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2004.11.11

******* OrcaLive closes for the 2004 season ******* Each year when it comes time to send this message, we do so with a touch of sadness. Sad but true, OrcaLive will ending its 2004 season. Weather permitting, we'll disassemble the equipment on 14 November (local time). In what is becoming an annual tradition, Dr. Spong may make another camera appearance this year too! Just before closing, we will also air the highlights of the season -- please don't miss them! How was this year's season for you? Seeing the orca swim and foster new life made us think seriously about what we can bequeath the next generation. We hope Nature Network will become a place that makes more and more people feel and think the same. We thank you all for participating. OrcaLive will close, but TurtleLive should be back up soon! The typhoon season is finally over, so we can sink the underwater camera again. We'll let you know when it is up and running. ******* Message from OrcaLab ******* Hello everyone, Once again, we are coming to the end of a fabulous season of Orca-live. Our intention is to end this year's live webcast on November 14th at 3pm PST. Weather conditions make the exact timing of the ending somewhat uncertain, but we will do our best to keep to this schedule. During the 24 hours before the end, we will run several replays of highlights from 2004. One difference from previous seasons is that we will keep the comment columns running for some time after the live webcast ends - probably until we greet the new year. This will enable us to provide occasional updates about what is happening with the orcas, as well as allowing members of our audience to continue to share comments and information. 2004 has been a wonderful year for our project in many ways. The orcas have been magnificent, our audience has grown in numbers, enthusiasm and awareness, and our technical capabilities have grown. Our goal remains unchanged. We wish to contribute to the protection of Nature by introducing people to her richness, beauty and diversity. At the end of this fifth season of LIVE we are satisfied that our "direct" approach of using technology to connect humanity with Nature works... that people around the world, now in over 75 countries, are gaining new understanding that fosters caring. Caring, we remain convinced, is our planet's best hope. We cannot overstate our profound gratitude to our wonderful sponsor, NTT DATA. Without you, none of what we are doing would be possible. Thank you, so much, for your generous support, and for sharing our vision! We have many others to thank as well, because Orca-live is a complex project that relies on the contributions of numerous companies and individuals. Our heartfelt thanks go to SPACEPORT, NEUX, J Stream, Atlux, AXIS, Roscom Productions, SeeMore Wildlife, Jessie and Annie Gordon, Jason Hendricks, Mike von Zuben, Mike Durban, Bill ter Brugge, Anna Spong, Tomoko Mitsuya, Mari Ochiai, Mary Welch, Julie Warrington, Fiona Wright, Nat Haltrich, Michael Reppy, Peter Muny, and OrcaLab assistants. We thank B.C. Parks for their cooperation in giving us access to the Michael Bigg-Robson Bight Ecological Reserve. We also thank the individuals and groups who contribute to the information we gather and share...Cheryl Ciccone and the wardens who protect the Ecological Reserve, Straitwatch, researchers Graeme Ellis and Dr.John Ford who maintain the orca data base we rely on, and the whale watch community at large. Additionally, we wish to especially acknowledge the assistance of the Friends of the Environment Foundation of the Toronto Dominion Bank who funded the spectacular development of our monitoring capabilities at the rubbing beaches. OrcaLab's core work is funded by numerous organizations and individuals who share our goals and beliefs. The Born Free Foundation (UK), the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society (Germany), and the OrcaLab Support Society (Japan) deserve special mention, but there are many others to whom we are also indebted. Thank you all! Finally, we thank YOU for joining us and participating in our experiment! We hope you have a good winter or summer, wherever you are, and we hope to "see" you again next year! Our very best wishes to you all, Paul Spong & Helena Symonds

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