Scientists ask: Where have all the dolphins gone?

[Matt Rogers]

Damn trawling again.

"Sightings by marine scientists of dolphins in the north Atlantic's Bay of Biscay have dropped off by 80 percent compared to the same period in 2006, a wildlife conservation group said Wednesday.

The alarming drop in numbers of the Bay's three most common species of dolphin -- the striped, bottlenose and common -- can be attributed to one or both of two causes, Clive Martin, senior wildlife officer for the Biscay Dolphin Research Programme, told AFP.

"We know for a fact that by-catch is killing thousands of dolphins every year," he said, referring to commercial fishing operations in the bay, which is formed by the northern coast of Spain and the eastern French seaboard up to the tip of Brittany.

Martin singled out French "pair trawlers" that sweep the ocean with huge nets twice the size of a football pitch strung out between them as being especially lethal to the marine mammals. "

More info:
Scientists ask: Where have all the dolphins gone?

[Tangster]

They are in the tuna cans LOL

[Matt Rogers]

That label sure does a lot, eh?

[mattgeezer]

Originally Posted by Tangster

They are in the tuna cans LOL

[amcarrig]

Originally Posted by Matt Rogers

Damn trawling again.

C'mon...I know what you all REALLY want to say is "damn French again."

Go ahead but be gentle, I'm half French (and be warned, I'm also half Sicilian) :mad:

[Tangster]

So that makes you a half what ?

[amcarrig]

Three quarters Irish

[Otty]

Originally Posted by Tangster

So that makes you a half what ?

Boy I bet your not getting any for a while....

[omard]

Originally Posted by Matt Rogers

Damn trawling again.

"Sightings by marine scientists of dolphins in the north Atlantic's Bay of Biscay have dropped off by 80 percent compared to the same period in 2006, a wildlife conservation group said Wednesday.

The alarming drop in numbers of the Bay's three most common species of dolphin -- the striped, bottlenose and common -- can be attributed to one or both of two causes, Clive Martin, senior wildlife officer for the Biscay Dolphin Research Programme, told AFP.

"We know for a fact that by-catch is killing thousands of dolphins every year," he said, referring to commercial fishing operations in the bay, which is formed by the northern coast of Spain and the eastern French seaboard up to the tip of Brittany.

Martin singled out French "pair trawlers" that sweep the ocean with huge nets twice the size of a football pitch strung out between them as being especially lethal to the marine mammals. "

More info:
Scientists ask: Where have all the dolphins gone?

Ahhh, once again I am embarrassed to be human.

[djnzlab1]

HI,
I used to work at a Lab In Va beach that ran bacterial test for the local marine science dept,
And the common denominator in beached animals was infection. Many of the animals are catching things from our polluted water run off, and the local biologist are very worried about toxic stuff in the food chain via the tiny critters eat little stuff the bigger critters eat all the stuff they accumulated so on so on.
When run off hits the ocean it causes a nitrates spike that feeds algae, the algae goes will cutting off oxygen, when the food is gone the algae dies covering the sand with mud, the filter feeder accumulate waste all the way to the top this unnatural bloom may be tilting the balance in favor of algae and bacteria killing more animals.
Sound familiar it’s like a giant fish tank.