RIC O'BARRY'S DOLPHIN PROJECT - ORCAS IN CAPTIVITY - 60 in THE WORLD : LOLITA - TOKITAE DEAD

Lolita is dead after a half century in captivity, which caused me to search for Whales in Captivity.

DOLPHIN PROJECT

Excerpt:

Many captive orcas were born and bred in captivity, but this was not always the case.  Beginning the in the 1960's, orcas have been caught for entertainment display. One of the most infamous was the mass capture in Penn Cove, Washington.  On August 8, 1970, a total of seven whales were taken fromL pod (one of the resident orca pods), while 5 died in the process.  Among the captures, Lolita (Tokitae) is the last remaining survivor.

At least 160 0rcas have died in captivity... Keep Reading!

***

Siren here.  I have mixed feeling about animals such as whales, dolphins, and other sea creatures in aquariums and the like.  My feeling is that if it were not for the zoo, as a child living in-land, I might not have been aware of sea lions... and I do go to aquariums.  But even the largest tanks cannot provide a natural life for these creatures.  It seems many of them go crazy or live perhaps shorter lives than they would in the wild.  Yet in the wild they also face being eaten or killed.  What kills the larger creatures the most is ships - container ships - sailing vessels.

ALBERT OF MONACO and the MONACO DECLARATION : INSTITUTE OCEONOGRAPHIQUE

THE MONACO DECLARATION

In January 2009. HSH Prince Albert II wanted to draw the attention of decision-makers to the acidificiation of the oceans, the other crisis emerging from CO2 emissions together with climate change, with the two effect working together to upset the balance of the oceans.  He supported an initiative from over 150 major names in marine science, from 26 countries, to sound the alarm via the "Monaco Declaration." 

OCEONO ORG - PRINCE ALBERT - MONACO DECLARATION

Siren here:  I've been meaning to include Prince Albert and his organization in this blog for such a long time!

OACIS - PRINCE ALBERTS FOUNDATION  Ocean Acidificiation and other ocean Changes - Impacts and Solutions.

TOFU JOE'S COLLECTION OF SEA MONSTERS and LEGENDS

These sea monster illustrations are courtesy of 

Historia animalium 

(1551-1558)

TOFU JOE'S SEA MONSTERS and LEGEND

WHAT DEEP SEA CREATURE IS PINK AND CAN LIVE 70 YEARS?

MONTEREY BAY AQUARIUM : SEA PIGS 

Excerpt:  Tiptoeing over the deep seafloor, a sea pig searches for a meal.  The tentacles around its mouth probe the mud for treats - bits of dead animals poop and mucus. ... The sea pig spends its days snuffling through the muddy sediments on the seafloor, eating bits of dead algae and animals that have fallen from the surface  When something big, like a whale fall, sinks to the seafloor, huge herds of sea pigs gather nearby to feast on the rich organic sediments from the decaying carcass.

WALK DON'T RUN :

SLEEPING IN THE SEA

 

WOODS HOLE OCEANOGRAPHIC INSTITUTE : GLASS SQUID

WOODS HOLE CREATURE FEATURES GLASS SQUID 

Excerpt from Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute Creature Feature page.

Glass squid - specifically, Chranchia scabra - get a rough reputation because of the small tubercles dotting their bodies (also called their 'mantle"). If they sense danger, this squid can transform into a lumpy ball by stuffing its bulbous head and tentacles into this mantle cavity.  They're also able to 'go dark' by instantly changing the color of their skin to black.  Scientists have noticed that glass squid release ink into their mantle when threatened, which may help them change color, or could act as a chemical weapon against hungry whales and seabirds.

Shape-shifting and camouflage aren't the only cool tricks up the glass squid's tentacles.  Light-emitting organs, or photophores, around their eyes help them see in the dark and scare away predators.  Females also sport photophores on the tips of their arms, which may be useful for attracting mates.

BLUE BIOLUMINESCENCE - INCOMING WAVES AT NIGHT NOW - LONG BEACH - SUNSET BEACH

PRESS TELEGRAM - WAVES GLOWING BLUE WITH BIOLUMINESCENCE  waves from San Diego to Oxnard - great photos!

Excerpt:

The bioluminescent waves are caused by a dinoflagellate algae that that turns the ocean red during the day, but glows when agitated at night. Though the presence of a red tide can give a clue to when the glowing algae may show up at night, but they are highly uynpredictable and touch to find as wind, currents, and 

MARINE MAMMAL STRANDING CENTER - ATLANTIC OCEAN : SEA MAMMALS and SEA TURTLES HEALED and RETURNED TO SEA : BEACHED WHALE INVESTIGATIONS

MARINE MAMMAL STRANDING CENTER  Dedicated to responding to marine mammals and sea turtles along all of New Jersey's waterways...  When an animal cannot be released, it is kept at the facility and given a place to live.

***

Excerpt:  MMSC's Large Whale and Dolphin Response.

The Marine Mammal Stranding Center continues to be on the front line as the first responders during the recent increase in whale strandings that began in December 2022.  As a member of the Greater Atlantic Marine Mammal Stranding Network, we are the boots on the ground working together with or fellow network members to help find the answers.  The work that we perform is the first step in many that will bring us closer to understanding why we are seeing so may whale standings along the East Coast.

MARINE MAMMAL CENTER - SAUCILITO : WORLDS LARGEST MAMMAL HOSPITAL JUST NORTH OF THE GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE

MARINE MAMMAL CENTER : SAUCILITO 

This one requires tickets that are free but must be reserved on line to control the numbers of people coming through to watch what happens behind the scenes.  

Patients are seasonal... During pupping season there are usually elephant seal and California sea lion pups.  Harbor seal pups are not on view due to their sensitivity to human's except on behind the scenes tours.  

UNDERSEA FANTASY - WRITE THAT MERMAID A LETTER!