It appears that whales, the gentle giants of the ocean, are taking the hit for our environmental negligence. On Monday a pilot whale was found in a shallow canal, it’s body shuddering. It was unable to eat and it struggled to swim and breathe. Unfortunately, despite rescuers attempted to save the mammal, it died.
An autopsy revealed dozens of plastic bags jamming the whale’s stomach, weighing 7.7kg in total. It is thought that the whale ingested the plastic thinking it was food, and that, as a result, it prevented the whale from being able to eat properly.
Not only is plastic threatening the lives of whales, but Japanese whaling boats continue to hunt the large creatures. Recently they killed 333 Antarctic minke whales, 122 of which were pregnant and 114 were juveniles.
Japan has rejected condemnation over the slaughter, specifically of pregnant whales, saying the “scientific” work confirmed the animals were fertile.
But critics say Japan’s whaling program is a cover for commercial whaling. The whale flesh is sold at markets and restaurants, and Japan has openly stated it wants to resume commercial whaling in the Southern Ocean, which contains some of the world’s healthiest whale populations.
Clearly, our oceans need to be protected in more ways than one. By 2050 it’ll be too late; change needs to happen and it needs to happen fast.