NEWSWORTHY
The Wakayama District Court began hearing arguments Friday over whether dolphin hunting violates animal cruelty laws. The plaintiffs are asking the court to stop the permits from being issued. Wakayama Gov. Yoshinobu Nisaka issues the permits for the town of Taiji, where the hunts have drawn ...
Environmental campaigners have filed an unprecedented lawsuit in a bid to halt the so-called drive hunting of dolphins in Taiji, Wakayama Prefecture, arguing that the practice is cruel and illegal. In drive hunting, fishermen force dolphins into a cove by beating on boats to disorient ...
The lethal consequences of misclassifying dolphins
Japan's animal welfare regulations could halt the Taiji slaughter if Japanese law categorized dolphins as mammals instead of fish.
The U.S. government Friday took a big step toward opening oil and gas drilling in the Atlantic Ocean by approving seismic airgun tests that experts warn are harmful to dolphins and whales. Last year, President Donald Trump signed an executive order to expand offshore drilling, ...
Japanese aquariums are beginning to consider breeding bottlenose dolphins through artificial insemination as a way to maintain their numbers and avoid continued international criticism of displaying dolphins caught in the wild. A small male dolphin swimming with its mother has become a major attraction at ...
Proliferation of marine parks in China fueling shadowy trade in cetaceans
Eight beluga whales jump in unison out of a bright blue indoor pool, flipping their tail fins and spewing water as a packed audience cheers and snaps photographs. Whale shows like the one at Chimelong Ocean Kingdom, located in Zhuhai on China's southern coast, are ...
Dead dolphins wash up in Florida, diseased seals die in northeastern U.S.
Over the past two months, dozens of dead dolphins have washed ashore in Florida and hundreds of diseased seals have died in the northeastern United States, officials said Friday. The unusual deaths have prompted officials to declare two special investigations to find out why, and ...
Activists alarmed over bottlenose dolphin, penguins abandoned at closed Japanese aquarium
The plight of a lonely bottlenose dolphin and dozens of penguins that have been abandoned in a derelict aquarium since the start of the year sparked protests this week, with activists and ordinary people alike calling for the animals to be saved. The female dolphin, ...
'Devastating' dolphin loss seen in Florida red tide disaster
A state of emergency has been declared in Florida as the worst red tide in a decade blackens the ocean water, killing dolphins, sea turtles and fish at a relentless pace. More than 100 tons of dead sea creatures have been shoveled up from smelly, ...
Bridge to China brings threat for Hong Kong's native pink dolphin
Hong Kong's rare pale pink dolphins are battling for survival as building work on a 19-mile (31-km) bridge linking the Asian financial hub with China disrupts the communication and feeding activities of the highly sociable animals, marine experts say. The Chinese white dolphin, which appears ...
Defying criticism, Taiji pushes forward with bold plans based on continued dolphin hunts
A few years back, the normally sleepy town of Taiji in Wakayama Prefecture was filled with activists furious with its traditional dolphin hunt, which was featured in "The Cove," a 2009 Academy Award-winning documentary. But as the fury ebbs, the town is now betting its ...
Big and brilliant: Study links large size of sperm whale's brain to complex social behavior
Cetaceans — whales and dolphins — are among the brainiest of beings. In terms of sheer brain size, the sperm whale is tops on Earth, with a brain six times larger than that of a person. And now, scientists have identified key differences among cetaceans ...
