Marine and Fisheries

3 rough-toothed dolphins stranded on New Taipei City beach released after 3 days rehabilitation

Marine and Fisheries 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment , , ,

Three dolphins found stranded on a beach in New Taipei City’s Bali District, Wednesday, were released in waters off the coast of Keelung City, after spending two days in a cetacean rehabilitation center. The one male and two female rough-toothed dolphins (Steno bredanensis) were reported stranded on Waizaiwei Beach on the morning of February 9. Personnel from the New Taipei City Government Animal Protection Department, Coast Guard, and Taiwan Cetacean Society responded to the report. Due to bad weather and

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Oil tanker listing in Port of Kaohsiung after collision with breakwater

oil tanker listing at Port of Kaohsiung
Marine and Fisheries 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment , ,

A 42,000 ton oil tanker began to take on water after colliding with a breakwater at the Port of Kaohsiung and damaging its hull, but there is little chance of oil pollution port authorities say. According to reports today, February 4, the Danish-flagged oil products tanker TORM EMILIE (IMO: 9277785) was entering the port on Tuesday, February 1, when it collided with the south dike breakwater, causing a hull breach, the harbor bureau said. The outer shell of the hull

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Live leatherback turtle found stranded on beach entangled in fishing nets

stranded turtle entangled in discarded fishing nets
Animals Marine and Fisheries 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment , ,

A live leatherback turtle was sent to National Taiwan Ocean University for medical treatment after being found stranded on New Taipei City beach yesterday, February 1. Coast Guard personnel were dispatched to Fulong Beach in Gongliao District after National Coast Guard Administration received reports of a large sea turtle seen entangled in discarded fishing nets and stranded on the beach at around 10:00 am. Coast Guard officers found the animal to be a leatherback sea turtle (Dermochelys coriacea), a species

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Taiwanese white dolphin in critical danger of extinction: threats to habitat increasing

coast guard officers with dead dolphin
Animals Marine and Fisheries 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment , , , ,

Marine conservationists sounded a warning that the Taiwanese white dolphin is seriously threatened with extinction during a press conference held by environmental protection groups at the Legislative Yuan following the discovery of a dead dolphin on Taiwan’s west coast last week. Experts in the field of marine biology pointed out that there were only about 60 individuals left of the only subspecies of dolphin endemic to Taiwan (Sousa chinensis taiwanensis). After being first described in 2002, the Taiwanese white dolphin was

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Belize-registered ship aground in Penghu Islands after drifting crewless for four days

composite image showing ship aground and map of location
Marine and Fisheries 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment , , , ,

A general cargo ship has run aground on a reef in the Penghu Islands, after the crew abandoned ship off the coast of northern Taiwan on December 24. The Belize-flagged, 499-gross tonnage general cargo ship HOMAO lost power due to flooding in its cabin and issued a distress signal at approximately 8 o’clock in the morning of the 24th, 52 nautical miles from Keelung. The crew of nine abandoned ship a short time later. On the evening of the 24th,

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Container ship damaged after crashing into wharf at Port of Taichung

damaged bow of container ship Asiatic Sun
Marine and Fisheries 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment ,

A container ship appears to have sustained serious damage after crashing into a wharf at Taichung Port this morning, Sunday, December 26. Taichung Port authorities said that the container ship Asiatic Sun crashed into the Taichung Port Pier 8A as it was attempting to dock at 7:33 am. The Singapore-flagged 1,049 TEU Asiatic Sun is a 143 meter-long vessel with a gross tonnage of 9,610 tons, and was built in 2008 in Busan, Korea. The Maritime Port Bureau of the

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Pumice from Ogasawara Islands volcano appears on Taiwan’s north coast: nuclear power plants on guard

pumice at keelung
Marine and Fisheries 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment ,

Volcanic pumice originating in the Ogasawara Islands of Japan has drifted to Taiwan’s north coast, and both maritime authorities and the Atomic Energy Council are taking precautions. Eruptions in the Micronesian island group, which includes Iwo Jima, began on August 13, producing enormous drifts of the floating stones that began to clog ports in Okinawa and other parts of Japan last month. See previous story: Volcanic activity, seismic shifts: WWII ships from Battle of Iwo Jima raised from watery graves

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Rescue of false killer whale successful: plans for release tomorrow

false killer whale and marine conservation volunteers at Badouzi rescue center
Animals Marine and Fisheries 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment , ,

Marine conservation workers plan to release a false killer whale into the wild tomorrow, after a successful rescue and rehabilitation effort spanning 7 days. Coast guard personnel and the Taiwan Cetacean Society moved the false killer whale to a specialized marine wildlife rescue and rehabilitation facility in Keelung City after finding it beached in Yilan County, November 17. The false killer whale – actually a species of dolphin – was found to have a lung infection, and was in a

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False killer whale rushed to rescue center after beaching on northeast coast

composite image of beached whale rescue and rehabilitation facility
Animals Marine and Fisheries 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment , , ,

Marine conservationists are working in shifts in an attempt to keep a dolphin alive after it was found stranded on a beach at Su’ao in Yilan County, yesterday, November 17. The false killer whale (Pseudorca crassidens), which is actually a species of oceanic dolphin, was reported stranded at around noon. Coast Guard officers and a veterinarian went to the scene to evaluate the dolphin’s condition and provide assistance. After examining the animal the coast guard and volunteers from the Taiwan

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Crew abandons ship after Panamanian freighter runs aground in Penghu Islands

Fortune ship aground at Jibei Island, Penghu County, Taiwan
Marine and Fisheries 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment , , ,

The 14-man crew of a Panamanian-registered cargo ship was airlifted to safety after the vessel ran aground in Penghu County following a mechanical failure, Sunday, October 17. Taiwan’s Coast Guard Administration Magong Signal Station received a distress call from the crew of the Xinyan Fortune at 9:25 am, reporting that the ship had lost power and was adrift around 7 nautical miles northeast of Jibei Island. The coast guard dispatched three patrol boats and a fixed winged aircraft to the

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