Washington, D.C. — This week, the Born Free Foundation launched a ground-breaking scientific report, Back to the Blue, detailing the successful rescue, rehabilitation, and release of two captive dolphins, Tom and Misha.[teaserbreak]
This pioneering report charts the rehabilitation of Tom and Misha, who were rescued from a toxic swimming pool in Turkey in June 2010. The campaign to help these dolphins was spearheaded by the Born Free Foundation. Following an intensive two-year period of rehabilitation, the pair was released into the Aegean Sea off the coast of Turkey on May 9, 2012.
“The successful rehabilitation and release of Tom and Misha back to the wild not only gave them their freedom back, it also ignited a beacon of hope for other captive cetaceans,” said Born Free Foundation President, Will Travers OBE.
Back to the Blue aims to highlight the plight of captive dolphins and provide the tools to assist in the future rehabilitation and release of other captive cetaceans.
The report details how the progress of Tom and Misha was recorded against a number of key goals to ensure their responsible reintroduction back into the wild. These goals included ensuring they were in peak physical condition, and retraining them to live as wild dolphins again—including hunting, catching and eating live fish, and spending more time under water.
Born Free’s Back to the Blue project, with its detailed post-release monitoring phase, proved what is possible. Tom and Misha were rescued from their tiny concrete tank where they had been languishing in filthy water and going downhill fast. Over a period of 20 months of rehabilitation, they were transformed into the sleek, efficient marine mammals that nature intended.
Their journey was not without considerable challenges. However, the rehabilitation team, led by marine mammal expert Jeff Foster, worked with Tom and Misha every day, adjusting and developing the process in recognition of their individual characters and skills. Though a considerable undertaking for these two dolphins, the effort was more than justified, as it highlights a practical way forward and offers a realistic alternative for dolphins currently condemned for life in concrete tanks.
Foster said, “In captivity, we train the animals not to think on their own, to shut down their brains and do what we ask them to do. What we are trying to do when we release them into the wild is get them off autopilot and thinking again. If they can make it alive through a six-month period, then we know they have been successfully reintroduced. Within six hours of release, they were eating wild fish and swimming with another dolphin. It was fabulous.”
Adam M. Roberts, CEO of Born Free USA and Born Free Foundation, added, “The rescue of Tom and Misha has made history. We now have the hard evidence that it is possible for these animals to be successfully and humanely returned to the wild. That is a dangerous concept for a multimillion dollar captive industry that profits from their very confinement, posing new ethical and moral challenges for the future of an outdated industry.”
Following their successful release into the Aegean, Tom rounded the Turkish coast at Bodrum and continued north toward Izmir, while Misha headed east along the southern Turkish coast. They were tracked via satellite until October 14, 2012 and November 29, 2012, respectively. Tom was subsequently spotted in summer 2014. Their extraordinary journey is documented in a video available to view on YouTube today, and coincides with the release of this report.
Back to the Blue report:
http://www.bornfree.org.uk/campaigns/marine/hisaronu-dolphins/
Tom and Misha video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fPOHDO_6PRI
The Born Free Foundation is a dynamic international wildlife charity devoted to compassionate conservation and animal welfare. Born Free takes action worldwide to protect threatened species and stop individual animal suffering. Born Free believes wildlife belongs in the wild and works to phase out zoos. The Foundation rescues animals from lives of misery in tiny cages and gives them lifetime care. Born Free protects lions, elephants, tigers, gorillas, wolves, polar bears, dolphins, marine turtles, and many more species in their natural habitats, working with local communities to help people and wildlife live together without conflict. The Foundation’s high-profile campaigns change public attitudes, persuade decision-makers, and get results. Every year, Born Free helps hundreds of thousands of animals worldwide. More at www.bornfree.org.uk.
Born Free USA is a global leader in animal welfare and wildlife conservation. Through litigation, legislation, and public education, Born Free USA leads vital campaigns against animals in entertainment, exotic “pets,” trapping and fur, and the destructive international wildlife trade. Born Free USA brings to America the message of “compassionate conservation”—the vision of the U.K.-based Born Free Foundation, established in 1984 by Bill Travers and Virginia McKenna, stars of the iconic film Born Free, along with their son Will Travers. Born Free’s mission is to end suffering of wild animals in captivity, conserve threatened and endangered species, and encourage compassionate conservation globally. More at www.bornfreeusa.org, www.twitter.com/bornfreeusa, and www.facebook.com/bornfreeusa.
Media Contact: Rodi Rosensweig, 203/270-8929, therodicompany@gmail.com