As this is Animalia’s 1000th post, I decided it would be worth posting something significant. An anonymous requested an appearance of this subject, but I warn you, it is quite gruesome and upsetting.
As I’m sure many of you all know, the small town of Taiji, located in the Higashimuro District of Wakayama (Japan), is a place of picturesque beauty and hidden horrors. Between early September and March each year, dolphins and small whales are gathered by fisherman and slaughtered in the coves of the Taiji shores. Fishermen slay the dolphins by driving a pin into their necks, by slashing their throats with knives or by spearing them with long harpoons from their boats. The water turns literally red with their blood. More than 20,000 of these intelligent and social animals are being slaughtered each year and their meat is being sold as food in Japan. A few will be kept alive to be sold into the captive whale and dolphin industry, where they may suffer for years. Can you believe that the majority of the world is unaware that this is happening!? Japan is not alone in hunting aquatic mammals, but it is fair to say that Japan is a global leader when it comes to continuing these practices.
Please, please, please take a look at http://www.savejapandolphins.org/ where you can help by donating and signing a petition (http://apps.facebook.com/causes/petitions/252). It only takes a moment of your time and every single person can make a difference.
I would also recommend watching the Oscar-winning movie “The Cove”, where ‘a team of activists and filmmakers infiltrate a heavily-guarded cove in Taiji, Japan’.
I will say no more as I believe you should see for yourself. But the provided images are rather graphic, so be warned.
