Bjossa (lone ocra) dying in Vancouver Aquarium

Dear All,

Many thanks to all of you who phoned or wrote to the aquarium and the Park Board. If you haven't send out a message to them yet, please send a quick e-mail NOW opposing the importation of new whales and dolphins into Stanley Park.

E-MAIL THE VANCOUVER PUBLIC AQUARIUM: 
Clint Wright <wrightc@vancouver-aquarium.org>

E-MAIL THE VANCOUVER PARK BOARD: 
Terry Clark <terri_clark@city.vancouver.bc.ca>

NEWS COVERAGE

Yesterday the news coverage included local and Seattle radio stations, Canadian national TV stations and all Vancouver TV stations, as well as articles in the Vancouver Sun, the Province and National Post newspapers. Seattle Times will carry the news tomorrow.

BJOSSA 

I spent several hours at the Aquarium yesterday observing Bjossa. I have never seen her look so ill. Bjossa has a large cut on her right shoulder, a small scratch on the top of her head and the center of her neck/chest area shows an oval patch of red raw skin. In the past month she has also developed a tilted dorsal fin. She used to have a straight fin with the very tip bend slightly to her left. But now the whole dorsal fin is warped and tilted at least 30 degrees to one side.

Bjossa's rostrum is extremely raw from scraping against the concrete tank walls, but most disturbing of all was to see blood coming out of her mouth. I had plenty of opportunities to observe her laying still with her head above the water. Slowly blood would start dribbling out of her mouth and running down her white chin. Then she would dive and wash the blood off, but as soon as her rostrum was above the water again, the blood would start trickling out of her mouth.

I phoned the Aquarium's Marine Mammal Curator Clint Wright this morning to share these concerns with him, and he basically told me that I was hallucinating. I was astonished at his denial of Bjossa's condition, especially because in last night's newscast on Vancouver Television, they clearly showed Bjossa's mouth bleeding and the tilted dorsal fin (as I had requested they do).

After a battery of medical tests, the Aquarium still doesn't know what's wrong with Bjossa, but somehow they insist she's only getting better.

Let's all hope that for once they are right.

To end on a happy note: Hurray for Keiko who is now closer to freedom! http://ens.lycos.com/ens/pics10/keikoinbay.jpg

BUT THAT'S NOT ENOUGH!

Please phone / e-mail / fax (best to fax or phone!) the Vancouver Aquarium and the Vancouver Park Board TODAY and urge them to stop bringing new whales and start phasing out the whale exhibits in Stanley Park.