THE COVE PROJECT
BY: MR. MARTELL’S ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE CLASS
INTRO
• The Cove is a movie about Dolphin Killing in Taiji, Japan
• Taiji is located on the south east coast of Japan
• Dolphins are captured and sold to aquariums/parks
• The remaining 20,000 dolphins are killed each year
DOLPHIN FACTS
• Dolphins will sometimes commit suicide in captivity
• Dolphins develop their own individual whistles
• They appear to be fascinated with pregnant women
DOLPHIN FACTS
• They sleep with only half of their brain at a time
• Excellent eyesight and hearing – using echolocation
• Communicate by clicking, whistling, and other sounds
DOLPHIN BEHAVIOR
• Dolphins may travel alone or in groups
• Calves maintain “baby position” next to mothers
• Remain in mothers care for several years
FEEDING
• Herd fish into a group and attack from the bottom
• Fish tossing
• Diving and chasing after fish
“Baby position”
DOLPHIN BEHAVIOR CONT.
SOCIALIZING
• Breeding, playing, aggression, and gentle body contact,
such as rubbing are social interactions
WHAT IS DISTURBANCE?
Causes:
- easily disturbed by people, watercraft
- when approached too quickly, closely, noisily
Signs:
- abrupt changes in speed or direction
- rapid swimming at surface
- female shielding calf
- repeated tail slapping, breaching, exhaling loudly
WHAT REALLY HAPPENS IN TAIJI
• Dolphin hunting occurs September – May
• Some sold to marine parks for up to $200 thousand
• Remaining 20,000 or more are slaughtered
• Butchered dolphins are used for food (school lunches)
• Risk of mercury poisoning – leads to serious health problems
• Japanese citizens are unaware.
WHAT REALLY HAPPENS IN TAIJI
WHAT REALLY HAPPENS IN TAIJI
MERCURY AFFECTS
• Toxic effects include damage to the brain, kidney, and lungs
• Symptoms include sensory impairment of vision, hearing, speech
• Sources of high levels of mercury include eating whale &
dolphin meat
• Japanese government is fully aware and ignores the problem
allowing meat to be sold
• Japanese consumers are unaware that it’s dolphin meat
PROS AND CONS
Pros:
- Provides jobs
- Pumps money into the
economy
- Pests
- Captivity
Cons:
- Endangers dolphins
- Not killed humanely
- Mercury
- Illegal
- Dolphins are aware
- Unknown how extensively
their species have been
depleted
- Ecosystem balance is
thrown off
CONSERVATION EFFORTS
• Educating people
• Not served in school lunches
• Dolphin killing continues
WHAT COULD YOU DO?
•
Contact marine parks and aquariums, tell them you do NOT
support them getting their dolphins from the wild.
•
Boycott from going to marine parks and aquariums until they
change their methods.
•
•
WORD OF MOUTH! Tell your friends and family!
•
Visit our website: http://helpsavethedolphinstoday.weebly.com/
Use the hashtags #SaveTheDolphins and #StopTaiji to spread
the word!
SOURCES
• Website name: Dolphin Smart Page Name: Wild Dolphin Behaviors
URL:http://sanctuaries.noaa.gov/dolphinsmart/pdfs/behavior_factsh
eet.pdf
• Website name: OPS (oceanic preservation society) Page Name:
Dolphin Slaughter in Taiji URL: http://www.opsociety.org
• Website name: MedicineNet Page Name: Mercury Poisoning URL:
http://www.medicinenet.com/mercury_poisoning/article.htm
• Website name: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Page Name:
Mercury URL: http://www.epa.gov/hg/effects.htm
SOURCES CONT.
•
Website name: The Cove Movie Page name: Blog URL:
http://www.thecovemovie.com/_blog/Blog
•
Website name: Save the Dolphins Page name: Starting a Cove
Club at Your School URL:
http://www.savejapandolphins.org/cove_club \
•
Website name: BlueVoice Page name: Dolphins URL:
http://www.bluevoice.org/dolphins.php
•
Website name: Luna Whaling Page name: Whaling – Con &
Pro URL: http://luna.pos.to/whale/gen_con_pro_whaling.html
•
Website name: OPS (oceanic preservation society) Page
name: What you can do after seeing The Cove URL:
http://opsociety.org/what-you-can-do/after-seeing-the-cove
SOURCES CONT.
•
Website name: International Whaling Page name: Pros and
Cons of Whaling URL:
http://pub.mtholyoke.edu/journal/whaling/entry/pros_and_c
ons_of_whaling
•
Website name: Encyclopedia Britannica ADVOCACY for
ANIMALS Page name: Dolphin Slaughter in Japan URL:
http://advocacy.britannica.com/blog/advocacy/2009/04/do
lphin-slaughter-in-japan/
•
Website name: Scientific American Page name: What is
Mercury Poisoning? URL:
http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/jeremy-pivenmercury-poisoning/