Mass Murder in the Faeroe Islands

A grisly discovery made by a Sea Shepherd undercover operation, of a mass slaughter of 236 pilot whales in the Danish Faeroe Islands has revealed the brutal way in which these whales were killed.

The discovery has echoes of “The Cove,” the award winning film that highlighted the annual slaughter of dolphins in Taiji, Japan.

Using an undercover operative, Peter Hammarstedt, who posed as Swedish film student, Sea Shepherd has documented the method the islanders used to round up, strand and sever the spinal cords of pods of whales. A method called “the grind.”

As with other whaling communities the Faroese government claims that the deaths of the whales were quick and painless, but sadly the horrific photos that Hammarstedt has managed to capture shows otherwise. One photo clearly shows a whale with several hack wounds to her head. Hammarstedt described the scene; “The islanders basically used her as a chopping board....Some whales are hacked repeatedly for up to four minutes before they die.”

Despite warnings in previous years that the meat from pilot whales contains high levels of mercury and is dangerous for consumption, the islanders continue to butcher the cetaceans.

The pictures themselves paint a gruesome enough scene. The whalers did not stop at adult whales either; Hammarstedt also found pregnant females with their babies and foetuses ripped out of their bodies. “Pilot whales are strongly matriarchal; I can’t imagine the fear and panic that these mothers must have felt as their families were wiped out in front of them.”

Hammarstedt took a risk during this undercover operation as some of the islanders recognised him from the film, “Whale Wars.” Sea Shepherd has voiced its concerns over the killing of the pilot whales; “Pilot whales are classified as “strictly protected” under the Convention on the Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Habitats. By allowing the slaughter to continue in the Faeroes, Denmark fails to abide by its obligations as a signatory of the Convention.”

Hundreds of Madagascar Tortoises Seized in Malaysia

More news from TRAFFIC, Malaysian customs officers have seized 369 Radiated tortoises (Astrochelys radiate) and five Ploughshare tortoises (Astrochelys yniphora) from two women who were smuggling them inside their bags. They also found tomato frogs and several chameleons. The Ploughshare is considered to be one the rarest tortoises in the world.

Due to the new Malaysian International Trade in Endangered Species Act 2008, which came into force this month, the two women were arrested. Section 10a of this law means that any person found guilty of importing or exporting any scheduled species, without a permit, can be fined up to 1 million RM or face a maximum jail sentence of 7 years. The animals were handed over to Perhilitan, Malaysia’s wildlife enforcement agency.

While the officials should be commended for catching these smugglers, it is clear to say that the two women are at the bottom of this smuggling ring. Care should be taken now to investigate and crack down on those controlling and pulling the strings of the smuggling racket. The illegal wildlife trade is thought to be second only to the drug trade and arms trafficking, and it can be arguably said that the two often go hand in hand together.

Perhilitan have had a busy month, this July, with two other raids resulting in huge seizures:

Raid for Stolen Cars Nets Birds

Over 1000 Endangered Animals Seized in Less Than a week

Plight of the Pangolin - 8,000kg of Pangolin Carcass and Scales Seized

Chinese police and TRAFFIC have reported that 8,000kg of frozen pangolins have been seized from a boat off their southern coast. The cargo found amounts to 2,000 frozen, de-scaled pangolin carcasses, as well as 92 cases of pangolin scales. The boat was found in June, and the penalty for smuggling an endangered animal, such as some species of pangolin, is either a prison sentence or the death penalty. The crew of the boat have confessed that they were ordered to sail from China to two meeting points, where they received the cargo. They were on route to an undisclosed location in South East Asia.

Descaled and frozen pangolins found in previous raids. CREDIT: TRAFFIC

Pangolins are protected species and international trade is prohibited under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES). Two (Chinese Pangolin and Sunda Pangolin) of the four Asian species found are classified as endangered by ICUN.

There is a high demand for pangolin scales as they are ground up and used in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), although the scales are made from the same substance as our hair and nails, keratin. Eating pangolin scales for medicinal purposes, is about as effective as eating your own fingernails.

The meat is considered a delicacy, it, and sometimes the whole body, is used in soup. Although it is not on the menu, if you know who and how to ask it is possible to order it. It is this illegal trade that is dramatically reducing the number of pangolins in South East Asia.

There is general lack of awareness amongst Asians as to the plight of the pangolin, these scaly anteaters are shy and nocturnal, many people have never seen this elusive animal. Governments need to educate the public on the plight of the pangolins, and be more stringent in their checks on cargo in order to cease the trade and strengthen conservation efforts.

What About Chickens?

Chickens are the animal that gets the harshest deal from humans just by sheer number slaughtered each year and conditions of living. But why should we care? After all, they are just dumb feather brains right?

Well, actually, for those who work with chickens, especially rehabilitated chickens, would describe them as being intelligent, friendly and even compassionate.

Let us go back to the original chicken, the red jungle fowl (Gallus gallus), still living in jungles and forests in South East Asia, and only a slight similarity to the hens we see in the West today. The red jungle fowl has strong legs, runs quickly and is a deep red colour. Farmed hens are lucky to be able to stand up for long periods of time. This is a result of selective breeding in intensive factory farms.

Red jungle fowl and free range chickens, who are allowed to create their own
social groups, communicate with each other by different postures and displays, by using different vocal calls and even by the colour and size difference of combs.

So, when you cram these highly intelligent birds into tiny cages or up to 70,000 in a barn, unsurprisingly, problems will occur. In barns, the birds are continuingly meeting new hens and having to establish hierarchies, which leads to confusion and then, aggression. In cages, birds cannot move away from birds of a higher status and therefore can be subject to aggression.

The hens housed in barns have constant competition at the feeder, and if a hen falls over, she can be trampled to death. An increase in birds and a decrease in space allowance results in an increase in abnormal behaviours such as self mutilation in the form of feather pecking or cannibalism.

Most farming systems will de-beak or beak trim the birds using lasers or clippers, usually without any anaesthesia to reduce these abnormal behaviours rather than improving the living conditions.

Supporting farmers who have adopted a free range farming system, or simply giving up eggs is one way to help the birds, but informing the relevant authorities for your country that you prefer a higher welfare system shows them that you are making informed choices. This can affect any animal welfare laws that are passed.

Check out these charities that actively campaign for and even rescue ex-laying hens:

Chicken Out

United Poultery Concerns

Hillside Animal Sanctuary

British Hen Welfare Trust

Animal Acres

Compassion in World Farming

Farm Sanctuary

Squid Sex Secrets Solved

A recent discovery of a deep-sea squid, by deep-water fisheries expert, Dr Alexander Arkhipkin of the Falkland Islands Government Fisheries department, and his colleagues, has vanquished the mystery of how these animals mate. The BBC has reported on this find and the full article can be found in the Journal of Molluscan Studies.


A male squid was caught, and upon opening the mantle, the scientists found an elongated and erect penis, which was almost as long as the squids body. This explains exactly how deep-sea squids mate, including giant squids; previously no-one was really sure, theories put forward included giants squids ‘shooting’ their spermatophores hydraulically to the females from a distance. This can now be ruled out.


This is a fascinating find, as the method of squid’s mating habits have always baffled scientists. Due to the complicated body of the female squid, scientists had always wondered exactly how the male accessed the sexual organs of the female which are hidden under the mantle. Now, it is clear that the males have these extra long penises to ‘fit the job’.

It's just too loud to talk

A new study, reported in the New Scientist, involving North Atlantic right whales, has discovered that in order to be heard over the increased noise of today’s ocean, they have increased the volume of their calls to each other. The whale equivalent of talking loudly when stood next to a busy road with cars rushing past.

Communication is important to all whales, they call to attract mates and to find lost calves. If they cannot communicate with each other, it is bad news for the species, as it is possible they may stop talking all together, if the noise becomes just too loud.

Though the study only focused on a small specific group of whales off the west coast of the US, it does have implications on the effects of shipping routes and how they coincide with whales, especially their feeding and mating areas, and possibly their migration routes.