APRIL 30,
2019
by Gervase
Phillips, The
Conversation
Norwegian
fishermen were reportedly
approached by
a beluga whale wearing a Russian harness, complete with GoPro camera
holder, sparking
speculation that the animal had been trained to gather intelligence by
the Russian Navy. While this theory has not been confirmed, it is entirely
plausible: armed forces around the world have a long and disturbing history of
exploiting marine mammals.
In the late
19th century, European militaries had come to
appreciate that
thoroughly-trained and well-handled dogs could perform useful military
services, such as finding wounded soldiers on the battlefield and guarding
military installations and outposts. Over the course of the 20th century, new
roles were found for them: notably, detecting
mines and explosives during World War II.
Given the
success achieved with dogs, it was perhaps inevitable that experiments would
begin with other intelligent and trainable animals, including marine mammals. The earliest of these experiments took
place during World War I, when Britain's Royal Navy unsuccessfully attempted to
train sea lions to
locate German submarines.
The early
training – conducted at a facility on Lake Bala in Gwynedd, Wales – went well.
But once the sea lions were released into
the open sea, they were generally found to be more interested in pursuing
shoals of fish than U-boats – much to the frustration of the officers involved.
APRIL 30,
2019
Enigmatic
Beluga whale off Norway so tame people can pet it
by Jan M.
Olsen
A beluga
whale found in Arctic Norway wearing a harness that suggests links to a
military facility in Russia is so tame that residents can pet the mammal on its
nose.
The white
whale found frolicking in the frigid harbor of Tufjord, a hamlet near Norway's
northernmost point, has become "a huge attraction" for locals, one
resident said Tuesday. The whale is so comfortable with people that it swims to
the dock and retrieves plastic rings thrown into the sea.
"The
whale is so tame that when you call it, it comes to you," said Linn
Saether, adding the whale also reacts to yells and when humans splash their
hands in the water.
She said
when she throws out a plastic ring, the Beluga whale brings it back to her as
she sits on the dock.
"It is
a fantastic experience, but we also see it as a tragedy. We can see that it has
been trained to bring back stuff that is thrown at sea," Saether, 37, told
The Associated Press.
The whale
was found with a tight harness reading "Equipment St. Petersburg" in
English. The hamlet has a dozen permanent residents and less than 100 people in
the warmer season.
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