EVIDENCE: Zoologists in Ukraine are examining the dead porpoises and dolphins to secure evidence of what they want recognized as a war crime. Photo: LAURA BOUSHNAK / NYT
There is a mass death of dolphins in the Black Sea. Now the Ukrainians want to prosecute the dolphin death as a war crime.
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Mass death of dolphins is observed in the Black Sea. Ukrainian scientists blame the Russian war effort in the region. It started with the discovery of several dolphins without visible external injuries in Tuzly National Park, Ukraine, in March 2022. The scope grew with several observations along the Black Sea coastline in countries such as Turkey, Romania, Bulgaria and Georgia. Russian warships blamed for significant increase in dolphin deaths Researchers suggest that sonar noise from ships and submarines can interfere with animals’ navigational skills, cause disorientation and prevent food localization. Ukrainian officials claim that the dolphin death proves the serious environmental and marine damage caused by Russia’s war and are considering prosecuting this as a war crime. Show more
It started with the three dead dolphins that Ivan Rusev found on the beach in the Tuzly National Park, in southwestern Ukraine.
It was March 2022, and in and of itself not the first time the researcher had seen a dead dolphin. But until now, the animals had always had clear marks of what killed them, whether it was fishing nets or shots from illegal fishing.
These dolphins were without external damage. And as Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine continued, there were more and more of them on the beaches around the national park where he works.
– The next beach I examined, I found 37 carcasses. I was in shock, the Ukrainian researcher tells VG on the phone from Tuzly.
DEATH: Research manager Ivan Rusev keeps finding new dead dolphins on the shoreline of the Tuzly National Park, south-west Ukraine. Photo: Private
At the same time, the messages of concern began to flow into the office of zoologist Pavel Goldin at the Schmalhausen Institute of Zoology in Odesa.
The notifications came from collaborative researchers in Turkey, Romania, Bulgaria and Georgia.
All reported unusual numbers of dead dolphins and porpoises washed ashore. What these countries have in common is that they all have coastlines to the Black Sea, where Russia conducts the naval part of its war of aggression against Ukraine.
Porpoises: The dolphin’s relative, the porpoise, is also dying in droves on the Black Sea coast. Photo: Private/ Ivan Rusev
Thousands
Russian warships in the Black Sea are blamed for a significant increase in the number of dead dolphins and porpoises Porpoises are small toothed whales found in Norwegian waters. Dolphins also belong to the toothed whale group, but the most obvious difference between the two is that the heads of porpoises has a blunt snout, in contrast to the characteristic beak found in dolphins. The porpoise’s body is also more compact. (source: SNL) since Russia invaded Ukraine.
One of the causes of death may be that echo sounders from ships and submarines interfere with the dolphins’ own navigation techniques. This makes the small whales unable to orient themselves, Tuzly’s head of research Ivan Rusev tells VG.
– Another reason could be that warfare, with mines, missiles, helicopters and warships, causes so much noise that it disturbs life under water. The animals often lose the ability to find food, and die of hunger, says Rusev.
DOCUMENTING: Ivan Rusev has been involved in collecting samples from many hundreds of the dead dolphins and porpoises. Photo: Private
I think it’s a war crime
Ukrainian officials say the dolphin deaths are proof of the tremendous toll Russia’s war is putting on the sea and the environment.
Russian authorities have not responded to the accusations, according to search VG has done on Russia’s largest search engine.
900 dead dolphins have been dissected to document the damage, so that Ukraine can prosecute the case.
The aim is to add «ecocideocideEcocide / “Ekomord” describes the mass destruction of nature by humans. » to the list of war crimes war crimes War crimes is a collective term for violations of international humanitarian law committed in connection with war. These can be crimes such as rape, torture or attacks against civilians. (Source: SNL) committed by Russia.
THREAT OF EXTINCTION: It is difficult to quantify exactly how many of the dolphins have had to pay with their lives after Russia’s invasion, but Black Sea researchers agree that there has been an unusual increase. Photo: Leo Correa / AP
Eco imbalance
Ivan Rusev claims that the number of unusually dead dolphins and porpoises after the start of the full-scale war is now as high as 50,000 in the Black Sea combined.
Because the dolphins are at the top of the food chain in the ocean, the mass death has consequences for the entire ocean, explains the researcher.
– They keep the entire balance in the ecosystem. If you take them away, the entire ecosystem becomes unbalanced, says Pavel Goldin.
A complete investigation of the causes and extent of the dolphin deaths could take months and years, because large parts of the coastline are inaccessible to scientists, precisely because of the war.
IMPORTANT: Dolphins are not only cute creatures, they are essential to the balance of the marine ecosystem. Photo: APPPublished:
Published: 20.08.23 at 05:19
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2023-08-20 03:19:10
#Unusually #dead #dolphins #shock
