Whales and dolphins deserve same rights as humans, say experts

Marine biologists and philosophers have joined forces to support a controversial declaration of rights for whales and dolphins on the grounds that their astonishing intelligence and emotional empathy puts them on a par with humans.

Research into the complex behaviour of cetaceans - whales, dolphins and porpoises - is revealing that these sea mammals are so highly evolved and complex in terms of their behaviour that they deserve special protection with a universal bill of rights, they said.

Dolphins and whales have complex vocal communications and are able to learn an astonishing variety of behaviours when they come into contact with humans, such as cooperative fishing with native fishermen.

The proponents of the bill of rights argue the cetacean mind is so advanced and self-aware that whales and dolphins should be classified as “non-human persons” who deserve the right to life, liberty and wellbeing.

“A person needs to be an individual,” said Tom White, a philosopher at the Hilton Centre for Business in Los Angeles.

“If individuals count then the deliberate killing of individuals of this sort is ethically the equivalent of deliberately killing a human being.

“The captivity of beings of this sort particularly in conditions that would not allow for a decent life is ethically unacceptable, commercial whaling is ethically unacceptable.

You can't say its all about the size of the population.

We're saying the science has shown that individuality, consciousness, self-awareness is no longer a unique human property. That poses all kinds of challenges.”

The declaration of rights for cetaceans states that every individual dolphin, whale and porpoise has the right to life and liberty and that not only should they not be killed by hunting, but none should be kept in captivity or servitude or subject to cruel treatment.

It states that no cetacean can be the property of any individual or government and calls for the legal protection of their natural environment and a ban on any activity that disrupts their “cultures”, which could include underwater military sonar that disturbs their acoustic communications.

“The similarities between cetaceans and humans are such that, like us, they have an individual sense of self.

We can look internally and say that we have emotions, personality and sense of self.

They do as well,” said Dr White. “What we see in cetaceans is that humans need individual freedom more than whales and dolphins. But dolphins need social life more.

When I look at captive animals I don't say, ‘gee, they've got no freedom’, I say, ‘they have no social life'.”Lori Marino, of Emory University in Atlanta, said people can support the call for a bill of cetacean rights by not going to sea life parks that keep dolphins, porpoises or whales. “Once you shift from seeing a being as a property ... to a person, an autonomous entity that has a right to life on his or her own terms, the whole framework shifts,” she said.

Let's take a moment to marvel at their staggering feats and brilliant brainpower.

Elephants

They have good memories but have also been observed using tools and showing empathy, evidence of a higher form of intelligence.

Pigeons

These pestilent crumb munchers can identify themselves in mirrors and distinguish between objects.

Crows

Bird-brained but brilliant crows can place nuts in streets to be cracked under cars, retrieving the spoils after the traffic lights have changed.

Horses

Clever Hans wowed early 20th-century audiences with feats of arithmetic. A commission later found the German horse, while clever, was no genius.

Dolphins

Bottlenoses off Brazil drive fish towards fishermen and then swim away, nabbing lunch as they go.

Chimps

Ayumu makes his scientist handlers look stupid. When shown numbers on a screen for half a second, the Japanese chimp can then trace their position in perfect sequence.

Pigs

Sows in Essex have learned to “borrow” the electronic collars of other pigs to gain cheeky seconds from their computerised feeding system.

Dogs

Uggie, The Artist star, is a master of tricks but can't out-smart Chaser, a collie from South Carolina, who has learnt the names of 1,000 objects.

Rats

They can navigate mazes and trip levers for food but scientists in Los Angeles showed in 2006 that rats can also distinguish cause from coincidence.

Octopuses

Paul, the octopus who predicted results during the 2010 World Cup, wasn't psychic but his kind can open jars or valves to their tanks (one flooded a Santa Monica aquarium).

The Independent