On a recent March day, researcher Mi Yeon Kim was watching a pod of about 55 dolphins off the South Korean island of Jeju when she noticed a female dolphin with a small calf. This wasn’t just any calf, nor was its mother just any dolphin. The mother’s markings and fins confirmed to Kim and […]
Tag: captivity
POLL: Should the use of animals in circuses be stopped?
Inside a travelling aquatic circus in Kyrgyzstan’s capital Bishkek, whoops and cheers go up as a dolphin leaps out of a pool and slam-dunks a ball through a basketball net. Hundreds of people packed inside the Moscow Travelling Dolphinarium to watch dolphins and beluga whales perform acrobatic stunts, against a painted backdrop of blue skies […]
Poll: Should the Use of Wild Animals in Circuses be Banned?
A new law to ban the use of wild animals in circuses is being repeatedly blocked by a trio of Tory backbenchers, despite the personal support of David Cameron, the government, Labour and over 90% of the British public. The bill was blocked for the seventh time on Friday afternoon, a move its supporters called […]
POLL: Should whales and dolphins be kept in captivity for our entertainment?
A documentary examining the treatment of killer whales in captivity claims that the giant mammals that have delighted generations of children are being deeply traumatised by their conditions. The movie, which is called Blackfish and will be released in July in the UK and the United States, focuses on an animal called Tilikum who has […]
Photographers threatening the already-maligned slender loris
Caught in a beam of torchlight, the eyes of the slender loris reflect back a striking glow. In an effort to better understand these shy, nocturnal primates, a team of researchers set out to the Western Ghats of India. The resulting paper: Moolah, Misfortune or Spinsterhood? The Plight of the Slender Loris (Loris lydekkerianus) in […]