Environment: The very recent killing of Thresher and dogsharks for squalene, photos of the liver from some 1,000 + dogsharks that were caught. They live at least 2 fathoms deep..
We
CARE ABOUT OUR ENVIRONMENT.
GD
....although I spend time discussing
issues revolving around the tourism in El Nido, the following issue
takes supreme precedence as it directly affects concerns both
personally, professionally, and globally. This email was forwarded
to me by a friend who works in the tourism industry in
Donsol.
Lee
Hey Guys
Sorry to depress you with these photos... They were taken in
Donsol, Sorsogon
(whale shark habitat), just
two weeks ago by my friend Omar. The finned sharks are thresher,
hunted by the hundreds...
The pink stuff in the bucket are little pieces of shark liver (from
dog sharks) for squalene. Pictured here are of the
liver from some 1,000 + dogsharks that were caught. They live at
least 2 fathoms deep...
Please forward this article if you wish...thank
you.
This is
the way the fishermen earn in the off season. They sell it to
middle men who bring it to Taiwan and Hong Kong. I’ve seen
firsthand the hunting of dog shark and finning in
Sorsogon and even Siargao but
I am certain in happens everywhere.
What we can DO is raise awareness.
Please forward if you wish
Thanks,
Denise
www.ecorescue.org
Donsol, Sorsogon,
Philippines is known
internationally as being an area that attracts some of the largest
congregations of whale sharks in the world. Originally hunted for
their commercial value, the sharks have recently gained full
protection status throughout the Philippines. This was largely due
to the world-wide recognition they received from
WWF
and the incredibly positive response
from the tourism industry (both locally and internationally).
Obviously the local fisherman, whom are harshly punished if they
pursue Whale sharks, have found another animal to exploit,
Thresher
sharks. Unfortunately, this
species has the same ‘vulnerable to extinction’ status
as their cousins, the Whale shark. Just as unfortunate, they do not
have the same protection in Philippine waters. That can
change…
Local and international awareness campaigns proved their
effectiveness in protecting the whale shark. It can be done with
the Thresher sharks as well. Just a bit of education and an
economic value larger than what can be provided by fishing them
must be provided (the notion that protecting an animal for the sake
of protecting biodiversity, especially in third world countries, is
not a reality…misguided but true). Fortunately, there is
both education and a real economic value already being recognized
in other places within the Philippines. On the small island
of Malapascua, Threshers
sharks have gained protection
due primarily to the recognition that they 'bring-in' more money as
a live attraction for SCUBA divers than as a dead animal sold as
parts to the neighboring Asian countries. Taking a page from
Donsol, local operators developed community based awareness
programs and contribute to the community by providing jobs and much
needed infrastructure. The results have been positive for both
sharks and people. In Donsol, the attention has been on the
Whale
shark, now help is needed to
expand the attitude of protection to other species as
well…
Lee Goldman
Lee Goldman, MSc
Marine Biologist
SE Asia Kayak Tours
www.asiakayaktours.com
Wow...no school today... or is it a field trip to the killing fields?A barbaric Dolphin and Whale killing rampage in Denmark…yet another way of educating our Children…letting them help with the slaughter
DID YOU KNOW?
Is brought to you by the
Philippine - Micronesia
Alliance,
the Divers Choice.
We care about our Environment!
These images which have been send to me by my
friend Mark Cox are almost to graphic and brutal to show on the
web... but I feel this has to be brought to the attention of the
world...and maybe, but only maybe, we can STOP
this brutal
killing.
Wow...no school today...
or is it a field trip to the killing
fields?
A Whale of a Killing in
Denmark -Truth! & Fiction!
The
“Red Sea” blood every where, a barbaric custom from the
stone age has just caught my attention.
I don’t care what the excuse is, but now I have just about
seen enough, this makes me sick! I have never seen such a brutal
way of killing those harmless animals in this part of
Europe, Denmark
to be exact, where children helping
in the slaughter yet another real “good
education” Children even
given a day off school so they can participate, Oh
Boy...
To be honest,
I am lost for
words…the true
color (blood red) of our human or not so human behavior, I think
our ancestors in the stone age have behaved themselves in a more
human way.
See below some links for additional info there you can cast your
vote and bring this cruel practice to a STOP!
GD
Below some excerpts from the articles for more check the
links;
http://www.truthorfiction.com/rumors/w/whale-killing-denmark.htm
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/end-whale-dolphin-slaughter-in-the-faroe-islands
I
am lost for words... GD
Courtesy and Excerpts from the articles, all the photos have been
send to me with the understanding
that these could be used, and help to stop this barbaric practice.
Thank you very much.
Target:
Prime Minister Jóannes Eidesgaard
Sponsored by:
John Koehler
Whales are sensitive, social
animals with highly developed nervous systems. They have a profound
capacity to suffer distress, terror and pain. Each year, the
Faroese kill pilot whales and other small cetaceans.
Islanders in motorboats first drive the whales into a bay. The
chase may be lengthy. The exhausted, terrified and confused whales
are eventually driven into the shallows. Here the bloodbath begins.
The islanders repeatedly hammer 2.2 kg metal gaffs into the living
flesh of each whale until the hooks hold. A 15 cm knife is then
used to slash through the blubber and flesh to the spinal column.
Next the main blood vessels are severed. The blood-stained bay is
soon filled with horribly mutilated and dying whales.
The Faroese celebrate the butchery of their victims in an carnival
atmosphere of entertainment. Indoctrinated from an early age,
children are often given a day off school to watch the fun. They
run down to the bay and clamber over the carcasses of slaughtered
whales.
Every year around 2,000 whales are driven ashore and cruelly
slaughtered in the Faroe Islands, mid-way between the Shetland
Islands and Iceland. For centuries the Faroe Islanders have hunted
pilot whales, driving entire schools into killing bays, where they
are speared or gaffed from boats, dragged ashore and butchered with
knives. Although the Islands are a protectorate of Denmark, they
have their own Government and regulations governing the pilot whale
hunt or "grind" as it is known.
Aside from the fact that the number of North Atlantic long-finned
pilot whales is unknown and they are listed as 'strictly protected'
by the Convention on the Conservation of European Wildlife and
Natural Habitats, this is an act of barbarism and pointlessness. By
slaughtering 100 whales at a time, the Faroese are wiping out
entire pods and family groups. They are removing building blocks
from the gene pool of the species and damaging the web of life in
the North Atlantic and the North Sea.
The drive hunt is a practice abandoned elsewhere many decades ago,
and now outlawed by other European states. The inhabitants of the
Faroe Islands have no subsistence need for whale meat, and much of
the flesh is left to rot and be dumped; it cannot be exported, as
it is polluted with heavy metals and other toxins and therefore
cannot meet EU heath standards for human food.
According to Faroese legislation it is also permitted to hunt
certain species of small cetaceans other than pilot whales. These
include: Bottlenose dolphin; Atlantic white-beaked dolphin;
Atlantic white-sided dolphin; and Harbour porpoise (There are also
specific regulations for the hunting of harbour porpoise. Harbour
porpoises are killed with shotguns).
Late NEWS...Disney Responds Regarding Shark Tournament Involvement in DivePhotoGuide…
http://www.divephotoguide.com/articles/disney_
responds_regarding_shark_tournament_involvement
This is my response to all the fuzz re. Shark Tournament in Dive PhotoGuide.
We are in full support of DivePhotoGuide; yes it is a big fuzz... but a downright disgusting one.
Unborn Shark, it's Mother and the Baby got
Murdered!
Photo:
© Gunther Deichmann - shark embryo after Mother got
killed.
Stop
the killing it is
Disgusting!
I have
read the letter from the Walt Disney Guys…it says
nothing!
As mention in
my earlier blog this is not the way to educate our children about
our environment.
Every living thing has a right to be on this planet, we humans are
only infants in geological times, because we are more intelligent
(are we?) doesn’t give us the right to wipe out
everything…and don’t tell me this is sport…that
is… make up the rest of the words.
The big white
Hunter…with a
trophy on the wall…yes soon there is nothing left out there
except on these walls of a very few.
“Dad…what is
that…? Son that is a shark…oh, I like to see that
one…sorry son you can only see that on MY Wall…Why?
Because there are non-left.
Dad why is that…?
OK son, lets change the topic... go out and play with your
friends.”
Do I
have to say anything else?
Editor PMA
GD
Breaking NEWS...Reef Check International and the Philippines...the Philippine -Micronesia Alliance is in support of this non profit organization...plus a lot more.
I am very proud to announce that the Philippine - Micronesia Alliance is NOW affiliated and in support of the Reef Check-Philippines the local chapter of Reef Check International, a non-profit organization. please read below our very first article from Lee Goldman, Marine Biologist and a member of the Alliance with S.E. Asia Kayak Tours. Very soon we fire up our complete and restructured Alliancediving.com website...amazing what is in store...you just have to stay tuned with The Divers Choice or subscribe to our Blog.
See below the screenshots of the Reef Check brochure soon available as a download on our updated site.
GD
Hi Gunther,
A while back I wrote about an upcoming project concerning the Philippines, the Philippine chapter of an international conservation NGO (Non-Government Organization), and two members of the Alliance.
Well, we’ve finished the details and are ready to announce our project. Reef Check-Philippines is the local chapter of Reef Check International, a non-profit organization that designs coral reef monitoring protocols and conservation action plans. Monitoring our reefs is essential to caring for them, and helps to make assessments on reef health and diversity. Ideally, the best people to monitor the reefs are the people in the community and active divers who not only have a vested interest in the health of world-wide reefs, but interact with them on a regular basis. Reef Check developed their monitoring protocols based on accepted scientific methods, yet made it easily understood by and effective for non-scientific based participants.
Our 10-day expedition will survey the reefs around Puerto Galera and the Verde Islands group. Puerto Galera is known the world over for its amazing diversity and the nearby Verde Islands group continually makes the biodiversity spotlight for its potential to be the center of the center of fish biodiversity within the famed ‘Coral Triangle’. For our base of operations, we chose Alliance partner, Asia Divers and El Galleon Resort in Puerto Galera. Of course, Asia Divers and El Galleon Resort are world class operations themselves offering top quality service, expertise, and professionalism as a PADI 5-star Resort. Pairing the location with an exceptional resort and diving service made for the perfect place to conduct our surveys to gather baseline data for continual monitoring.
This won’t be the first time I thank Allan Nash, Asia Divers, and El Galleon Resort for their interest and help in bringing this expedition together. We hope it is a huge success, as not only will the participants gain valuable skills, have fun, and dive in world-class sites, but the people of Puerto Galera and the Philippines will benefit from this on an exponential level.
The other member of the Alliance? Me, S.E.Asia Kayak Tours. My experience as a marine biologist and expedition leader was the perfect skill-set for the development of this expedition and I will continue to work with Reef Check Philippines on future expeditions around the islands of the Philippines.
For more information, please contact Lee Goldman at lee@asiakayaktours.com
Reef Check Philippines: http://www.reefcheckphilippines.org/
Interesting story about Nudibranchs just published in National Geographic Magazine... PADI teaches us NOT to touch Marine Life...but how come...
DID YOU KNOW?
Is brought to you by the
Philippine - Micronesia
Alliance,
the
Divers Choice.
We care about our Environment!
Picked up this interesting post from Gunther
Deichmann’s Blog...
click here.
Last night I became part
of an interesting 3-hour conversation with Marc Ambat and S M
Jayabalan, both are scuba divers and take underwater photos. Marc
is a Chief Technical Officer working at a Top Digital production
House specializing in Video FX and Jaya is the GM of Sensing
Technology Corporation. So there you have it, two very intelligent
and super nice people, our conversation started like
this…
I mention a recent article in DivePhotoGuide.com…
National Geographic has put up an
online gallery of amazing nudibranch photography from our good
friend David Doubilet, from the June issue. The imagery is
classicly Doubilet, putting a different perspective on
these amazingly diverse and colorful
subjects...read
more @ http://www.divephotoguide.com/articles/david_doubilet
Click on the Image and go direct to more of Omar’s
Photos
Above Photo: © Omar D.
Linsangan from
Dugong Dive Center, Palawan Philippines
This published article showcased the latest work
of David Doubilet…amazing images of cool looking Nudibranchs
(click the link for the images) http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2008/06/nudibranchs/
How did he achieve this? That is a very good
question…you might say Photoshop…but I have heard
another story…read the complete story
at:
http://www.deichmann-photo.com/files/category-underwater-photography.html