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The Linky wrote:January 2004 Update: On Wednesday, January 28th, WSPA received reports that over 100 dolphins were killed on a beach in Taiji. Agents from the captivity industry walked among the stranded dolphins to pick and choose the "lucky" ones that would be spared the butcher's knife in favor of life in a tank.

This hunt, called a drive fishery, is an annual event in Japan and dozens - often hundreds - of dolphins and whales lose their lives. Though the practice is legal and fishermen claim pride in carrying out this "tradition", no one involved in the hunt will speak of it and extreme measures are taken to ensure that the world never sees the true face of the drive fisheries.


The same cove in Taiji just a few hours later now churns with the blood of dead and dying dolphins. Photo: Sea Shepherd Conservation Society

Sea Shepherd staffers were in the area when the hunt officially began on October 6th and witnessed the slaughter of 60 wild dolphins. The urgent call went out for reinforcements - especially since two Sea Shepherd staffers were forced to leave Japan after repeated threats, harassment and even an arrest. Four other marine mammal advocacy organizations - Earth Island Institute, Cetacean Society International, Born Free Foundation and Blue Voice.org - stepped forward to donate funds in support of this mission and the World Communications Center contributed a satellite phone so that field staff could report on events there as they unfold.

Victims of the dolphin hunts are crudely stacked on one of the catch boats. Photo: Sea Shepherd Conservation Society

The fishermen head out on their boats each morning and return several hours later, sometimes driving their prey to a terrible death. In a typical drive fishery, the animals are chased into a shallow lagoon, speared with hooks and dragged to shore. A few escape. Some die from their injuries. Others perish slowly as their immense weight crushes their internal organs. And still others are alive when the butchering process starts. An arguably lucky few will be spared and shipped off to captive dolphin swim programs around the world.

Since the hunts began, the blood of 69 striped dolphins and 13 whales (either pilot or melon-headed whales) has reddened the seas.

Now, the harbor is home to a 24-hour vigil, where dolphin advocates continue to document the tragedy and put their lives on the line in an attempt to prevent any more deaths. The hunt is scheduled to continue at least through November, so the fight is just beginning.