PARIS, France – France on Saturday, May 6, banned the breeding in captivity of dolphins and killer whales under tighter rules that campaigners hope will eventually herald the end of shows involving the animals.

Environment Minister Segolene Royal had on Wednesday, May 3, signed a version of the legislation introducing "tight controls on the reproduction of dolphins," her ministry said in a statement.

But she has since decided the rules need to be "more radical," her ministry told AFP on Saturday, particularly after learning that "some animals were drugged" in aquariums.

The new rules ban the captivity of all whales, dolphins, and porpoises, except for orcas and bottlenose dolphins already held in authorized aquariums.

"In plain terms, this means the end of breeding, exchange, and import programs," 5 conservation groups including One Voice and Sea Shepherd said in a joint statement.

"Without possible replenishment, this quite simply means the scheduled end of marine circuses on our territory."

But the move sparked anger from Jon Kershaw, head of the Marineland Antibes dolphin show park in southern France, who told the Var-Matin newspaper it was a "bombshell" for establishments like his.

The new rules notably also require "an increase of at least 150% of pools to allow the animals to live in less proximity from visitors and other animals," the ministry said, as well as banning chlorine in treating the water.

Direct contact between the animals and the public is also now forbidden.

Water parks and aquariums have 6 months to conform to the new rules, and a 3-year deadline for expanding their pools.

Parks such as Marineland Antibes – the biggest attraction of its kind in Europe – have faced growing criticism in recent years over their animals' living conditions. – Rappler.com </s> PARIS:- France on Saturday banned the breeding in captivity of dolphins and killer whales under tighter rules that campaigners hope will eventually herald the end of shows involving the animals. Environment Minister Segolene Royal had on Wednesday signed a version of the legislation introducing “tight controls on the reproduction of dolphins”, her ministry said in a statement. But she has since decided the rules need to be “more radical”, her ministry told AFP on Saturday, particularly after learning that “some animals were drugged” in aquariums.–AFP </s> Environment Minister Segolene Royal had on Wednesday signed a version of the legislation introducing "tight controls on the reproduction of dolphins", her ministry said in a statement.

But she has since decided the rules need to be "more radical", her ministry told AFP on Saturday, particularly after learning that "some animals were drugged" in aquariums.

The new rules ban the captivity of all whales, dolphins and porpoises, except for orcas and bottlenose dolphins already held in authorised aquariums.

"In plain terms, this means the end of breeding, exchange and import programmes," five conservation groups including One Voice and Sea Shepherd said in a joint statement.

"Without possible replenishment, this quite simply means the scheduled end of marine circuses on our territory."

But the move sparked anger from Jon Kershaw, head of the Marineland Antibes dolphin show park in southern France, who told the Var-Matin newspaper it was a "bombshell" for establishments like his.

The new rules notably also require "an increase of at least 150 percent of pools to allow the animals to live in less proximity from visitors and other animals", the ministry said, as well as banning chlorine in treating the water.

Direct contact between the animals and the public is also now forbidden.

Water parks and aquariums have six months to conform to the new rules, and a three-year deadline for expanding their pools.

Parks such as Marineland Antibes—the biggest attraction of its kind in Europe—have faced growing criticism in recent years over their animals' living conditions.

Explore further: It's an orca! Last killer whale is born at a SeaWorld park </s> France on Saturday banned the breeding in captivity of dolphins and killer whales under tighter rules that campaigners hope will eventually herald the end of shows involving the animals.

Environment Minister Segolene Royal had on Wednesday signed a version of the legislation introducing "tight controls on the reproduction of dolphins", her ministry said in a statement.

But she has since decided the rules need to be "more radical", her ministry told AFP on Saturday, particularly after learning that "some animals were drugged" in aquariums.

The new rules ban the captivity of all whales, dolphins and porpoises, except for orcas and bottlenose dolphins already held in authorised aquariums. </s> France has banned the breeding of killer whales and dolphins in captivity.

Campaigners hope the move will eventually bring an end to shows involving the marine animals.

The government has also banned the captivity of all whales, dolphins and porpoises, except for orcas and bottlenose dolphins.

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The new rules also ban direct contact between the animals and the public and require pools holding the animals to be made significantly larger.

Aquariums and water parks have six months to comply to the rules, and must expand their pools within three years.

It comes after SeaWorld announced the last birth of a killer whale at its theme park after it decided to stop breeding orcas following animal rights protests.

It has also said it is phasing out its orca shows after years of criticism, but activists remain unconvinced as its theme parks in San Antonio, Texas and Orlando are not expected to end the shows until 2019.

Shape Created with Sketch. SeaWorld's killer whales Show all 10 left Created with Sketch. right Created with Sketch. Shape Created with Sketch. SeaWorld's killer whales 1/10 Visitors are greeted by an Orca killer whale as they attend a show featuring the whales during a visit to the animal theme park SeaWorld in San Diego, California March 19, 2014. A California lawmaker introduced a bill to ban live performances and captive breeding of killer whales in the state, a measure that would force the SeaWorld San Diego marine theme park to end is popular "Shamu" shows. Mike Blake/Reuters 2/10 A trainer shows the crowd a killer whale during a show at the animal theme park SeaWorld in San Diego, California March 19, 2014. A California lawmaker introduced a bill to ban live performances and captive breeding of killer whales in the state, a measure that would force the SeaWorld San Diego marine theme park to end is popular "Shamu" shows. Mike Blake/Reuters 3/10 An Orca killer whale is seen underwater at the animal theme park SeaWorld in San Diego, California March 19, 2014. A California lawmaker introduced a bill to ban live performances and captive breeding of killer whales in the state, a measure that would force the SeaWorld San Diego marine theme park to end is popular "Shamu" shows. Mike Blake/Reuters 4/10 Visitors get a close-up view of an Orca killer whale during a visit to the animal theme park SeaWorld in San Diego, California March 19, 2014. A California lawmaker introduced a bill to ban live performances and captive breeding of killer whales in the state, a measure that would force the SeaWorld San Diego marine theme park to end is popular "Shamu" shows. Mike Blake/Reuters 5/10 Trainers have Orca killer whales perform for the crowd during a show at the animal theme park SeaWorld in San Diego, California March 19, 2014. A California lawmaker introduced a bill to ban live performances and captive breeding of killer whales in the state, a measure that would force the SeaWorld San Diego marine theme park to end is popular "Shamu" shows. Mike Blake/Reuters 6/10 Trainers have Orca killer whales perform for the crowd during a show at the animal theme park SeaWorld in San Diego, California March 19, 2014. A California lawmaker introduced a bill to ban live performances and captive breeding of killer whales in the state, a measure that would force the SeaWorld San Diego marine theme park to end is popular "Shamu" shows. Mike Blake/Reuters 7/10 Trainers have Orca killer whales perform for the crowd during a show at the animal theme park SeaWorld in San Diego, California March 19, 2014. A California lawmaker introduced a bill to ban live performances and captive breeding of killer whales in the state, a measure that would force the SeaWorld San Diego marine theme park to end is popular "Shamu" shows. Mike Blake/Reuters 8/10 Trainers have Orca killer whales perform for the crowd during a show at the animal theme park SeaWorld in San Diego, California March 19, 2014. A California lawmaker introduced a bill to ban live performances and captive breeding of killer whales in the state, a measure that would force the SeaWorld San Diego marine theme park to end is popular "Shamu" shows. Mike Blake/Reuters 9/10 Tillikum, a killer whale at SeaWorld amusement park, performs during the show "Believe" in Orlando, September 3, 2009. A killer whale at the SeaWorld amusement park in central Florida killed a trainer on February 24, 2010, police and company executives said. According to the Orlando Sentinel the orca involved in the incident, named Tillikum but popularly known as "Tilly," has a controversial past. Mathieu Belanger/Reuters 10/10 An unidentified trainer works with a killer whale during the "Believe" show at Sea World in Orlando, Florida, in this photograph taken on February 14, 2010. A killer whale at the SeaWorld amusement park in central Florida killed a trainer on February 24, 2010, police and company executives said. Picture taken February 14. Richard Baum/Reuters 1/10 Visitors are greeted by an Orca killer whale as they attend a show featuring the whales during a visit to the animal theme park SeaWorld in San Diego, California March 19, 2014. A California lawmaker introduced a bill to ban live performances and captive breeding of killer whales in the state, a measure that would force the SeaWorld San Diego marine theme park to end is popular "Shamu" shows. Mike Blake/Reuters 2/10 A trainer shows the crowd a killer whale during a show at the animal theme park SeaWorld in San Diego, California March 19, 2014. A California lawmaker introduced a bill to ban live performances and captive breeding of killer whales in the state, a measure that would force the SeaWorld San Diego marine theme park to end is popular "Shamu" shows. Mike Blake/Reuters 3/10 An Orca killer whale is seen underwater at the animal theme park SeaWorld in San Diego, California March 19, 2014. A California lawmaker introduced a bill to ban live performances and captive breeding of killer whales in the state, a measure that would force the SeaWorld San Diego marine theme park to end is popular "Shamu" shows. Mike Blake/Reuters 4/10 Visitors get a close-up view of an Orca killer whale during a visit to the animal theme park SeaWorld in San Diego, California March 19, 2014. A California lawmaker introduced a bill to ban live performances and captive breeding of killer whales in the state, a measure that would force the SeaWorld San Diego marine theme park to end is popular "Shamu" shows. Mike Blake/Reuters 5/10 Trainers have Orca killer whales perform for the crowd during a show at the animal theme park SeaWorld in San Diego, California March 19, 2014. A California lawmaker introduced a bill to ban live performances and captive breeding of killer whales in the state, a measure that would force the SeaWorld San Diego marine theme park to end is popular "Shamu" shows. Mike Blake/Reuters 6/10 Trainers have Orca killer whales perform for the crowd during a show at the animal theme park SeaWorld in San Diego, California March 19, 2014. A California lawmaker introduced a bill to ban live performances and captive breeding of killer whales in the state, a measure that would force the SeaWorld San Diego marine theme park to end is popular "Shamu" shows. Mike Blake/Reuters 7/10 Trainers have Orca killer whales perform for the crowd during a show at the animal theme park SeaWorld in San Diego, California March 19, 2014. A California lawmaker introduced a bill to ban live performances and captive breeding of killer whales in the state, a measure that would force the SeaWorld San Diego marine theme park to end is popular "Shamu" shows. Mike Blake/Reuters 8/10 Trainers have Orca killer whales perform for the crowd during a show at the animal theme park SeaWorld in San Diego, California March 19, 2014. A California lawmaker introduced a bill to ban live performances and captive breeding of killer whales in the state, a measure that would force the SeaWorld San Diego marine theme park to end is popular "Shamu" shows. Mike Blake/Reuters 9/10 Tillikum, a killer whale at SeaWorld amusement park, performs during the show "Believe" in Orlando, September 3, 2009. A killer whale at the SeaWorld amusement park in central Florida killed a trainer on February 24, 2010, police and company executives said. According to the Orlando Sentinel the orca involved in the incident, named Tillikum but popularly known as "Tilly," has a controversial past. Mathieu Belanger/Reuters 10/10 An unidentified trainer works with a killer whale during the "Believe" show at Sea World in Orlando, Florida, in this photograph taken on February 14, 2010. A killer whale at the SeaWorld amusement park in central Florida killed a trainer on February 24, 2010, police and company executives said. Picture taken February 14. Richard Baum/Reuters

French environment minister Segolene Royal signed a version of the bill on Wednesday, but decided the rules needed to be “more radical” after learning “some animals were drugged” in aquariums, her ministry told AFP.

In a joint statement, five conservation groups hailed the ban as a “historic French advance” which could mean the end of “breeding, exchange and import programmes”.

Jon Kershaw, the head of the Marineland Antibes park in the French Riviera, told local media the ban was a “bombshell” for businesses like his. </s> The New Zealand government has banned tourists from swimming with bottlenose dolphins in an attempt to save the struggling species.

According to the department of conservation [DoC] research has shown that humans were “loving the dolphins too much” and human interaction was “having a signifiant impact on the populations resting and feeding behaviour”.

The ban on swimming with bottlenose dolphins applies to tour operators in the North Island’s Bay of Islands region, which is popular with tourists for its warm climate and golden beaches. Other dolphin tours that interact with different species of dolphin in other parts of the country are still permitted.

Bottlenose dolphins prefer to swim in coastal regions, making them vulnerable to human activity, and their numbers in the Bay of Islands have declined by 66% since 1990, according to DoC.

A core group of only 19 bottlenose dolphins visit the region regularly now, and the latest reports show a 75% mortality rate among their calves – the highest seen both in New Zealand, internationally and in captivity.

Alongside banning tourist swims with bottlenose dolphins, DoC have stipulated that tour operators may interact with the dolphins only for periods of 20 minutes (reduced from 30 minutes) at a time, and all tour operators will be restricted to visiting either morning or afternoon, in order to provide a block of time where the dolphins are left alone.

The possibility of creating a marine mammal sanctuary in the Bay of Islands is also being investigated by DoC, research partners and local Māori tribes.

Tour operators in the Bay of Plenty have raised concerns about the impact the new ban will have on tourism numbers, and said less tour operators on the water will mean fewer eyes watching out for how private boats interact with the vulnerable population.

Tourists can still swim with common or dusky dolphins in tours operated in the South Island. </s> Japan is facing heated criticism from conservationists after a report revealed that its whaling vessels killed 333 Antarctic minke whales in the Southern Ocean last summer, purportedly for the sake of scientific research. According to Lorraine Chow of EcoWatch, 122 of the slain whales were pregnant and 114 were immature.

These sobering statistics were included in a report presented this month at the International Whaling Commission (IWC) Scientific Committee meeting in Bled, Slovenia. According to Bard Wilkinson of CNN, the paper was prepared by the Institute of Cetacean Research, which is linked to Japan’s fisheries ministry.

The whales were shot with grenade-tipped harpoons, hauled onto a research vessel and dissected on site. Though explosive harpoons are intended to kill whales instantly, research has shown that they frequently do not result in immediate death. The gruesome nature of this hunting method was revealed in distressing detail last year, when the conservation group Sea Shephard released footage of a minke whale struggling after being struck with an explosive harpoon during a Japanese whale hunt that took place in an Australian whale sanctuary.

According to the report, the objective of the latest hunt was to obtain a variety of data about the whales, including their age, sexual maturity, stomach contents and nutritional condition. Much of this information, the authors claim, can only be obtained through “lethal sampling methods.” For instance, the report asserts that the whales’ age can only be ascertained by analyzing earwax plugs that build up over time.

But Alexia Wellbelove, Humane Society International Australia senior program manager, refutes this claim. “[N]on-lethal surveys have been shown to be sufficient for scientific needs,” she says in a statement.

And while Japan claims that its whaling is carried out for scientific purposes, the country allows whale meat to be sold in markets and restaurants, reports Nicole Hasham of the Sydney Morning Herald.

Japan established its scientific whaling program in 1987, one year after the IWC issued a moratorium on the commercial hunting of all whale species. By carrying out its hunts in the name of science, Japan is able to exploit a loophole in international regulations that allow certain quotas of whales to be killed for research.

In 2014, International Court of Justice ruled that Japan’s Antarctic whaling program was illegal and ordered it to be brought to an end. Japan responded by revoking its recognition of the International Court of Justice as an arbiter of whaling disputes, according to the Maritime Executive. The country resumed its Southern Ocean whale hunt in 2015.

Japan reportedly plans to hunt around 4,000 whales over the next twelve years. Elaine Lies of Reuters reported last year that the country’s government has “repeatedly said its ultimate goal is the resumption of commercial whaling.”

But activists hope that the latest figures to emerge from the IWC meeting will spur countries to put renewed pressure on Japan to stop its lethal whaling programs.

“Whales are already facing substantial threats including bycatch in fisheries and marine pollution,” Wellbelove says in the Humane Society statement. “Significant conservation efforts are underway worldwide to address these issues, so the least Japan could do is put away the harpoons.” </s> Japanese hunters in the Antarctic killed more than 120 pregnant minke whales last summer, reports said. The annual hunt prompted outrage among conservationists, condemning the slaughter as "abhorrent."

A newly released report showed 333 minkes were captured and killed by Japanese fishermen during the 12-week expedition in the Southern Ocean. Of the total killed, more than 120 were pregnant whales.

Japan said its whaling program is for scientific purposes, despite signing the International Whaling Commission's moratorium on its controversial "JARPA II" whaling program in 2014.

The Humane Society International (HSI) reported in 2015, Japan rebranded "JARPA II" claiming the new program was for "scientific research," thus exempting the hunt from the ban.

Japan's Fisheries Agency defended the slaughter, saying it was not targeting pregnant whales.

"We catch whales totally at random," said Yuki Morita, an official in charge of whaling at the agency. "The IWC scientific committee recognises the number of whales we hunt is at the level that is necessary for research, but not above the level that would hurt the conservation of the stock."

"We'd like to stress here that the high ratio of pregnant females is noteworthy... This shows there are many mature females, suggesting we can expect growth in resources stock," Yuki told Agence France-Presse.

A representative for the HSI expressed the organization's anger over the recent slaughters.

"The killing of 122 pregnant whales is a shocking statistic and sad indictment on the cruelty of Japan’s whale hunt," Alexia Wellbelove, Senior Program Manager at Humane Society International, said in a statement. "It is further demonstration, if needed, of the truly gruesome and unnecessary nature of whaling operations, especially when non-lethal surveys have been shown to be sufficient for scientific needs."

“Whales are already facing substantial threats including bycatch in fisheries and marine pollution. Significant conservation efforts are underway worldwide to address these issues, so the least Japan could do is put away the harpoons," she continued. "The continued killing of any whales is abhorrent to modern society, but these new figures make it even more shocking. We look forward to Australia and other pro-conservation countries sending the strongest possible message to Japan that it should stop its lethal whaling programs."

The Japanese Embassy has not yet commented about the issue and Tokyo insists its program is carried out "in accordance with the International Convention for Regulation of Whaling." Japan also said it will hunt about 4,000 whales over the next decade.

Tony Burke, Australia's shadow minister for the environment, called on the government to stop the annual hunt.

"There is nothing scientific about harpooning a pregnant whale, chopping it up and putting it on a plate. Japan’s position on this is absurd and the Australian government must not be silent," he said. </s> Every Christmas, sailors from Japan go out into the Southern Ocean, taking "biological sampling" that aims to investigate "the structure and dynamics of the Antarctic marine ecosystem".

But no, they aren't trying to understand more about climate change, or investigating the mating songs of the ocean. They're out killing hundreds of Antarctic minke whales, and then letting the flesh be sold in markets and restaurants.

The latest figures have been released from meeting papers by the International Whaling Commission's scientific committee earlier this month.

According to those figures, 333 minke whales were killed in the 2017/2018 summer season in Australia. Of those, 122 were pregnant, and 114 were immature, meaning they were not yet able to breed.

The researchers wrote that killing the whales is necessary, as "age information can be obtained only from internal earplugs and therefore only through lethal sampling methods."

However, most researchers do not agree with this, as you can estimate the age of a whale by comparing its size to other whales that you know the age of.

The claims that whales need to be killed 'for science' have been debunked many times.

"It is well established in the scientific literature that there are many ways to study whale diet and condition without killing them," Leah Gerber, a marine conservation biologist at Arizona State University, told Science in 2013.

"The killing of 122 pregnant whales is a shocking statistic and sad indictment on the cruelty of Japan's whale hunt," says Alexia Wellbelove, from the Humane Society International.

The whales are killed by explosive grenade tipped harpoons that only kill the whale instantly 50-80 percent of the time.

And Japan allows the whale meat to be sold as a food product, removing even more credibility from its claims about scientific research.

Back in 2014, the International Court of Justice called on Japan to stop its whaling program, ruling it illegal.

In response, Japan has now withdrawn its recognition of the International Court of Justice in matters in regards to whaling.

According to the Sydney Morning Herald, Japan intends to kill around 4,000 whales over the next 12 years, and eventually resume commercial whaling.

"The continued killing of any whales is abhorrent to modern society, but these new figures make it even more shocking," concludes Wellbelove.

"We look forward to Australia and other pro-conservation countries sending the strongest possible message to Japan that it should stop its lethal whaling programs."

You can see the full report from the International Whaling Commission here.
France bans the breeding of killer whales and dolphins in captivity and orders aquariums and water parks to expand their pools within three years following a campaign by animal rights groups.