Save the Whale-shark from Non-sustainable Tourism

The Atlantis Hotel, the newest and largest resort in the nation of Dubai, is holding a whale shark captive in its aquarium. The hotel, on the exclusive Palm Jumeirah Island, originally said it had "rescued" the whale shark, an endangered species. The hotel is now refusing to say if or when the whale shark will be released.

Environmentalists and Dubai residents are demanding that the shark should be released into its natural habitat. You can join the protesters by sending the e-mail below. The shark, which could grow up to 12m (39ft), was caught off the coast of Dubai six weeks ago. The management talked about "rescuing" an animal that was in distress, but former employees have told the local press that capturing a whale shark was always part of the hotel's plan to provide an added tourist attraction.
There is a growing swell of public opinion that the animal should be released. Whale sharks are protected under the CITES convention and the plight of this endangered species has captured the public's imagination. One popular newspaper has launched a freedom campaign. Children are talking about the situation in school assemblies and
local environmentalists are strongly urging the shark's release. Remember, Arenas del Mar has animals out there but they are all treated with respect as the original owners of this land. None of them are kept captive and furthermore we actually try to upgrade their home by doing intense landscaping with native species that are food sources for them. Whale sharks are also found in Costa Rican waters and there is a "Sightings Web" were you can give your report in case you see one while snorkeling. That website is: www.pretoma.org. If you are worried about that poor whale shark in the fish tank in Dubai, please take action today at: www.all-creatures.org.

Thank you!
By: Jose Pablo Fdez, naturalist guide