Author: timzimmermann

Comment Highlights From The Debate Over Blackfish

The back and forth over criticism of Blackfish in this post is generating some great comments. I wanted to call out a few:

First, from former SeaWorld Jeffrey Ventre, who I mentioned in the post, and who features prominently in Blackfish:

Tim, thanks for writing this. Just for clarity, I worked directly with Tilikum (as opposed to just being around) especially when opening the stadium. In the a.m., a Sr Trainer is usually paired with one or more junior staff, and conducts morning sessions, including exercise, play, learning, relationships, husbandry and more. In 1994-95, i usually opened 1-2 days per week. This involved direct, hands on contact with Tilikum. During show situations, I was typically with a waterwork animal (Kat/Tai), thus would rarely work him in shows, but it did happen, from time to time. In regard to fame and fortune, I’m personally down (net loss) about ten thousand due to hotels, travel expenses, and lift tickets involved with places like Park City and Sarasota. In regard to speaking out, and as stated at the SFF Q&A, most of us got into this position by default. We did have an opinion, which we’ve shared. Had other current and former marine mammal trainers stepped up to the plate, there’d be plenty of “fame” to spread around. None of us have a history of activism. If any current or former trainers want to join our expanding group, please track us down at Voice of the Orcas.

Jeff was good enough to include this video that conveys some of how Blackfish was received at the Sarasota Film Festival:

Next, this thoughtful comment and perspective, from Dana:

I am by no means an ex- marine mammal trainer but I would like to share my story with you. I grew up and still live in Ohio about 45 minutes from what was the Ohio SeaWorld. I grew up at Shamu Stadium. When I was 17 I had been accepted as a student for a internship/career workshop (at this time the park was Six Flags). A week before I was to start my internship working at Dolphin Cove I received a phone call that I will never forget. “We must cancel your internship because the park will be closing down permanently. We are very sorry.” I didn’t let this setback stop me from my dream. I went to college at Kent State Univeristy and graduated in 2011 with a B.A. in Psychology. During my undergrad at Kent I was fortunate enough to become a professional dog trainer. I figured if I could not work at SeaWorld I may as well train animals somehow! Today I have 5 years of professional dog training experience and I am an AKC Evaluator for their Canine Good Citizen Program. I am currently working towards my CPDT (Certified Professional Dog Trainer) title. My 5 years of experience training dogs has also allowed me to gain valuable insight to the marine mammal industry. The past 5 years has allowed me to reflect on Dawn’s death, read the book “Death at Seaworld,” watch several whales die including a few of our past Ohio whales- (Sumar, Kalina), and allow me to form an opinion for myself. It took me a long time to come to my conclusions. I am very anxious to see the film “Blackfish.” In response to Robin and Future Orca Trainer : I am that person who has gone to college, spent thousands of dollars, earned a degree, and I have 5 years as a professional trainer under my belt so I could one day become a marine mammal trainer. I am not ashamed but rejoiced that I could find a career that I love. I may never train a killer whale but sure can train dogs! I can direct my passion to the animals that really need training. Thousands of dogs need help in shelters and dogs that are rescued from shelters often need training. If SeaWorld and their IPO continues to skyrocket as Blackfish becomes more public there are other career paths you may take that will fufill your dream. Jeffrey, thank you for being a voice for the orcas. If I can share my voice even as a professional dog trainer, I am happy to.

Plus, this honest comment from Lexie, who wants to be an orca trainer but is open to at least seeing and hearing what Blackfish has to say:

I like how in this article, it states that this movie shows how great and passionate Dawn Brancheau was with her job, I’m very glad this isn’t demeaning her in any way. I also like how it briefly explains who was interviewed in the movie, and their history with the SeaWorld Parks. The thing I do not like, however, in the “teaser”, they showed Katina and her trainers, and that gave me the vibe that every time a trainer enters the water with an orca, there is some sort of aggression shown, which isn’t true. They were performing a simple stunt and the clips they showed makes it look like the orca is going after the trainer. Nevertheless, I’m interested in seeing the movie. I am, indeed, a pro-cap, and I have a dream much like several others: I want to be an orca trainer, and unlike some of the other pro-captive people, I don’t resent the movie without even seeing it, and I’m interested to see what they have come up with. However, a movie isn’t going to change my mind about the career I want, nor are peoples’ comments. I’m really hoping other pro-captive people watch this movie as well, because it’s not a valid argument if you don’t understand both side, so we’ll see.

Finally, this wasn’t left as a comment, but it is a post on the blog of Jenna Costa Deedy (from an essay she wrote in 2011 for a Human Growth And Development Class), whose feelings about Blackfish got this useful discussion of Blackfish going. It helps explain where she is coming from, particularly with regard to former SeaWorld trainer John Hargrove’s decision to speak out and participate in Blackfish:

John. J Hargrove is a killer whale trainer at SeaWorld San Antonio who I first met in August 2010 during a camp that I attended at the time. There, John shared with us his story of how he got started in working with killer whales before going on to share some stories about his experience working with these large marine mammals. He has been working with killer whales at SeaWorld parks in California and Texas, and Marine Land in France for the past eighteen years. His intellect and life story is a very interesting case of how one person’s passion for animals and the sea can sometimes result into a life-long career of working with them over a long period of time. John’s story is very unique because not only does it focuses on the life story of a boy from Orange, Texas who grew up to be one of the world’s most influential whale trainers, but also, a story about how he has grown to love and appreciate the animals he works with everyday.

Jenna’s whole post is worth reading, and her connection with Hargrove helped fuel her dream and determination to become an orca trainer. Which goes to show how complex and emotional the whole issue of orca captivity is.

Addressing Some Criticism Of Blackfish

Here’s an interesting comment posted by “Future Orca Trainer” in the Comments section of this post about the Q&A that followed the Blackfish screening at the Sarasota Film festival last Friday:

An email from Jenna Costa Deedy, author of The Winter Dolphin Chronicles:

I think that Blackfish is just a movie that is doing more injustice to Dawn’s memory and the whole 2010 SeaWorld tragedy by making money off the whole situation. Yet, I find it funny that of all the five ex-trainers featured in that movie, only one of them did work with Tillikum and I don’t why the other four get to have a say on his case all because they are “activists” who once worked at SeaWorld for a period of time, but only John Hargrove worked longer than eight years at two SeaWorld Parks in San Diego and Texas, but NOT Orlando. It would not surprise me if SeaWorld and Dawn’s family intends to sue the filmmakers of the movie for defamation of character and emotional distress because a lot of people have come to the point where they are just getting tired of seeing Dawn’s death being exploited for money when they should honor her memory based on how she lived her life.

Though I strongly suspect that Jenna Costa Deedy (who has a blog and apparently is an aquarium intern) has not seen the film, I am highlighting the comment because I want to address some of the points, which seem to be making the rounds on internet forums. I hope people who support SeaWorld and killer whale captivity will have the courage and open-mindedness to see Blackfish. And that we can continue to debate the issues raised. So here’s a start:

1) Of the five ex-SeaWorld trainers featured in Blackfish, one was a Tilikum team leader (who got in trouble with management when he refused orders to start masturbating Tilikum every day to stockpile his semen). The others, however, all spent time around Tilikum. The only ex-trainer who was not around Tilikum much was John Hargrove, though he did spend some time at the Florida park (even though he never worked there). And Hargrove does not speak about Tilikum.

Update: Carol Ray, one of the former-SeaWorld trainers in Blackfish, e-mailed to clarify that she had left SeaWorld Orlando by the time Tilikum arrived. So the three trainers in Blackfish who had direct experience with Tilikum, and speak about him in the film, are John Jett, Jeffrey Ventre, and Samantha Berg.

2) None of the trainers were “activists” while they worked at SeaWorld. They were all thrilled to be SeaWorld trainers. It was the experience of working at SeaWorld that changed their views on issues related to keeping killer whales in captivity.

3) More broadly, while the story of Tilikum and Dawn Brancheau is the backbone of the movie, Blackfish delves into issues that ALL SeaWorld’s killer whales face. John Hargrove, for example, discusses the separation of young calves from mothers, and an incident in which Splash and Orkid pull a trainer into the pool and nearly drown her. The former trainers who were interviewed all speak about their personal direct experience, and are not asked to speculate about topics about which they have no first-hand experience or knowledge.

4) I don’t know whether any of Dawn’s family has seen the film, and what they think of it if they have. But Blackfish does everything it can to be respectful of Dawn, and her love of working with killer whales. Her death is not shown (though the Dine With Shamu Show that led up to her death is reviewed and dissected to show that Tilikum’s work with Dawn just before he killed her was not as flawless as SeaWorld has asserted). And, most import, Blackfish honors and defends Dawn by strongly rebutting SeaWorld’s initial effort to suggest that she made a mistake, when in fact she was following SeaWorld protocols with the same professionalism and discipline that made her such a great trainer. In fact, that is one of the major takeaways of Blackfish. Dawn is not defamed in any way in the film. She is portrayed as a passionate and talented killer whale trainer who was let down by the system in which she worked, and suffered the ultimate tragedy.

5) None of the trainers in Blackfish were paid anything to participate. They agreed to be interviewed because they want people to understand the reality of killer whale captivity as they experienced it. Anyone who knows anything about the economics of documentary film-making knows that almost all documentaries lose money. People nevertheless make them because they are passionate about a subject, and passionate about telling stories. That was what motivated the making of Blackfish. If it ends up making any money, it is the investors who will be rewarded for the faith they had in Gabriela Cowperthwaite, the director, and in the importance of explaining what happened with Tilikum and Dawn. And if that is the case, hopefully they will turn around and invest in another great documentary production!

(Yet!) One More Round On The Taiji Cruelty Report

Following the recent release of a paper on the inhumanity of the Taiji dolphin drive hunt (previous here, here, here, and here!), Lori Marino of Emory University voiced strong concerns about the language and approach of the paper, most prominently here.

Lori is as passionate, dedicated, and smart as they come when it comes to advocating for the rights of nonhumans. And she bravely raised completely legitimate points (though I personally did not agree completely with them). But she has reconsidered the sharpness and tone of her response, and has just released an open statement to the report authors:

Note to Self: It’s Not About Us

Open Statement to the authors of the Butterworth et al.(2013) paper: A Veterinary and Behavioral Analysis of Dolphin Killing Methods Currently Used in the “Drive Hunt” in Taiji, Japan

In response to the outpouring of strong reactions to this paper, both negative and positive, I need to say that my own criticisms of the paper reflect a very deep commitment to a particular stance on how we should oppose dolphin exploitation and abuse. They were not meant as a personal attack on the motivations of the authors, and I apologize and take full responsibility for any hurt the tone of my reaction and my comments have caused.

We are all frustrated over the ongoing abuses of dolphins and other animals. And we all have strong opinions about how to bring an end to those abuses. My own view is that a strong rights-based stance is the only one that will lead to real change, and that when we give the impression that we’re endorsing more “humane” ways of killing nonhuman animals, we have stepped over a “line in the sand” with regard to being respectful to the lives of the animals we are setting out to protect.

So I have very real concerns that a paper of this kind can backfire in terms of our goal, despite the good intentions.

More to the point, there is a respectful discussion to be had about these issues, and my reactions to this paper should have been more considerate and constructive.

I hope, in the future, to be able to reach out to my colleagues and friends as we all work to find ways to combat the abuses all around us – abuses that clearly leave deep marks on all of us.

Thank you,

Lori

I personally have no problem with sharp debates over this issue, or any issue. But it is important that debates not undermine the basic collegiality of all who care about dolphin issues, or undermine their ability to work together toward protecting dolphins. So I think this is a classy move on Lori’s part and I hope it succeeds in soothing any hurt feelings or ill will.

Video Interlude: The Dolphin Debate In Germany

We often get pre-occupied with SeaWorld, partly because of the killer whales. But dolphinariums, even without the orcas, are big business all over the world. This 30-minute program takes a look at dolphin parks in Germany, and the protest movement against them (in German, with English subtitles).

Deepwater Horizon And Marine Life

It could be years before we know the full impact of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill on the marine life of the Gulf Of Mexico. But an initial study is   pretty devastating:

The Deepwater Horizon oil spill happened in the Gulf of Mexico nearly three years ago, but the estimated 4.9 million barrels of oil that it released are still killing dolphins, sea turtles and other marine life in record numbers, according to new research.

The report, “Restoring a Degraded Gulf of Mexico: Wildlife and Wetlands Three Years into the Gulf Oil Disaster,” found that dolphins were among the hardest hit animals. As of just earlier this year, infant dolphins were dying six times faster than they did before the spill. Scientists aren’t even yet sure of the extent of the massive spill, given that it was impossible to fully clean up the chemical-laden, carcinogenic oil.

“Three years after the initial explosion, the impacts of the disaster continue to unfold,” Doug Inkley, senior scientist for the National Wildlife Federation and lead author of the report, said in a press release. “Dolphins are still dying in high numbers in the areas affected by oil. These ongoing deaths — particularly in an apex predator like the dolphin — are a strong indication that there is something amiss with the Gulf ecosystem.”

 

Here are some of the key findings:

  • The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) called the dolphin die-off “unprecedented” a year ago.
  • More than 1,700 sea turtles were found stranded between May 2010 and November 2012 — the last date for which information is available. For comparison, on average about 240 sea turtles are stranded annually.
  • A coral colony seven miles from the wellhead was badly damaged by oil. A recent laboratory study found that a mixture of oil and dispersant affected the ability of some coral species to build new parts of a reef.
  • Scientists found that the oil disaster affected the cellular function of the killifish, a common baitfish at the base of the food web. A recent laboratory study found that oil exposure can also harm the development of larger fish such as mahi mahi.

The BP spill is one of the most dramatic and damaging reminders in recent history of one of the major external costs (pollution) attached to reliance on oil, and we’ve seen plenty of indications that dolphins are paying a price. I don’t think you can ever create a system of production and use that would eliminate pollution (or health costs; and greenhouse warming is permanently embedded in oil use). But if you price oil to include these costs you can reduce the amount of oil we use, and reduce the external costs. Yes, there is a gas tax to help pay for roads and highways, but that tax doesn’t even pretend to help cover health and pollution costs. And a carbon tax would need to be perhaps $80 a ton (which would add about 80 cents to a gallon of gas) to really start addressing the impact of oil and carbon on the climate.

Film Break (2): The Story Of Keiko

It’s a controversial story, and people read different meanings into it. But I came across this documentary about Keiko here, and it’s worth a look.

Influenzas Compared

There are a lot of worries about the recent outbreak of H7N9 virus in China. Want to know how it stacks up against other deadly viruses when it comes to what species it can infect, and how deadly it is?

Or course you do, and, happily, there is an infographic for that. And it should be enough to make you re-think the human relationship with pigs and chickens (click image for full size):

Another Round On The Taiji Cruelty Report

..courtesy of Professor Tom White, author of In Defense Of Dolphins, who gets Andrew Revkin of the New York Times to look at the Taiji slaughter from a nonhuman rights point of view:

After I wrote over the weekend about new research on the killing methodemployed in the dolphin roundups undertaken in Taiji, Japan, a fascinating comment on the rights of “nonhuman persons” was posted by Thomas I. White, who is the Conrad N. Hilton Professor in Business Ethics at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles…[snip]

…An issue that quickly comes to mind in considering such questions is where one draws the line in determining how we treat the animals we come across in the wild or rely on — from horses and dogs and cats to the cattle, poultry, pigs and other creatures we grow in order to consume. [11:07 a.m. | Insert | Make sure to look back at Don McNeil’s 2008 piece, “When Human Rights Extend to Nonhumans,” for more.]

Here’s the comment White made, which got Revkin interested in exploring this further:

One of the most important features of science is that major discoveries regularly raise important ethical questions. This is especially true with research about cetaceans, because the discoveries of marine mammal scientists over the last 50 years have made it clear that whales and dolphins share traits once believed to be unique to humans: self-awareness, abstract thought, the ability to solve problems by planning ahead, understanding such linguistically sophisticated concepts as syntax, and the formation of cultural communities. The scientific evidence is so strong for the intellectual and emotional sophistication of dolphins that there simply is no question that they are ‘nonhuman persons’ who deserve respect as individuals.

Anyone who doubts this either is unfamiliar with the data or doesn’t understand the ethical significance of it. Both the killing and captivity of dolphins are ethically indefensible. This is not an emotional claim. It is based on hard science, and distinguished scientists like Lori Marino, Denise Herzing and Hal Whitehead recognize this. It’s important to recognize that facts that we now consider obvious–the Earth moves around the Sun, matter consists of invisible subatomic particles, men and women are equal, to name just three–were all considered ridiculous. Science moves forward by being open to the idea that radical ideas–in this instance, that dolphins ‘count’ as individuals and should be neither killed nor held captive–might just be true.

For a brief explanation of this perspective, see my “Primer on Nonhuman Personhood, Cetacean Rights and ‘Flourishing.’”

It’s always refreshing to see such a clear declaration of the moral and scientific case for nonhuman rights. Whatever you might think of the Taiji report, it has generated a lot of worthwhile attention and discussion to the issues of cruelty in the drive hunt, and dolphin rights.

To truly grasp where White and others in this field are coming from, here is a story I did about Denise Herzing and The Wild Dolphin Project. And here is a video about her work with dolphins.

Film Interlude: The Circular Glance

I believe in the power of film, and “The Circular Glance” is an award-winning short film that makes the powerful and important connection between how we live, and the implications for animals. It turns a perfect day into a perfect nightmare and will make you think.

Watching The Arctic Change

NASA is on it, with satellite imagery and video:

The Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) on the Suomi NPP satellite captured this view of extensive sea-ice fracturing off the northern coast of Alaska. The event began in late-January and spread west towardBanks Island throughout February and March 2013.

Visualizations of the Arctic often give the impression that the ice cap is a continuous sheet of stationary, floating ice. In fact, it is a collection of smaller pieces that constantly shift, crack, and grind against one another as they are jostled by winds and ocean currents. Especially during the summer—but even during the height of winter—cracks—or leads—open up between pieces of ice.

That was what was happening on the left side of the animation (below) in late January. A high-pressure weather system was parked over the region, producing warmer temperatures and winds that flowed in a southwesterly direction. That fueled the Beaufort Gyre, a wind-driven ocean current that flows clockwise. The gyre was the key force pulling pieces of ice west past Point Barrow, the northern nub of Alaska that protrudes into the Beaufort Sea.

Scientist Ken Dunton is on it, too, and he captures the challenge of change in much more human terms: