The Rescue Myth

Those involved in ordering and buying the dolphins from Solomon Island locals make claims of “rescuing” the animals from fishermen in order to make their actions more acceptable to an unwitting public.

The truth is that bottlenose dolphins are not targeted by the locals, that other local dolphin populations continue to be hunted for food and teeth, and that these animals would not have been captured if they were not intended for export.

When confronted with the fact that the dolphin was captured, they will often say that this was a "humane capture." But the concept of a humane capture is an oxymoron: There is simply no such thing as a humane dolphin capture. All dolphin captures are violent and cruel.

Dolphinariums also use the tuna-dolphin issue to justify the display of dolphins. They say that fisherman would still be killing dolphins in their tuna nets if people could not see dolphins up-close and personal. "You only love what you know," is their argument. But the dolphin species that get caught in tuna nets are the spinner dolphin and the spotted dolphins; not the bottlenose dolphins that are on display.

Furthermore, you need to be aware of the following: Seven to ten million dolphin have been killed by the tuna industry in recent years. Environmentalists launched a boycott of canned tuna that lasted for several years. During this time, marine parks did nothing to educate the public to the tuna-dolphin issue. In fact, you could buy a tuna-fish sandwich at most dolphinariums!