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The rescue of three surviving “decoy caller” ducks

The rescue of three surviving « decoy caller » ducks

The rescue of three surviving “decoy caller” ducks
04.02.2019
France
The rescue of three surviving “decoy caller” ducks
Wildlife

This Saturday, January 26th 2019, we rescued three ducks who were used as decoy callers, they were found in a frozen paddling pool. To obtain their release, we had to overcome many pitfalls. But now their ordeal is over!

Five abused ducks used to kill others

Last September, a whistle-blower reported the presence of ducks in a difficult situation in Burgundy-Franche-Comté. Our investigator was dispatched immediately, discovering this miserable place of life for these wild birds.

In a rudimentary enclosure four poor ducks were found, the corpse of a fifth was lying there, and a few pieces of bread in the mud. They had been torn from their life of freedom, caught probably by traps used for nutria, the hunter had intended them to be « decoys callers ». In short, the life of these ducks would have been to call to their own kind, for the sole purpose of being killed. The most upsetting: a male duck, sat looking over the boards of its confine towards the pond where free ducks swim in the distance.

Our attempt to go through the justice system to save them

We immediately filed a complaint. As always, these cases take several months to go through. As part of the process, the gendarme went to the site and our investigator was interviewed. And … the complaint has been dismissed. The only thing raised by our investigation was that the ducks were not legally ringed. We know how difficult hunting is on wildlife, especially in France, where almost anything is allowed. Despite the ranking of this complaint, we still managed to get the gendarmes to save these ducks.

The rescue of Marguerite, Lilas, and Pivoine

When we arrived at the spot-on Saturday January 26th2019, the enclosure was fully flooded. The poor birds had no access to land. They can but swim only in icy water.

«Mallards, of course, need to swim. But in nature, no mallard spends all its time in the water. They also need to rest on dry land. To keep a mallard in a small aviary by depriving it not only of being able to fly but also of landing on the ground is obvious abuse.
»Pierre Rigaux, Naturalist

There are only three now, a small female died because of the terrible conditions … We then immediately took them to the Wildlife Conservation Centre « Volée de Piafs », where from our support they were examined and benefited from all the necessary attention. They are very thin and need to regain their strength.

«It is quite possible, of course, that weight loss is directly linked to the obligation for the duck to remain in the water permanently in the winter cold, because mallards lose more weight in winter when they are cold…. a normal phenomenon but not when weighing just 650 g!»Pierre Rigaux, Naturalist

Most of the time, hunters trim the wings of ducks used as decoy callers. Fortunately, this is not the case with Marguerite, Lilas, and Pivoine, so we will have the opportunity to release them in an area free of hunting in a short time! And for these three there is only freedom, real freedom.  

For a radical reform of the hunt, please sign our petition!

No to silent death!

No to silent death!

No to silent death!
02.02.2019
France
No to silent death!
Wildlife

This Monday February 4th One Voice returns in audience with the Council of State, to cancel the text restoring the use of silencers on hunting weapons. An umpteenth free gift to hunters, against biodiversity and the security of our forests.

No, we have not forgotten. A decree dating from 1986, which framed various hunting processes and the so-called « harmful » prohibits various technical devices facilitating their capture or destruction. By an order issued on January 2nd 2018, the Ministry of the Ecological and Solidarity Transition has, almost on the sly, at least without prior consultation of the citizens, removed without replacing this provision, allowing in fact the use of any « silencer » on guns for hunting of all animals.

Acoustic comfort?

The lobby for hunters, of course endorsed by the National Council for Hunting and Wildlife and therefore of course by the ministry are not in the shade here: When they shoot it is likely they could become deaf (which harms not only their ears but good communication between each other during the hunt). Hearing protectors (helmets, earplugs) are effective for reducing gun shots, but are restrictive.

The more techno “silencers” which are legal in other European countries would offer better acoustic comfort to shooters and also less nuisance to residents living near to hunting areas and even “better preservation of wildlife in the vicinity, with less noise disruption.” In short, a softer, almost peaceful hunting…

An insecure drift

For us, this argumentation borders on ridiculous: since the decree of 1986, with a clearly protective vocation for the wildlife, trophy pictures pile up, bellies well full and the « art of hunting » lasts in all its tradition.

This removal of a protective provision not only distorts the spirit of the texts in place, but opens the door to tragic consequences, largely underestimated: quieter hunts will be more deadly for animals living in groups, this can only encourage poaching (silenced gun shots will be undetectable to the ears of the game warden) and this will not diminish the statistics on hunting accidents (15 dead and 200 injured per year) because walkers, joggers, mountain bikers of our forests are precisely warned of a hunt in progress by the noise of the shooting … Faced with the fears of urban pedestrians, the manufacturers of electric cars are preparing sound warning devices. In our forests, death will become silent again, omnipresent. Unacceptable!

A battle of decibels

Here we can see all the harm of an adjustment to a regulation negotiated in the golden rooms of the ministry. Despite significant consequences for the environment, security and public order, the Ministry did not conduct any public consultation before signing the decree of 2ndJanuary 2018. However, its publication has led to many reactions from civil societies, who are massively worried about these technical drifts (let’s not forget the existence of subsonic bullets, much less noisy), which only reinforce the destructive character of the hunt under cover of litigious arguments. The risks here are much higher than the expected benefits for a minority, which is certainly an active one, but which for more than 30 years has been doing very well. If the French fear the hunt, it is not by making it less noisy that they will be reassured!

The National Federation of Hunters will certainly lead the high jurisdiction on a technical field, arguing that even though equipped with silencers costing several hundred euros, the shots will be audible to all hairy targets. Indeed, it is time to present a real study, which could motivate ministerial decisions; there are on the market (and this will be amplified) rifles equipped with an integral sound moderator that can reduce the noise of combustion gases to 45 decibels at a distance of one hundred metres, the equivalent of a wind breeze in deciduous trees. Identifiable and locatable I hear you say?

This damage to the environmental balance and animals, which is conducted for some overequipped Rambos, is unbearable to us. We hope that this time the justice administration will hear us, through our voice, that of our angry citizens. Please sign our petition to reform the hunt!

Winter has fallen on the whale prison

Winter has fallen on the whale prison

Winter has fallen on the whale prison
01.02.2019
Russie
Winter has fallen on the whale prison
Exploitation for shows

Winter fell suddenly on this whale prison. A grey ice field now encloses the floating pens of the 11 orcas and 87 beluga whales locked in Srednyaya Bay, on the borders of the Russian Far East. We must act urgently before the cold kills them all!

UPDATE: This is Cyril, he’s the next Orca most likely to « escape » (i.e., die) from the Srednyaya Bay « Whale Prison. » Cyril is completely inactive and just drifts at the surface while ice freezes to his body. He’s lost a lot of skin, most likely to frostbite, & may have pneumonia. pic.twitter.com/K7OZWUFqit

— Quad Finn (@Quad_Finn) 25 janvier 2019

In the shadow of a shed, the orca Cyril floats quietly, his snout stuck to the net that encloses him. Alexandra and Vitas, his fellow companions in misfortune, come and go, very agitated. He does not stir anymore, raised only by their movements in the water. Little by little, frost covers his body bruised by ropes and infections. His breath is slow, almost inaudible. This very young male will probably not survive the pneumonia that troubles him.

Furthermore, the beluga whales fare better in their open-air crates drifting from large ice cubes. Swimming under the ice is one of their talents. But the noise of the workers breaking the ice with shovels and the passing of paying visitors who caress them without washing their hands, inflicts an incessant stress on them.

These terrible images that have circulated the world, we owe this to the obstinacy of a handful of Russian activists. After endless trials, they finally got a delegation of scientists and veterinarians to inspect the detainees of the Marine Mammal Adaptation Centre, the official and pompous name of this « Whale Prison ».

Everyone had known since September that when the ice freezes the bay, cetaceans would be in danger of death. Plans that were easy to implement had been proposed without success. It would have been possible to take this small world to the open ocean in huge rectangular nets pulled gently by tugs. The Russian fleet was ready to cooperate and Vladimir Putin himself was worried about this tragic situation.

Fears Orcas held Captive in Russia will Freeze to Death as Winter Seas Ice Over: Srednyaya Bay is now frozen and will not thaw until late February. Many of the 11 orcas in the « Whale Prison » suffering from frostbite & pneumonia may not last until then.https://t.co/6WXRVcxMLD pic.twitter.com/qYenxe1sHl

— Quad Finn (@Quad_Finn) 27 janvier 2019

But we are in Russia, where the very slow bureaucracy escapes neither pressure nor bribes. While the capture of these unfortunate cetaceans has been declared illegal by the Attorney General of Russia and their export banned in April 2018, the local authorities seem not to care and continue to protect the 4 commercial companies,’ the owners of these captives.

Today, nine Russian orcas are already performing to the sound of a whistle in front of the stands of the Chimelong Ocean Kingdom in Zhuhai, near Macao. More than 200 belugas, traded for Taiji dolphins, have died one after the other in the overheated waters of Japanese and Chinese dolphinariums. What will become of the detainees in Srednyaya Bay? There is so much money at stake! If they do not go to China, everything leads us to believe that they will end up like Narnia, the first orca captured in 2012: to finish in the hell of Russian dolphinariums!

We cannot let this massacre unfold without reacting. We cannot accept that Russia continues to sell these unfortunate cetaceans. One Voice urges you to sign the petition online or write directly to Vladimir Putin via the Free Russian Whales campaign website! We must save these orcas and belugas from this whale prison!

Hunting: what a sinister goose game!

Hunting: what a sinister goose game!

Hunting: what a sinister goose game!
31.01.2019
France
Hunting: what a sinister goose game!
Wildlife

The hunting lobby has dreamed of this and the state has done it! A ministerial decree has just extended the hunting period for wild geese, a quota of 4,000 additional levies during the month of February. An intolerable attack on the biodiversity under the fallacious pretext of « adaptive management » of three protected species.

Edit of February 1st:

The hearing will take place at the Council of State, Tuesday, February 5that 11am.

They have named the White-fronted goose, the Greylag goose and the Taiga bean goose… These geese are now a grey area. For several years, French hunters have been curious about these birds, immortalized by Michel Delpech or Raymond Devos, so they can be killed in greater numbers legally, … Yet protected by the international conventions of Bonn and Bern, by the Birds Directive of the Union European Union, they are the subject of a custom-made order prepared for this purpose by our Ministry of Ecological and Solidarity Transition. One Voice rebels against this!

An irresponsible decision

Nesting or stopping over in France on their migratory routes leading them to Scandinavia and Siberia, these geese already heavily impacted by legal hunting see today the killing spread out in contempt of their reproduction cycles. Nothing justifies this extension of slaughtering on our soil (except Alsace), the opposite is true!

The state of knowledge on the populations concerned indicates that it is irresponsible to extend hunting periods. There are nearly 20,000 butternut geese in our country wintering every year. Half of them are shot down during their migration. Today, one wants to kill 4,000 more by extending the period of authorized shooting. Why? In the name of an international management project prepared for several years, which reports “nuisances” in other European countries, and would allow the hunters of France to remedy this problem… by shooting «French» geese, which have nothing to do with this so called problem!

Adaptive management?

The problems posed yesterday at Amsterdam airport by migratory flights of geese nesting in Holland, damage to local cultures (very little documented evidence) … this thread is a bit big to justify a surplus of ducks in France: there are not the same populations of geese, and here they are already in decline!

We speak of courageous and intelligent birds. Despite the vagaries of the weather, wild geese preserve their way of life, the notion of life-time couples, provide infinite help to their young, spending hours of learning on their lands of passage and within their broods, from the south to the north of the Europe. All indications are that their numbers are decreasing, like that of many birds, and February is decisive in their reproductive cycle. Any adaptive management of these species would require that hunting periods be shortened, not extended.

Connected killing

The ministerial decree whose legality we challenge is in no way based on figures or specific cases justifying the extension. On the other hand, and it is a shame, while allowing additional shootings, it clearly mandates the federations of hunters in the precise counting of the 4,000 announced victims (« hunting app » (chassadapt) an app for smartphones will record the animals slaughtered up to the quota, after, it’s too late, the animals are already dead, but do not ‘enter’ more because you are theoretically in violation). The balance of the consolidated hunting charts is expected in the summer and in November. An expected assessment report will certainly ensure that the additional shooting did not affect the conservation status of the birds, and that overall international cooperation is satisfactory. So, one has delegated to the hunters, now unified and connected, the management of their victims. Bravo!

We must act!

For several years now, European hunters have been tracking these migrants as targets, not being able to see these vast and magical wild birds flying around them without opening fire. Cynically, the French decree states that these additional shootings are in the end “non-recreational”. For geese we suspect.

One Voice has appealed to the Council of State, so that this measure is suspended to save the 4,000 already convicted and judged on merit… Wednesday, February 6th, 2019, we also call for a protest (appointment at 12 o’clock, place de Paris City Hall) against these new hunting rights and for the defence of the biodiversity. These geese are not those of the Capitol, but they are just capital! #LaissonsMigrerLesOiesSauvages

In court against the lack of clarity of Marineland and the State

In court against the lack of clarity of Marineland and the State

In court against the lack of clarity of Marineland and the State
31.01.2019
Antibes
In court against the lack of clarity of Marineland and the State
Exploitation for shows

Since dolphinariums keep cetaceans, protected animals (and CITES-listed animals) captive, they have an obligation to prove that they are acting to protect wildlife, by submitting a summary report to local prefectures every three years. Marineland has not transmitted this report and the Prefecture pretends not to know what we are talking about. We started legal proceedings to obtain this document. For dolphins and orcas, we do not relent!

A trampled legal framework

The dolphinariums have responded in particular to the same ministerial decree as the zoos. As such, they must contribute to the preservation of wild, free or captive animal species and the conservation of biological diversity. These actions are all the more important as it is now established that dolphin and orca shows are devoid of any educational value and endanger the populations of free orcas and dolphins.

In this context, dolphinariums must, for example, participate in:

  • research for better knowledge and aimed at the conservation of species,
  • training about conservation,
  • the exchange of information,
  • and restocking and reintroduction of species into wild habitats.

All of this, ensuring the welfare of the animals concerned. In addition, a report describing the actions undertaken must be sent to the Prefect at least every three years.

An endless game of changing goal posts to obtain justice

In order to obtain the closure of dolphinarias and in addition to our actions raising-awareness, we wish to show that their true intentions are commercial, especially as captive cetaceans are never released into the wild. For that, we must get hold of the activity reports of the parks. At the end of October 2017, we asked the departments of the prefectures corresponding to each French dolphinarium for a copy of these reports.

For Parc Asterix, the Prefecture has the report and in perfect knowledge of the legal obligations, we were forwarded this document. For Planète Sauvage, the report was not sent to the Prefecture which cannot transmit it to us, but however, it is aware of the obligation of the dolphinarium and therefore the legal framework applicable to zoos.

Marineland and the Alpes Maritimes Prefecture pretend ignorance

For the Prefecture of the Alpes Maritimes, on the other hand, not only has Marineland not transmitted a report, but the state services are making themselves the force behind this masquerade by trying to make us look incompetent. Pretending that we still don’t know what report we’re talking about after we’ve gone to the CADA (the Access to Administrative Documents Commission) to force them to send us this document. This is a bureaucratic exercise. This is also worrying and serious! This just shows the contempt that some of our state representatives may have for these sensitive and intelligent individuals.

We are suing for orcas and captive dolphins!

We therefore appealed to the Administrative Court of Nice to obtain this report from Marineland, particularly on the orcas they hold captive in Antibes. There have already been too many deaths so far. Held in the tiny pools in comparison to their size and their need to swim and dive, Wikie, Inouk, Moana, and Keijo go around in circles, they must still perform in the show and above all to obey. Shouka, the last of the five French orcas is isolated abroad. What did they do to deserve this? Nothing. Absolutely nothing.

All these actions take time but progress. Our fight for dolphins and orcas held captive in dolphinariums is the right way to go. The hearing will take place on February 7th at 11:30 am in the Administrative Court of Nice.

We will never give up, no matter how powerful our opponents are. In the northern hemisphere North America, Russia, the Far North and even the southern hemisphere Japan, or closer to home, in Spain, Portugal or even Greece. We are present all year-round regarding captive and suffering cetaceans, we participate in financing actions abroad and establish international partnerships. Dolphins, belugas and orcas do not know borders, we must protect them and defend them. We have filed an appeal to the Council of State for misconduct by the French State to adopt a new order identical to the precedent, cancelled for a technical detail, and they claim 500 000 euros for this deficiency. Please sign our petition to end dolphinariums in France.

The creation of the European Link Coalition: a major change in direction for research into the Link

The creation of the European Link Coalition: a major change in direction for research into the Link

The creation of the European Link Coalition: a major change in direction for research into the Link
29.01.2019
Europe
The creation of the European Link Coalition: a major change in direction for research into the Link
Domestic animals

It has been shown that in Western Europe and the United States, pets are generally considered family members. There are, however, countries in Europe where domestic animals are multiplying unchecked in the streets, so they have come to be regarded as pests and treated as such.

The study “Making the Link” (21), the first ever conducted in these countries, explores the links between endemic maltreatment of animals and abuse of humans. The study of certain factors revealed that the deterioration of the status of an animal in society has led to a
« transfer of aggression », with animal abuse also being correlated with violence and abuse towards people and families. A decrease in empathy has also been observed among abusers.

Empathy is the ability to penetrate the emotional world of others. It has been shown that its absence predicts an insensitive response to exposure to violence and abuse. This evokes a Cycle of Abuse learned from exposure to violence and the experience of violence, exerted and doubled against homeless animals, with degraded status and easy access, and when the problem is not resolved, it’s passed on to the next generation.

The European Link Coalition

Organizations from various European countries have now come together to form the European Link Coalition (22). A forum has been set up in which each country can share information on the latest developments in the application of the Link, and other countries can learn from these experiences. Given the rich diversity of cultures in Europe, the possibility of unification of strategic programs is increased.

The nations have come together to create the « European Link » coalition and as a new awareness is emerging among the people and authorities in Europe, animal abuse is no longer an isolated issue.
It is becoming more revealing as a deeper discomfort affecting society, and the study of this association breaks the cycles of abuse; the abuse of individuals is revealed more and more with the abuse of animals, by association, it becomes a socially detestable thing.

«The story of the » European Link « Coalition is a bit like a river, it starts with a quiet brook, which gets stronger and stronger as the countries come together, until it becomes a river wider and powerful. An ocean of change is waiting …»

And before the « European Link » coalition?

While previous initiatives in Europe, for some 20 years, revolved around the identification by veterinarians of indicators associated with human violence and abuse, success has been limited in this area. The reasons given are the confidentiality and concern of veterinarians of their commercial interests. As Nathalie Norden of VOOV in Sweden suggests:

«Veterinarians and other veterinary clinic staff are generally very motivated to participate, but they are still reluctant to take action. They are not sure which injuries to detect, how to intervene, and what the consequences will be for those at risk, whether human or animal. This is the goal of our project: to train veterinary clinic staff and implement an action plan for the whole establishment (before, during and after a suspected case). Unfortunately, veterinarians are relatively less likely to report suspected cases of animal abuse due to financial concerns. This situation is highly dependent on the management of each animal care centre and their attitude towards the reporting of animal welfare problems or animal abuse in general.»Nathalie Norden

Today we are seeing a change of course: now, the first responders in cases of animal abuse are carrying out research on possible associated cases of abuse on human beings.

In the United Kingdom, an agreement between the RSPCA * and the NSPCC * helped advance child protection through the reporting of potential associated cases. Earlier, 86% of these cases of abused children remained unknown to the authorities. In referring to the link between animal abuse and abuse, these cases regarding children had previously been « hidden ». This process is currently being improved, and expanded allocations identify a potential « danger » associated with a case of animal abuse. It can be hoped that a large number of cases of children and vulnerable adults, hitherto ignored, can now be reported and taken care of.

*RSPCA : Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruety to Animals
*NSPCC : National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children

 

Sources

21 Journal of Interpersonal Violence.
22 European Link Coalition

Tragic revelations about Ula, Morgan’s daughter

Tragic revelations about Ula, Morgan’s daughter

Tragic revelations about Ula, Morgan’s daughter
26.01.2019
Tenerife
Tragic revelations about Ula, Morgan’s daughter
Exploitation for shows

Ula, whose birth was celebrated with fanfare by the Loro Park dolphinarium, is now probably between life and death. The small orca seems to be beset by infections of all kinds. One more tragedy unfolds before the public eye, lulled by the lies from the managment of the Spanish dolphinarium.

Morgan was rescued in 2010 on a beach in the Netherlands, treated, but never released. A capture announced… Contrary to the current law on free-born orcas, Loro Park allowed Morgan, barely pubescent, to become pregnant, giving birth to Ula. In nature, she could have counted on the help of her aunts, sisters and mother. The baby would have been surrounded by the affection from her siblings in their pod, a family group guided by the matriarch. There, locked in a pool, there is nothing that allows for a maternal attachment, northe least of support for a young mother from her family in these important moments.

According to Loro Park, mother and daughter were very close in the first consecutive days at birth, and Morgan reported exemplary maternal instincts, not leaving her little one, Ula swimming at her side. Shortly after, however, the park separated the mother from her daughter, first of all on the pretext that she had too little milk, then it was for safety reasons… After only three days! Ula is isolated from her mother, bottle-fed by a human in a position that is unnatural…

Ula was photographed by a whistle-blower from the public stands. The images, which we also received, were analysed at the request of One Voice’s partner Voice of The Orcas by specialists, including Ingrid Visser, who has been working with us for many years. Not surprisingly, they all confirm what we were dreading.

Currently, Ula is kept in a separate pool, under a tent that protects her from the sun. She has photo-toxic lesions on the skin, a malformation of the head, and a sick left pectoral fin. On her tail, we can distinguish injection marks, probably antibiotics.

«I have never seen anything like it in nature, such as the deformation of the skull and the pathologies along the body are what we can see on this poor baby. I’m really sad for her and her mother, Morgan. This underlines how much the detention of these animals in places like Loro Park are a mistake.»Ingrid Visser, marine biologist at the Orca Research Trust

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One Voice is a long-time partner of the Free Morgan Foundation, and a member of Dolphinaria-Free Europe, a European coalition that fights for dolphins and orcas held by dolphinariums. In France, we continue our fight against these water parks and to attack the state for failing to publish a new order prohibiting captive breeding and cetacean exchange between dolphinariums.

Please sign our petition to close the dolphinariums and allow the transfer of these captive animals to marine sanctuaries.

China clones’ monkeys so they can deprive them of sleep

China clones’ monkeys so they can deprive them of sleep

China clones’ monkeys so they can deprive them of sleep
25.01.2019
Chine
China clones’ monkeys so they can deprive them of sleep
Animal testing

They are still so small, these macaques born after cloning to study sleep disorders. But they already show high levels of anxiety.

La Chine vient de cloner cinq singes à partir d’un macaque aux gènes modifiés présentant des troubles du sommeil. C’est une première. Peut-on s’en vanter? Ils se blottissent les uns aux autres, perdus… et vont subir l’horreur. #ExpérimentationAnimale pic.twitter.com/4vDbRlr28a

— One Voice (@onevoiceanimal) 24 janvier 2019

They are clutching each other, eyes haggard. Their fear is legitimate, their incomprehension as well. At their age, these little monkeys should be safe in their mother’s arms. A mother, they will never know, what became of her after the sordid operations that she suffered for the sake of cloning?

Chinese researchers were able to clone monkeys a few months ago and have just started again. They assure us that the experiments that these monkeys will undergo will be supervised by an ethics committee according to international standards. There is something to shudder about for these animals who, if they survive the invasive experiments that await them, they will be experimented on for years to come without a moment’s respite.

2018, Zhong Zhong et Hua Hua, les premiers primates non humains à être clonés

These sensitive and intelligent animals have no place in laboratories. And beyond the years of immense suffering that awaits them, there are many moral questions to be asked, scientists using animal cloning will have to be one of them!

In China, no legislation exists to protect animals. In 2008, our legal team worked on a text with Chinese associations. It had been suggested to the politicians who wanted to make things happen. Since then, our Chinese partners are fighting with all their might, but what resistance!

It’s up to all of us to continue the mobilization in France, as in the world with our partners.

Like us, write to the Chinese Embassy to express all your indignation:

For the attention of His Excellency,

Mr. ZHAI Jun,

Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China in France

20 Rue Monsieur

75007 Paris

or by mail:chinaemb_en@mfa.gov.cn

Ula, the Jewel of the Sea caged

Ula, the Jewel of the Sea caged

Ula, the Jewel of the Sea caged
24.01.2019
Tenerife
Ula, the Jewel of the Sea caged
Exploitation for shows

Morgan’s baby will be called Ula, « jewel of the sea » in Celtic, although the baby is destined to never see the sea. The local press does not have enough outstanding words to sing about “the wonderful happiness of the mother and her baby in the pools of Loro Park » and the fantastic leaps they would give to science. Yet this is not the first orca to be born in Tenerife and each time, the same disastrous scenario is repeated: the rejection of the baby by a mother too young and inexperienced.

As expected, the beginnings of little Ula were difficult. Removed from Morgan on the third day of his birth, on the pretext that she did not give her enough milk, « a team of 15 caregivers and 3 veterinarians, assisted by Belgian and American experts » we have kept a 24/7 vigil whilst bottle-feeding. Now cameras are watching Ula at night, while the trainers occupy her « with learning sessions, games and above all affection« , in the absence of Morgan.

The baby is already undergoing scientific tests, as a columnist explains: « The best zoo in the world (sic) collaborates with experts from the University of Denmark to determine when the echolocation begins in young orcas« , a very useless research to help free orcas, but who cares.

Loro Park will also be working with the University of Zurich to study communication learning in orcas, another « unknown subject in science « according to the Spanish zoo, which has probably not read the abundant literature already published on this theme, « and how the baby adopts the sounds of the dialect from the group« .

The dialect of the group? There is little doubt that the two Kohana and Skyla females and their half-brothers, Keto and Tekoa, all born captive and loaned by SeaWorld in 2006, have never been able to acquire any dialect whatsoever. As for Morgan, captured very young and quickly impregnated by humans at the dolphinarium Harderwijk, she probably has only a few bits of the language of her Norwegian tribe.

Still, her daughter should be near her. So far not all has been gained. Today, we learn, « carers are studying mother-daughter behaviour and are making sure that they are as often as possible together. Special sessions are planned to bring her closer to Mum Morgan, under the direct supervision of Loro Park’s director Wolfgang Kiessling. He is so proud and happy of the great success that Ula represents. »

Could their separation not only be due to the lack of milk? In fact, until January, no picture showed Morgan and Ula together. It is only recently that we have seen them look at the junction of two pools or stay side by side but at a safe distance, while vigilant trainers stand ready to intervene.

As a precaution, no doubt, because when an orca rejects its child through inexperience of motherhood, it may also harm that child.

In 2010 already, Kohana had sharply rejected her first baby, forcing the trainers to feed by hand the frail little Adan. This unfortunate one is still surviving, as discreet as possible to escape the blows from the bosses of the pool. In 2012, the same Kohana gave birth and again rejected her daughter, called Victoria. Weakened by the same blood line of the SeaWorld orcas, Vicky died at the age of 10 months.

This will not prevent Loro Park from explaining again and again that the birth of Adan, Victoria and Ula today « confirms the well-being of the orcas hosted (sic) by Loro Park ».

One would almost laugh at such a denial of reality if the suffering of seven orcas was not the consequence. One Voice calls for the transfer of these victims of human greed to the Whale Sanctuary Project or other similar structures that can guarantee them a dignified life.

Sources: El Cotarro and Loro Park

Stop palm oil being used in fuels!

Stop palm oil being used in fuels!

Stop palm oil being used in fuels!
23.01.2019
Paris
Stop palm oil being used in fuels!
Natural habitat

This Monday January 21st 2019 in Paris, we were gathered alongside the associations ANV COP21, Canopée, Greenpeace, Friends of the Earth, and SumOfUs before the French representation of the European Commission. Other similar meetings were held in Berlin, Madrid, Rome and Brussels, our partners did the same. On this occasion, the Commission in Paris received us to make sure that they would bring the vote of the French Parliament made back in December 18th to a European level and to put an end to subsidies for palm oil being used in fuels.

The trees are being cut down, burned, the bulldozers are taking possession of places and all in an atmosphere of terrifying noises. The inhabitants of this rainforest, the orangutans, are trying to prevent this irreparable damage of their home as best they can, but what can they do? Apart from making a barrier with their bodies?

The mothers stand between their hanging nests and these screaming metal machines. Desperately trying to save their little ones, their way of life, the only possible one. But they are killed in the operation. Because what is the weight of an orang-utan mother compared to the weight of industrial lobbies?

In Malaysia and Indonesia, the last of the orangutans are dying! As such they are listed in Appendix 1 of CITES: that is, they are amongst the most endangered of all species on Earth. They are being extinguished one by one, because they can only live in the trees of this primary forest, the lungs of the planet, and it is disappearing before our very eyes. There is no longer room for them. It is in Asia that this is happening, but France has its share of responsibility here as well.

The agribusiness and cars

This nightmare has been going on for a long time because of the agri-food industry. Should we really add this to fuels? Because now it is created and enriched with palm oil, and it is called cynical bio-fuel. Last December on the 13th, an action before the National Assembly, yet they have not made their move.

Nous sommes avec les @amisdelaterre, @Canopee_asso, @APEnvironnement devant @AssembleeNat pour dire stop à l’#huiledepalme dans les carburants. #orangsoutans pic.twitter.com/eYvfO08aG7

— One Voice (@onevoiceanimal) 13 décembre 2018

And a few days later, it was done! The two chambers of parliament voted against the government’s advice, which, for its part, is still trying to keep afloat the idea and at all costs the project of the fuel giants, like Total. This project of a « bio » refinery is huge in France and must be abandoned! Now that the National Assembly and the Senate have agreed, what will happen next?

Our leaders must be aware that every decision made in defiance of the planet and its nonhuman inhabitants is a short-sighted decision that we will not stop fighting against. Animals are not worthless sub-beings just because we see no use for them! They have the desire to live and the rights that we must defend or at least obtain for them!

During our meeting on Monday 21stJanuary 2019, members of the French Representation to the European Commission assured us that they would carry the vote of the French Parliament and that of the people at a European level. This is a great victory for orangutans and for biodiversity. Let’s hope that all the member countries carry the same message.

To give more weight to this fight for biodiversity against palm oil biofuels, please sign the petition supported by a dozen associations of which we are a part of.

Photo: SumOfUs – GUENOLE-LE-GAL-2576 – Mobilization #NotInMyTank in Paris on 21/01/2019