Posts Tagged ‘Beluga’
Nanuq: The most recent casualty of captivity
SeaWorld has announced that one of its male beluga whales, on breeding loan to its parks from Vancouver Aquarium since 1997, died on Thursday, February 19th. The cause of death has not been reported for Nanuq, an approximately 32-year-old beluga originally captured from the waters of the Hudson Bay, but the Orlando park reported that…
Read MoreOil pipeline plans halted over fears for beluga whales
Oil company, TransCanada has brought a halt to construction of a terminal on a major pipeline along the St. Lawrence River in Canada following growing fears for a nearby population of endangered beluga whales. The belugas in the area were labelled as “threatened” after a formal study ten years ago found the population numbered 10,000.…
Read MoreA Vancouver future free of whale and dolphin captivity?
On the 31st July 2014, something historic happened in Vancouver, Canada. At a special meeting organised to focus on the captivity of whales and dolphins at the Vancouver Aquarium, the Vancouver Park Board voted unanimously in favour of an end to captive breeding at the aquarium. The Board has now directed its staff to bring…
Read MoreRare beluga skull found on Scottish beach
A rare find that washed up on a Scottish beach on 5th May was formally identified at the National Museum of Scotland this week. A beluga skull was found at Lunan Bay in Angus, south of Montrose on the east coast. Determining a cause of death from the skull alone is unlikely. This was a…
Read MoreUS Protection Sought for Depleted Beluga Whale Stock
In response to the ongoing threats to beluga populations in Russia, WDC, along with the Animal Welfare Institute, Cetacean Society International, and Earth Island Institute has filed a petition with the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) to designate the Sakhalin Bay-Amur River stock of beluga whales in the Sea of Okhotsk as depleted under the…
Read MoreCourt gives WDC go-ahead to support legal case to stop import of beluga whales
Press Release: WDC Will Defend Federal Denial of Permit to Import 18 Wild-Caught Beluga Whales from Russia Atlanta, Georgia—A federal district court in Georgia last Friday granted a request to intervene filed by the Animal Welfare Institute, Whale and Dolphin Conservation, Cetacean Society International, and Earth Island Institute in a lawsuit challenging the National Marine Fisheries…
Read MoreVancouver Aquarium’s confusing messages on captivity continue
Despite a $100 million expansion programme that will add new additional swimming space, Vancouver Aquarium’s president, John Nightingale has failed to clarify whether or not the new space will be used to house more beluga whales. Speaking to news reporters Nightingale said that new facilities are “several years” away from completion and that there were…
Read MoreBrain disease cat parasite found in beluga whales
A parasite, previously found in cats, that can cause brain disease in humans has now been found in Arctic beluga whales. Pregnant women are often warned to avoid changing kitty litter in order to stay clear of the parasite, Toxoplasma gondii. which can cause miscarriage and also blindness. The find by scientists now raises health…
Read MoreDancing beluga show hides reality of capture and captivity
Yesterday’s Mail Online featured a series of, unfortunately, fairly stunning underwater photos from an aquarium in China of a beluga whale show involving circus style acrobatics between captive belugas and animal trainers. Such images published in such a widely read national newspaper only serve to encourage visitation to facilities around the world holding captive whales and…
Read MoreA Hard Rock Massage
We learned last week that beluga whales are the true white whales, except when they’re babies, but they also aren’t always white as adults! In spring and summer, when belugas start gathering in estuaries and shallow-water areas, they actually have a yellowish tint to their skin. Belugas undergo a seasonal molt, meaning that one layer of…
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