The one who escapes

The latest news from the Cove in Taiji, Japan.
By Hans Peter Roth – WDCS rep on the ground.

The one who escapes
23.01.2011

Today it’s the Rissos dolphins’ turn again. After a long drive a dozen of them were trapped in the killing cove. Outside the harbour of Taiji the dolphin school of approx. 20 individuals suddenly splits up. About 8 dolphins couldn’t be captured. The rest are driven to their deaths.

Rissos dolphins are too heavy to be lifted on board the boats. A hunting vessel drags the dead dolphins tied to the side of the boat with cords and covered with green sheets to the harbour of Taiji. The hunters are forearmed against uninvited guests taking photos or videos here. The place where the dolphins are slaughtered is well covered with blue sheets.

Then I nearly dropped the camera. One surviving Rissos dolphin is swimming in the harbour! He must belong to the group that didn’t get caught and escaped. The individual must have got lost in the harbour. Again and again I could spot its back and dorsal fin with the unmistakable pattern. The dolphin is swimming in circles near the dolphin pens and is not leaving into the open ocean.
I watch nervously to see what is going to happen. It doesn’t take long until the boats with the hunters and nets are arriving. It is easy for the hunters to circle the anxious dolphin with a net. The social animal isn’t moving away from the nets because it hears the calls of his friends. The net is closed and the hunters drag the dolphin out of the water and place him onto a sling. Where will they take him? To the pens? To a dolphinarium? To the slaughterhouse? I wait fearfully.

The boat with the sling is passing – and heading to the open ocean. I hurry to the view point. Approx. one nautical mile from the harbour the hunters release the dolphin – alive – and return. At least one dolphin survived today.

If we were not watching the dolphin, certainly he would have become killed. I am convinced of that. I hope he finds his group soon and warns them: The waters of Taiji are dangerous.

Hans Peter Roth

This entry was posted by Rachel Bailey on Tuesday, February 1. 2011 at 10:59. and is filed under Cetacean Captivity. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own blog. All new comments are subject to moderation before being displayed.

Defined tags for this entry: drive fishery, taiji, wdcs, whaling

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The one who escapes