Captain Paul Watson Foundation Taiji
Operation Cove Siege
For six months of every year, starting in September, Taiji becomes a place of suffering. Entire pods of dolphins, from Risso’s dolphins to melon-headed whales are hunted down. Some are butchered for meat, others are sold into captivity, condemned to a lifetime in tanks. This is not tradition. It is profit dressed up as culture and it continues because the world looks away.
Taiji, at first light
The Horrors
At first light, a fleet of boats leaves Taiji harbor with one mission: to track, trap, and kill free dolphins. Day after day they scour the ocean, stripping it of life and freedom.
The cruelty is hidden behind closed waters, but it is systematic, and it is graded like a scoreboard:
This isn’t fishing, it is the commodification of freedom itself. If we continue to rob the ocean as if it were a limitless bank, the account will one day be empty.
01
Blue Cove
Hunters return with nothing.
02
Green Cove
Dolphins are captured alive and sold into captivity.
03
Black Cove
Dolphins are imprisoned overnight, their fate decided by the highest bid the next morning.
04
Red Cove
Dolphins are slaughtered in the hundreds, often entire families wiped out in a single day.
Taiji, Japan · Season report
The 2025-2026 Season has ended. The system has not.
The main dolphin drive hunting season in Taiji, Japan came to a close on February 28. For now, most dolphins can move along the coast without immediate threat. But this is not the end. Short-finned pilot whales are still being targeted through the spring, and the industry driving these hunts remains fully intact.
By Species
- Killed
- Captured
Bottlenose
Striped
Risso’s
Melon-headed
Pilot whales
Rough-toothed
While overall numbers were lower, the impact remains devastating, especially for bottlenose dolphins, the primary target of the captive industry.
2025 WAS A Season of Change
The hunting fleet has decreased to 9 boats, compared to 12-13 in previous seasons, and more pods now escape before reaching the Cove. Entire pods were sometimes released without any selection, a sign of how far the hunts now depend on the captive industry, which demands individuals of specific age, sex, and condition.
The core issue
The Captive Industry
While dolphin meat enters the local market, it is not the primary driver of the hunts. The highest value lies in live dolphins sold to dolphinariums. It is estimated that this segment accounts for over 80% of the revenue associated with the hunts in Taiji.
This leads to a clear conclusion: without global demand for captive dolphins, the scale of these activities would look very different.
The Hunting Process
The dolphin drive hunts in Taiji subject dolphins to extreme stress and suffering. Pods are driven using noise generated by boats and by striking submerged metal poles, disrupting their ability to navigate and communicate through echolocation. During the pursuit, dolphins frequently sustain injuries from contact with boats and propellers, as well as from colliding with rocks in the shallow Cove. In a state of panic, they lose coordination and crash into one another and their surroundings, often sustaining serious injuries before the selection process even begins.
Captive Transfers
During the 2025 – 2026 season, three confirmed transfers of dolphins to captive facilities took place, involving a total of 13 bottlenose dolphins:
November 4
November 7
2 individuals likely transferred to a dolphinarium in Shizuoka Prefecture
February 17
3 individuals likely transferred to a dolphinarium in Shizuoka Prefecture
80%
of hunt revenue comes from live dolphins sold into captivity, not meat.
Final destinations are not confirmed, as such information is often not publicly disclosed. These cases demonstrate that despite fewer boats and an increase in escapes, the supply chain to the captive industry remains active. Dolphins selected in the Cove are quickly transported to closed facilities, disappearing from public view and further monitoring.
The guardian of the cove
Kunito
At 3:30am every morning, 59-year-old Kunito rises, gets on his bicycle, and makes his way to the cove. He does this knowing his town despises him. “They hate me,” he admits. Still, he keeps going.
At 26, Kunito suffered a heart attack. Despite ongoing medical risks, he has devoted his life to exposing what happens in Taiji. His presence is an act of defiance. His camera, his only weapon. He knows he could be arrested, yet he stands his ground because if he doesn’t, no one will.
Kunito is the guardian of the cove. He risks his health, his reputation, and his freedom so the world can no longer claim ignorance.
Presence on the Ground
As in previous years, monitoring in the Cove was carried out by Japanese activist Kunito Seko (CPWF Japan), whose continuous presence plays a crucial role in documenting the hunts and raising awareness locally. Kunito reports on the events of each day of the season.
Throughout the season, documentation and English translation of Kunito’s materials were carried out by Megumi Matsuda, whose work enabled accurate communication of information from Taiji to the international community. This type of collaboration remains essential to ensure that what happens in Taiji does not go unseen.
In February, the efforts of Kunito and Megumi were supported by Edwin Radzikowski, a photojournalist from Poland, enabling ongoing documentation and the sharing of information beyond Japan.
Take action now
What You Can Do, This is not over.
Despite signs of change, fewer boats and more escapes, the system remains in place. As long as there is a global market for captive dolphins, Taiji will remain one of the key nodes in this multi-million-dollar industry.
01
TAKE DIGITAL ACTION
Support Operation Cove Siege – Reduce the money and institutional support that allow dolphin captures in Taiji to continue.
02
Wear Operation Cove Siege
Shop our merch and help fund direct action, legal defense, and frontline monitoring.
03
Follow the Cove live
Kunito streams from the cove through the season. Watch it as it happens.
04
Raise Your Voice
Spread the truth. Post, tag, and share with the world.
#DoNotVisitJapan
#DoNotVisitTaiji
#OperationCoveSiege
#EmptyTheTanks
#FreeAllFins