I just banged this out as an exercise in getting familiar with the crappy editing software that came with my camera.
Anyways, here’s a humpback lunge feeding near Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary.
|
|||||
 Two humpback whales feeding north of Cape Cod  Nice baleen shot (click on the images to see them larger) Last week, we went on a whale watching tour out of Provincetown, Mass. We saw around 2 dozen humpback whales feeding. It was whale soup out there. Sometimes you’d look up and see 3 – 5 whales feeding, blowing and/or diving. Above are a couple pics my wife took. She pretty much snapped a few pictures and then said, “Forget it. I’m here to watch whales, not take pictures.” I’ve got a lot more video I need to edit together, but I’ll try to post some soon. Also, a WAWD reader reports seeing 3 mother/calf humpback combos, 3 minkes, and a dozen or so finbacks on a trip out of Hyannis earlier this week. And on your way out to Provincetown, be sure to stop and eat at Moby Dick’s in Wellfleet!  At Moby Dick's, the food tastes good when you eat it.  Swollen tongue on dead finback whale Once again, available art compels me to break my own rule about not posting on dead beached whale. I mean, seriously, look at the size of the tongue on this finback whale that washed up dead in Provincetown earlier in the week. Local officials say the swelling is due to decomposition gasses. And apparently this has happened at least once before, see below photo from Alaska in 2007.  Humback whale on Alaskan shore in 2007 To almost no one’s surprise, the IWC meeting this week in Portugal turned out to be a complete waste of time. In fact, so much nothing was accomplished that the meeting actually wrapped a day early. The two sides – nations opposed to commercial whaling and pro-whaling nations (led by Japan, Norway, and Iceland) – agreed only to continue to disagree, giving themselves another twelve months to negotiate some sort of compromise. During all this, Greenland, with support from Denmark, made a formal request to the IWC to hunt 10 humpback whales per year. The IWC dodged the issue by appointing a scientific committee to research Greenland’s request. And the New York Times published an editorial on Sunday urging non-whaling nations to press harder than ever for a complete ban, saying that while many whale populations are recovering, they face a growing threat from other dangers like global warming, habitat loss, and commercial shipping and fishing. Their assertion that a ban on hunting is a vital component to the overall survival strategy of whales is a belief shared by many conservatonists. As the IWC’s annual conference gets underway this week in Portugal, it’s unlikely that any real progress will be made by that body towards ending commercial whaling, but the athletes, models and actresses below are likely to be paying attention. In they past, they’ve all spoken out – or protested against – whaling. 1. Hayden Panettiere – Hayden has taken part in protests in Japan, tried to gather a million signatures protesting whaling via an online widget, and has done press and speaking appearances across the globe.  Hayden at a rally in Washington DC.  Hayden at a dolphin killing protest in Japan.  Same as above. 2. Hannah Fraser – Hannah is a model who travels the world being filmed and photographed as a mermaid. She participated in the 2007 protest with Hayden Panettiere in Japan (which was organized by her husband, pro surfer Dave Rastovich) and has spoken out against whaling in numerous public appearances.  Hannah Fraser as a mermaid.  Hannah Fraser as a non-mermaid (from her MySpace page) 3. Isabel Lucas – Australian actress, Isabel Lucas, has campaigned on behalf of the Whaleman Foundation, and is yet another celeb to have participated in Rastovich’s protest in Japan. She’s a well-known soap star and activist in her home country, and she’s also starring in the new Transformers movie.  Isabel Lucas - I don't know, but there could be something green going on here.  Isabel Lucas with a harpoon (hint: she doesn't like harpoons)  Isabel Lucas wearing one of those little headband things I like. 4. Karina Petroni – Pro Surfer Karina Petroni was yet another participant in the Rastovich protest. Said Karina, “It was the most intense experience I’ve ever had. Our motive was not to dictate to the Japanese people but instead to have a peaceful ceremony for these amazing friends we’ve lost and also to reeducate the wonderful Japanese people on how dolphin meat is highly contaminated with mercury. They’re feeding the meat to some of the school children and it’s slowly poisoning them.”  Karina Petroni  Pro Surfer Karina Petroni 5. Daryl Hannah - Daryl Hannah hates whaling so much that she went to sail with the Sea Shepherd crew. On top of that she’s sort of called out Greenpeace for being soft, saying “If Greenpeace would join forces with Sea Shepherd they would shut down the whaling industry right away. If they were really serious and held their convictions they could accomplish this.”  Well, of course...  Daryl...Hannah 6. Alexandra Paul – Best known for playing Stephanie Holden on Baywatch, Alexandra is anti-whaling from the old school. She says, “When I grew up in the 1970s. ‘Save the Whales’ was the most popular slogan around. Most people think the whales have been saved, but that is not true.”  Alexandra competing in the Bonaire EcoSwim 10K race  From Baywatch 7. Vanessa Carbone – Argentine Model, and former Playboy Playmate, Vanessa Carbone has publicly stripped down to nothing but a g-string to protest Japanese whaling.  Mas Vanessa Carbone 8. Megan Gale – Says Australian model/actress/activist Megan Gale of Japanese whaling, “The whaling issue in Japan is something that has left me absolutely speechless. I can’t comprehend how other humans on this planet can think it’s perfectly reasonable to create such a cruel and excessive amount of bloodshed time and time again. I have been shocked and disgusted to learn of, not only the slaying of these beautiful, harmless mammals, but also the horrific, torturous and senseless way in which they are killed.”  Megan Gale  Megan Gale - she was going to be the new Wonder Woman, but the project's on hold 8. Leisel Jones – Australian Olympic Medal Leisel Jones is the new face of The World Society for the Protection of Animals anti-whaling campaign. Again, not a fan of the Japanese whaling. She says, “WSPA has scientifically-proven evidence there is no humane way to kill a whale at sea, with some whales taking an hour or even more to die.”  Leisel Jones  Leisel Jones  Leisel Jones The 61st annual International Whaling Commission meeting got started yesterday in Madeira, Portugal, and, for the most part, it looks like it’s shaping up to be a great big waste of time and money. The IWC has spent the last 12 months exploring compromises that would allow relaxed restrictions on commercial whale hunting. Neither pro-whaling nor anti-whaling nations are likely to find this deal acceptable, and no significant votes are expected to be taken during this conference. The best anyone seems to be hoping for is another 12 months of stalling and failed compromising. The worst case scenario is that more and more nations bail on the IWC entirely and decide to regulate their own whaling industries. Basically, anti-whaling western nations (USA and EU), plus Australia, seem to have a political and cultural mandate to end entirely commercial whaling. It seems to be a matter of debate whether or not these countries could call a successful vote to place further restrictions on whaling. Some commentators don’t believe they have enough votes to get the three-quarters majority needed to enact major policy change. However, others, like Greenpeace, disagree and think that the time is now. Japan leads the pro-whaling nations, seemingly by the sheer force of its political and economic influence in the Pacific - even in Australia. During all this, Iceland caught its first whale of the season, but the CEO of the whaling company responsible said it was likely that the EU would do what the IWC could not. He believes that the EU will require Iceland to stop commercial whaling as a condition of membership. And Paul Watson claims he was almost arrested on his way to the IWC meeting, but the warrant had expired. )/media/SpermWhaleLyd501-135.jpg "bonehenge logo") Bonehenge! I came across this link on a site called Southern Fried Science. Back in 2004, a dead sperm whale washed up on shore at Cape Lookout, NC. The North Carolina Museum of Maritime History is looking to raise money to reassemble the bones at the museum. You can go to their web sheet, select the whale bone that you want to sponsor, and then when the project is complete, you name as a donor will be part of the final display. So let’s break this down. I’m from North Carolina. I love whales. I love whaling and maritime museums. And I like seeing my name on stuff. So I’ll be sponsoring a tooth. Additionally, I’ll be setting up a widget on behalf of WAWD.com readers. When I get that done, I’ll get it added to the right rail so you can donate…And whalesandwienerdogs.com will be part of a museum installation. More news from the world of whales:
 You can't change your name from Barack to Barry if your last name is Obama! Some other whale-related happenings from around the globe:
 This is a black and white picture of a blue whale For the first time ever, the mating call of an adult male blue whale has been recorded in New York waters. The sounds were recorded back in January by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s Bioacoustics Research Program. I bet you’re thinking the same thing too, right? The Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s Bioacoustics Research Program?!? I thought they shut that place down!!! According to Christopher Clark (of said lab), blue whales are rarely sighted in the coastal waters of the eastern US, and their sounds are usually picked up from distances very far from the shore. This particular whale, though, visited Fire Island on his way from Nantucket. Makes sense, though, when you consider what the whale was looking for.  Long Island Whale Tail (The best! That's right New Jersey!) |
|||||
|
Copyright © 2012 Whales and Wiener Dogs - All Rights Reserved |
|||||
Recent Comments