I’ve been putting off watching "The Cove" for a long time, but after being invited to a screening of it by Sea Shepherd South Africa, I knew it was time.

The COVE

Every year from September until March, the little town of Taiji, Japan, turns into a bloodbath where thousands of dolphins and small whales are being slaughtered. The Taiji Fishermen herd wild dolphins and small whales from the ocean’s open water into a shallow bay, which is hidden from the public. They do this by using sound barriers to disorient the dolphins. These sound barriers also make the dolphins believe there are high walls so they can't jump over the nets. After herding them into the hidden lagoons, the massacre begins. The slaughter is absolutely inhumane with dolphins sometimes still alive when they get hauled to the slaughterhouse. Those that are taken for captivity will serve the rest of their lives entertaining us in marine parks and aquariums.

The fishermen are told that dolphins are pests, that they’re eating all the fish. Nothing could be further from the truth. Overfishing by man should be a concern to everyone. The rate at which humans are removing fish from the ocean for consumption is unsustainable. If this continues, by 2048 all the ocean’s fish species will be decimated. Dolphins are the ones that keep a balance of the ocean’s fish. It is clearly humans that are a pest when it comes to our ocean’s fish.

There’s a whole lot more you can read on the website of Sea Shepherd, The Dolphin Project and the COVE.

The link with dolphin shows

So who feeds this killing? We do, by buying a ticket to a dolphin show.

Going to a dolphin show seems very innocent and most parents think it’s a great way for their children to learn about dolphins. Dolphinariums even promote themselves as contributing to education. I wonder what people learn from seeing a dolphin show? Other than giving your children the message that dominance is right. Ric O’ Barry calls dolphinariums a spectacle of dominance. He continues: “Do you still think we need dolphins to do stupid tricks for us to learn more about them? We don’t need to see a dolphin to know what a dolphin is.”

These dolphinariums play a very active role in sustaining the hunt because they are always looking for more dolphins. Once the fishermen have driven a school of bottlenose dolphins to the cove, dolphin trainers and marine mammal veterinarians seek out the best-looking dolphin who will have to serve a life sentence in a concrete box for absolutely no crime. These live dolphins bring in a much higher profit ($300000) than a dead dolphin ($600) does.That’s why dolphinariums are the major reason why this killing continues.

Why it’s important to save dolphins

Dolphins are very important to the eco-system because they control populations of fishes and therefore keep the ecosystem in balance. According to The Institute of Marine Mammal Studies, dolphins also act as a bio-indicator, which means that dolphins are an indicator if something is wrong with their ocean environment. That’s why dolphin studies help protect other marine animals as well as us humans because we eat some of the same sea foods.

Not only do they play an important role in the ecosystem, there’s also a lot that we can learn from them! They are very intelligent and have probably a much higher emotional quotiënt than most people do. Dolphins have the ability to interact and to live in harmony with their own species as with others. Wouldn’t it be amazing if all of us could live in harmony no matter what race, skin colour and background?

How can you help the dolphins of Taiji?

First of all, don’t buy a ticket to a dolphin show and don’t swim with dolphins nor take photos with them. Also, spread this information with everyone you know. Change is only possible when people know the truth. It’s when the demand of dolphin tickets stops, the cruel activities in Taiji will stop.

Check out the website of The Dolphin Project and Sea Shepherd to find out what more you can do (there’s a lot)!

Listen here to what Richard O’ Barry has to say:

www.ten-daji.com

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