Posts by Courtney Vail
More bottlenose driven into the cove in Taiji, Japan
Recent reports from Taiji reveal the tragic chase, capture and slaughter of at least two separate small pods of bottlenose dolphins on November 10th. Of these driven and captured, five dolphins were selected alive for aquaria shortly after the herding occurred, while three were reportedly released back into the ocean. The remaining 8-10 dolphins were…
Read MoreNot again! Yet another drive hunt
Marna Olsen continues her reporting from Taiji, Japan It was hard to believe, but again this morning hunting boats grouped together out by the horizon. Black smoke could be seen, which is an indicator of fast movement. Another drive hunt was happening. The species hunted was Risso’s dolphins. The pod was very small, only 6-8…
Read MoreFirst kill of striped dolphins this season in Taiji
The cove turned red today. Blood flowed from underneath the tarps covering the killing zone. Not everything can be hidden from us, the observers. It all happened very fast. We had arrived at the usual lookout point early this morning and were appreciating the amazing red and pink colored sunrise when after a few minutes…
Read MoreOn Red Cove days, good team spirit is needed most
Another update is provided from the ground in Taiji, Japan by Hans Peter Roth and Marna Olsen on behalf of WDC. One should never get used to Blue Cove days. They will end eventually. Like yesterday. After eight consecutive days with no hunt in spite of relatively good hunting conditions, we had queasy feelings early…
Read MoreThose who are not counted
Marna Olsen and Hans Peter Roth provide another update from their monitoring activities in Taiji, Japan on behalf of WDC. It could be seen from afar, as there were crows circling above it. A carcass of a Risso’s dolphin presently lying on the beach between the big Taiji lighthouse and our vantage point, where we…
Read MoreNo Mercy for Dolphins
Guest blog’s from Marna Olsen and her trip to Taiji to monitor the dolphin drive hunts on behalf of WDC continue. Marna’s first few days were uneventful, but she reports on a recent hunt of Risso’s dolphins that occurred October 19th, her fifth day of monitoring. October 16th What will it be like? I’ve asked…
Read MoreHeading to Taiji with Mixed Feelings
WDC guest blogger, Marna Olsen, is a Faroese anti-hunt campaigner who has travelled to Taiji in Japan, scene of the notorious dolphin drive hunts, to help WDC monitor activities in the region, provide updates on the hunts, and continue to foster positive relationships in Japan. She is joined by Hans Peter Roth, a Swiss journalist…
Read MoreGeorgia Aquarium Permit Denial Stands: Court rules in favor of beluga whales
The appeal by Georgia Aquarium to overturn and invalidate the decision to deny its request for a permit to import 18 beluga whales from Russia is officially closed. On September 28th, the federal district court in Atlanta officially dismissed Georgia Aquarium’s motion for summary judgment, which practically means the original import permit denial issued by…
Read MoreBottlenose and Risso’s dolphins first victims of drive hunts in Taiji
The first slaughter of the drive hunt season which officially began on September 1st commenced with the brutal killing of at least 16 Risso’s dolphins that were herded into the killing cove on September 10th. Reports from Taiji also reveal the tragic chase, capture and round-up of as many as 80 bottlenose dolphins on September…
Read MoreJapan Dolphin Day signals the beginning of another dolphin drive hunt season in Japan
An international day of awareness again marked the beginning of the dolphin drive hunt season in Taiji, Japan with events occurring all over the globe in at least 50 countries on September 1st. WDC supports these activities, otherwise known as Japan Dolphin Day, to raise awareness to the start of the seasonal dolphin hunts and…
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