Making waves over whale shark
Vesela Todorova, The National 6 Feb 09;
Conservationists have renewed their demand for the release of a whale shark that has been kept at an aquarium in Atlantis, The Palm for more than four months.
Activists last year questioned the rationale for catching the shark, which the hotel said was sick and confused. Atlantis characterised the capture as a rescue.
Atlantis since has remained silent. The controversy subsided by the end of November, after the opening of the opulent hotel, the joint venture of Kerzner International and developer Nakheel.
Yesterday, a group of environmentalists tried to remind the public about the creature’s welfare by releasing an open letter to “the management and decision-makers” of the hotel.
They wrote that Atlantis confirmed during a radio interview in September that it “would release the whale shark in due course. We now urge the Atlantis Hotel to act upon its promise”.
The document is signed by Susan Lieberman, director of the global species programme of the World Wide Fund for Nature; Azzedine Downes, vice president of the International Fund for Animal Welfare; Habiba al Marashi, chairman of the Emirates Environmental Group; and Razan al Mubarak, managing director of the Emirates Wildlife Society.
The environmentalists claim the animal’s stay in the Ambassador Lagoon, an 11-million-litre fish tank, has little value other than attracting visitors to the hotel.
“Keeping the whale shark at a hotel, which is not an educational or scientific institution, does not increase the potential for conservation of the wild population,” the letter said.
“Whale sharks are animals that migrate extremely large distances each year, and this type of distance is simply not possible in an aquarium, no matter how large the facility may be. This highly migratory nature combined with its low abundance make it particularly vulnerable to exploitation.
“Furthermore, the fact that the captive whale shark is a juvenile female increases the detriment to the wild population.
“Taking a potential breeder and thus offspring producer from the wild takes not only one whale shark from an already weakened whale shark population, but also the possible offspring she could produce if in her natural environment.”
Whale sharks, which are the world’s largest fish, are listed as vulnerable to extinction in the Red List of Threatened Species, a publication of the International Union for Conservation of Nature.
Atlantis did not respond to requests for comment yesterday.
Environmental groups in Dubai reignite 'free Sammy the shark' campaign
Business Intelligence: Middle East 5 Feb 09;
UAE. Sue Lieberman, Director of WWF Global Species Programme; Azzedine Downes, Vice President for International Operations, International Fund for Animal Welfare; and Habiba Al Mirashi of Emirates Environmental Group today issued an open letter to the management and decision-makers of the Atlantis Hotel in Dubai, in a plea to release the whale shark being held in the aquarium since September 2008.
The Atlantis confirmed during an interview with the Business Breakfast radio show on 24 September 2008 that it would release the whale shark, captured in the open see some few weeks earlier, in due course. The signatories said they are now urging the Atlantis hotel to act upon its promise.
The whale shark is listed in appendix II of CITES and is listed by IUCN as 'Vulnerable' with a decreasing population trend, thus indicating that it is a threatened species.
The whale shark is a pelagic species feeding on plankton by filtering water in continuous motion in open waters. Holding a whale shark in a constraining artificial environment where it is unable to feed in its natural patterns and has a limited area in which to move can have fatal consequences (as has previously been the case with captive whale sharks in other countries).
Whale sharks are animals that migrate extremely large distances each year, and this type of distance is simply not possible in an aquarium, no matter how large the facility may be. This highly migratory nature combined with its low abundance make it particularly vulnerable to exploitation.
Furthermore, the fact that the captive whale shark is a juvenile female increases the detriment to the wild population. Taking a potential breeder and thus offspring producer from the wild takes not only one whale shark from an already weakened whale shark population, but also the possible offspring she could produce if in her natural environment.
The groups also suggested that the whale shark be tagged before release to benefit the scientific community.
"Keeping the whale shark at a hotel, which is not an educational or scientific institution, does not increase the potential for conservation of the wild population," they said.
Prior to its launch the Atlantis was marketed as a complete marine resort destination with the highest principles of conservation and support for the local marine environment. A spokesperson from the hotel was not immediately available for comment.
AN OPEN LETTER TO THE ATLANTIS HOTEL TO RELEASE THE CAPTIVE WHALE SHARK
Eye of Dubai 5 Feb 09;
This letter is addressed to the management and decision-makers of the Atlantis Hotel in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, in a plea to release the whale shark being held in the aquarium since September 2008.
The Atlantis confirmed during an interview with the Business Breakfast on September 24th 2008 that they would release the whale shark in due course. We now urge the Atlantis Hotel to act upon its promise.
The whale shark, Rhincodon typus, is listed in appendix II of CITES and is listed by IUCN as “Vulnerable” with a decreasing population trend, thus indicating that it is a threatened species.
The whale shark is a pelagic species feeding on plankton by filtering water in continuous motion in open waters. Holding a whale shark in a constraining artificial environment where it is unable to feed in its natural patterns and has a limited area in which to move can have fatal consequences (as has previously been the case with captive whale sharks in other countries).
Whale sharks are animals that migrate extremely large distances each year, and this type of distance is simply not possible in an aquarium, no matter how large the facility may be. This highly migratory nature combined with its low abundance make it particularly vulnerable to exploitation.
Furthermore, the fact that the captive whale shark is a juvenile female increases the detriment to the wild population. Taking a potential breeder and thus offspring producer from the wild takes not only one whale shark from an already weakened whale shark population, but also the possible offspring she could produce if in her natural environment.
We urge Atlantis to reconsider their rationale for keeping the whale shark and release it back into its natural habitat as soon as possible. We would like to also suggest that the whale shark be tagged before release to benefit the scientific community. Keeping the whale shark at a hotel, which is not an educational or scientific institution, does not increase the potential for conservation of the wild population.
