Hector's Dolphin Dead In Set Net

A dolphin killed in Banks Peninsula waters last Monday shows current protections are inadequate.

The young male Hector's dolphin was found dead in Akaroa Harbour.
The 123cm-long male was probably 4-5yrs old and in good condition, but it was obvious the animal had died in a set net. There were clear indented lines across the dolphin's snout, multiple sharp cuts in the flippers and tail flukes, and a fresh nick out of its dorsal fin.
Although Banks Peninsula is classed as a Marine Mammal Sanctuary, it's legal to set nets for flatfish in the inner parts of Akaroa Hbr from 01 April-30 Sept.!!! However, even in the depths of winter, dolphins still swim in that area.
This ensnaring shows that these set nets are a very real risk to marine mammals, and simply should not be permitted.
It's bloody ridiculous to have a marine reserve at one end of the harbour, a very active and lucrative tourist industry based on the dolphins, and yet allow fishing methods that kill those same dolphins.
Hector's dolphins live only in New Zealand waters, and stick to shallow areas less than 100m deep. Biologists estimate only 7000 remain in South Island waters.
Make that now only 6,999...

Falklands War II?

Britain struck oil in the Falklands last week, a discovery likely to escalate already-heightened tensions with Argentina over the ownership of the islands.
After nine months of exploratory drilling, a group of British companies found oil and gas in a remote field north of the islands. The bonanza could be worth billions of pounds…and will likely increase fears of renewed conflict over the islands, just days after UK Defence Secretary Michael Fallon warned of a 'very live threat' from Argentina.

Brit boots yomping, 1982

Coincidentally, the oil discovery comes exactly 33 years after Argentina invaded the islands it calls Malvinas…and it's a safe bet it'll be seriously interested in this latest development. Argentina invaded the Falklands in 1982 (at a cost of 260 British and 650 Argentine lives), and still claims territorial rights.
Britain has pledged to invest £180million over the next ten years to defend the islands, with a modernisation of existing defences, upgrading a surface-to-air missile system and deploying two Chinook helicopters. This commitment follows Russia's pledge to help re-arm Argentina: rabid Ruskie Prez Vlad The Putin is reportedly going to lease 12 Sukhoi Su-24 bombers to Argentina.
Experts also predict future Falklands oil finds could be even more significant. The tension over the sovereignty of the islands is set to intensify. Again.

Viking Won't See Valhalla

Another internationally-wanted toothfish-poaching vessel has been detained in Malaysia.

The Nigerian-flagged Viking is the second poaching vessel to be detained recently, dealing a major blow to illegal fishing in the Southern Ocean.
Held for violations of Malaysian maritime law, Malaysian authorities have indicated Viking will also be investigated for alleged illegal, unregulated, unreported (IUU) fishing violations.
Viking is one of the six remaining illegal, unregulated, unreported (IUU) fishing vessels (which Sea Shepherd calls the "Bandit 6"), known to target vulnerable toothfish in Antarctic waters, and is the second of the six to have been detained by authorities in the last month.
Viking, like its five counterparts, has a long history of illegal fishing. In 2013 the vessel, then called Snake, was the first vessel to be issued with an Interpol Purple Notice for fishing-related violations following a petition from Norway. The owners and operators of the vessel are suspected of violating national laws and regulations, as well as international conventions by engaging in fraud and fisheries-related crimes.
In addition to fishing crimes, SS is calling upon Malaysian authorities to investigate possible human rights violations on board Viking.

...meanwhile SS's ship Bob Barker continues its record-breaking pursuit of the most notorious of the "Bandit 6" vessels, the Thunder, which prior to it being stripped of its registration last week, was also flagged to Nigeria.
...and in further news, Thai authorities confirm the captain of the poaching vessel Kunlun, which was chased from its hunting grounds inside Australian waters by the Sam Simon in February, has been charged for falsely reporting its illegal catch of 182 tonnes of Antarctic toothfish as grouper. The handler that received the fish has also been charged for illegally importing the fish into Thailand.
The poaching vessels are the target of Operation Icefish, SS's first Southern Ocean Defence Campaign to target IUU fishing operators in the waters of Antarctica.