disturbing sight in the Gulf of Mexico

[wolf eel]

[The entire thing is sick and very sad. No matter how busy or unaviable these agency are, you should definetly not just give up. I appluad your effort, many only talk about doing something, very few actually do it.]

I fully agree with you !!!!!!!!

Derek

 

[circusoflife]

Look at the effects of industrial fishing. See attached images.

These are from the Blue Planet book. Please also search Scubaboard for TSUKIJI

You will find a message I just posted on the largest fish market in the world in Tokyo, Japan.

Also do Google IMAGE search on SHARK FINS - you'll find some interesting pictures and articles.

 

[The Great Orca]

Look at the effects of industrial fishing. See attached images.

These are from the Blue Planet book. Please also search Scubaboard for TSUKIJI

You will find a message I just posted on the largest fish market in the world in Tokyo, Japan.

Also do Google IMAGE search on SHARK FINS - you'll find some interesting pictures and articles.

Wtf is that retard doing riding that dolphin, what an idiot, I can't believe this, this reminds me of the slaughtering in NZ were they gather up Pilot Whales and kill them for fun. What's up with that? I hope those dolphins bite the dude in the buttox.

 

[Nomaster]

The captain was upset, ... Which I will do, but nobody wanted to call/email/do anything themselves and that's upsetting. They were disgusted but I had the distinct feeling they didn't want to get invovled and wanted to forget about it and go on with their fun day and own lives.

... want to photograph them then don't we have a duty to protect them?

How can anyone possibly forget and have fun as though it's not happening?
What kind of brain has that capacity?
Obviously the shrimpers, but the other divers?

Tom

 

[Nomaster]

Are you talking about a 200 pound dolphin that was tangled in the shrimp net and thrashing about unable to escape? If so, what do you think the shrimp boat should have done? I'm having a hard time imagining a shrimp boat intentionally capturing and beating a dolphin just for the fun of it. I'm unsure what the most humane recourse would be short of let's all just eat farm raised shrimp.

Cut it free if need be!
You can repair a net.
You cannot give back a needlessly taken life.

Tom

 

[Nomaster]

1. The dolphin catch may have been bycatch off a blackfin tuna bait.

2.Dolphin have sharp intrlocking teeth, I wouldn't have tried to get a swallowed hook out of live one, but leaving the hook in is a slow death via septecemia for the critter.

As far as getting involved, IF they were fishing for mammals, AND you had it on tape the federal prosecutor MIGHT talk to you about it. The best scenario for you is travel at your expense on their schedule to the trial. This seems to happen 4 or more times until the lawyers finish doing last minute trial delays, and then do a plea bargin deal in the end for less of a fine than your hotel bills add up to, IF you keep showing up. BTDT

From past experience holding a commercial fisherman accountable in court unless you can prove a "pattern of abuses" is almost impossible.

The bycatch issue is why I spearfish. I don't have any bycatch.

ARRGHH!
Ugly legal reality.
Hug an attorney, maybe some of them got the way they are through lack of compassion as children.
To some people, "Ethics is just a word."
To me "Legal ethics" is an oxymoron.

Tom

 

[Humuhumunukunukuapua'a]

Wow. This story makes me really sad. Because it makes me feel like this sort of thing is going on everywhere in all forms, destroying all sorts of life and habitat in the name of money.

I've just about had it with seafood. Shooting a fish and taking it home to eat is one thing, but the commercial seafood industry has done harm that will take centuries to repair.

I really wanted to encourage the OP to contact the authorities. You have to try. And please update us if you do

Gregg

 

[Wildcard]

Wtf is that retard doing riding that dolphin, what an idiot, I can't believe this, this reminds me of the slaughtering in NZ were they gather up Pilot Whales and kill them for fun. What's up with that? I hope those dolphins bite the dude in the buttox.

What that "retard"' is doing you ignorant *** is releasing it from a purse sein unharmed as are the sharks.
Killing whales for fun? In a country more liberal and green than this board? Ya right.

I have to call BS on this whole thing. No commercial fisherman would ever harm a marine animal with a boat load people watching. You may have seen them dspatching a wounded animal, that is why no one is doing anything about it.

 

[archman]

I have to call BS on this whole thing. No commercial fisherman would ever harm a marine animal with a boat load people watching. You may have seen them dspatching a wounded animal, that is why no one is doing anything about it.

Unfortunately, many cultures do not view cetaceans as do 20th century Europeans and North Americans. Asian nations in particular retain traditions and beliefs far different than ours in this matter; so do many portions of South America and Africa. Avoiding offense to certain demographics and known "trouble spots" on the coast, I'll merely state that it's highly plausible for this activity to occur in the Gulf of Mexico. Not particularly surprising, either. I've read reports of people in Florida shooting whale sharks with firearms, and heard about a dolphin necropsy in Texas where mortality was caused by a rifle bullet.

In the case of the reported incident, that fishing vessel is required by federal law to report injured marine mammals due to bycatch. Within 48 hours. If folks are really upset about it, they should call the local NMFS office. Here's a link to their law enforcement directory. The local office would be Galveston. Two special agents are listed, with phone numbers.
http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/ole/Southeast/SED/DivisionalDirectory.htm

If the fishermen reported the incident, then these dudes will know where that report is, or who to contact for it.

Take a good look at that directory folks. It lists all of NMFS' enforcement personnel for the Gulf of Mexico and Southeast Atlantic. Spread a little thin, don't you think? You'll find that trend throughout most conservation agencies. Theirs is an exhausting, neverending job.

 

[Wildcard]

Every commercial fisherman knows the fines and jail time that can come with getting caught doing something like that. To do it in front of a boat load of lookie lous just isn't plausable. I'll stick with my BS call. I don't know what he saw but Im sure it had a reasonable explanation that a land lubber just wouldn't understand.