for years after they’re born. Leaving their pods would be a true rarity. Like I mentioned before, separated from their families can cause stress which can lead to lack of eating and decreased repopulating. These are big contributing factors to their deaths. Another is beaching. With noise pollution (noises that interfere with the dolphins’ echolocation), it can stress to the point where they beach themselves to escape it all.
What can you do? Acknowledging that it’s an actual problem is a start. Don’t capture and/or hunt dolphins. It’s just that simple. Get informed. The 2009 documentary "The Cove" highlights the Taiji, Japan situation specifically. Joining organizations (like "Sea Shepard" and "Save the Japan Dolphins"), signing petitions, and going to rallies are chances to meet other dolphin lovers that just want to help. Reduce, reuse and recycle. Pick up litter. The little things count as well. Every contribution made to help dolphins will be invaluable.
