80 Dolphins Captured in Taiji, Japan, Their Fate Unknown, Please Help Stop the Slaughter

by Ellinorianne

The Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society has footage of 80 dolphisn that were captured at the Cove in Taiji, Japan.

If you are not familiar with the The Cove, it was made famous by the Oscar winning documentary of the same name, starring Ric O'Barry, activist and dolphin expert who has taking a surprising stand on what he thinks we should do about the future slaughters that might be taking place in the cove.

Every year the Japanese residents, beginning on September first, of the small fishing town of Taiji, round up dolphins and some of them are sold to aquariums around the world and the rest are slaughtered and their meat is sold for human consumption.

continued at Daily Kos....

Bioaccumulation: the gift that keeps on giving

by mwmwm

Bioaccumulation.

It's what's for dinner.

And lunch, and breakfast. Its danger depends a bit on whether you're flora or fauna, insect or mammal, baby or oldster -- and, of course, what you've accumulated.

But it's dangerous, and on the rise.

continued at Daily Kos....

Scenes from a whale watch

by juliewolf

To start, a note: all these are thumbnails, pointing to photos over twice their size (just click on them to visit my web site).

Fair warning: I'm not going to include a lot of comments about the trip.  I just want to say that this is something I very much needed and I'm glad we made it, despite the universe's attempts to thwart us (I had to call Newburyport Whale Watch to ask them to wait for us, since we were delayed by traffic and construction).

After the other photos, I've got a couple comments, some personal, some political.

continued at Daily Kos....

Whales: "No future, except extinction" - biologist

by worldforallpeopleorg

The ocean is still pretty - if you steer your yaught clear of the oily sections and swirling eddies of millions of tons of plastic garbage. But it is not healthy.  

"I don't see any future for whale species except extinction. This not on anybody's radar, no government's radar anywhere, and I think it should be."

The canary in the coal mine has become the whale in the ocean. New information;

continued at Daily Kos....

eKos Earthship Monday: Monsanto's "Defeat" in Supreme Court?

by eKos

Welcome to the eKos Earthship, your one-stop-shop for green diaries and series.
Beneath the fold you will find news and notes, community announcements, and our eco-diary roundup.
Peruse the eKos Library to find previously listed diaries. You can also follow eKos on Twitter.
Tonight's editor: Ellinorianne
All views expressed by today's editor do not necessarily represent those of eKos or eKos listed diarists.


continued at Daily Kos....

Suffering Blue Whales Plead With Environmentalists To Let Them Go Extinct Already

by Ellinorianne

The planet's last few thousand blue whales gathered around the Greenpeace vessel Rainbow Warrior in the Bering Sea at approximately 9:45 a.m., thanking the activists on board for their good intentions, but also stating that the oceans had become so polluted, they had decided it was simply not worth going on.

"We really appreciate all you've done for us, but now you need to let us die," intoned a 170-ton blue whale through a series of deep and mournful vocalizations. "I swallowed two plastic coolers, a tire, and about a hundred gallons of oil this morning. Is that any way to live?"

The whale reportedly delivered an angry 45-minute speech complaining about the debilitating noise of naval sonar, excruciating collisions with massive ocean vessels, the lack of mates who haven't been tagged for some scientific experiment, depleted sources of krill, and the very high likelihood of getting cancer from the PCBs in the water.

"I know you've been really excited about helping us ever since that whole 'Save the Whales' craze began back in the '70s," the whale said. "But I think we can agree that the past 35 years have basically been a death march, so let's just part ways."

continued at Daily Kos....

The Mysterious Illness Hitting Gulf Workers Now Identified As 'TILT'

by Ellinorianne

This is part of the huge disaster in the Gulf, the human costs of the clean up and the lack of protective gear.  And they are dealing with horrible working conditions due to heat and humidity.

Many are coming down with mysterious illnesses as well which as been idtenfied as TILT.

For a few days now, we've been hearing and reading about Gulf cleanup workers and people living close to the Gulf coming down with strange 'flu-like' symptoms.  The true diagnosis was difficult, because flu symptoms are common in the illness that's actually overcoming these workers - now patients.  It's called TILT, short for Toxicant-Induced Loss of Tolerance.

Source

continued at Daily Kos....

POEM/PICS: Gulf/Oil(Whales/Dolphins) - Humanity, what hast thou wrought ...

by ArthurPoet

The poem&pics are below the fold, but first, please see Eileen's diary: * PICS of Oil-Soaked Wildlife (may you keep those dark images in your mind's eye) And... * I keep thinking about those Sperm Whales ... Oil Spill to Wipe Out Gulf's Sperm Whales? If the Gulf of Mexico oil spill kills just three sperm whales, it could seriously endanger the long-term survival of the Gulf's native whale population, scientists say. Right now between 1,400 and 1,660 sperm whales live year-round in the Gulf of Mexico, making up a distinct population from other Atlantic Ocean groups, in which males make yearly migrations. All sperm whales are considered endangered under the US Endangered Species Act. But the Gulf of Mexico population is thought to be especially vulnerable due to its relatively small size.

continued at Daily Kos....