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Whale and Dolphin Conservation partners with local artist for art auction

PLYMOUTH, MA - Whale and Dolphin Conservation (WDC) has partnered with local artist Erik Simmons...
dolphin FB Fundraiser

e.l.f. Cosmetics announces new “porpoise-ful” initiative to benefit Whale and Dolphin Conservation

For Immediate Release, March 16, 2023 OAKLAND, CA - On the fins of its first...

Kiska the ‘world’s loneliest whale’ dies at Canadian theme park

Kiska, dubbed the loneliest whale in the world, has died at Marineland, a zoo and...
Grey seal is released from the kennel on the ocean side of Duxbury Beach

Why did the seal cross the road? WDC responds to a grey seal near Gurnet Point in Plymouth, MA

Grey seal is released from the kennel on the ocean side of Duxbury Beach For...

Wild caught dolphins on display for Olympic Winter Games

According to information received by WDC and partner group, OceanCare, dolphins caught during the cruel Japanese drive hunts are now thought to be held in dolphinaria in Sochi, Russia – venue for this year’s Winter Olympic Games. Other dolphins and small whales, captured in Russian waters, are also on display in the city. 

The dolphin hunts in Taiji, Japan are fuelled by the demand from the global amusement park industry, which selects and pays huge sums for young dolphins that will appear in ‘entertainment’ shows for the public if they survive the transportation ordeal. According to official trade statistics, in 2012 four bottlenose dolphins were exported to Russia. Existing captive dolphin facilities in the Russian Black Sea port of Sochi have been enlarged, and new aquaria built there following the decision to host the Games in the city.

According to Russian news reports, an endangered Black Sea bottlenose dolphin will drag an athlete carrying the Olympic flame through a pool as part of the torch bearing ceremony.

Every winter, the Japanese community of Taiji is the scene of dolphin drive hunts. During the last five months, many dolphins have been killed and 97 were captured alive to supply the captivity industry – 51 of them during the last hunt on January 17th.

WDC is already concerned by unconfirmed plans to display wild-caught orcas in Sochi.