Japan Today is reporting that six live dolphins have been delivered to the Beijing Aquarium and will spend 30 days in isolation before being put on display.
Two are Pacific white-sided dolphins and four are bottlenose dolphins.
Critics contend the display of captured dolphins in aquariums is cruel because it deprives the mammals of freedom and confines them to small spaces, in which they must behave in a certain way to be rewarded with food.
More cruel is the corralling and killing of dolphins and other marine mammals.
Earlier this week the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society reported, and issued photographic evidence, that dolphin hunters in Taiji, Japan, slaughtered more than a dozen pilot whales in what the group called "the killing cove."Taiji gained worldwide notoriety last year because of the Oscar-winning documentary "The Cove," which graphically exposed an annual slaughter that many hadn't known about.
It's currently open season on dolphins in Japan and relentless opposition by environmental groups appears to have slowed or stalled widespread killing.
Ric O'Barry, an activist featured in "The Cove," has helped organize an international day of protest on Oct. 14. It's called Save Japan Dolphins Day and those who oppose the hunts are encouraged to gather in front of the nearest Japanese embassy or consulate and participate in a peaceful protest.
-- Pete Thomas
Photo of pilot whales killed off Taiji courtesy of Sea Shepherd
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