Increased Whale Hunting by Japan

Black Swan

Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe informed his parliament that they will increase commercial whale hunting in the Antarctic. This goes way beyond the earlier claims that they were harvesting whales merely for scientific research. This position taken by Japan's PM appears to be in direct violation of the recent decision by The Hague, Netherlands (31 March 2014) in regard to their scientific whale hunting, as well as going the step further to hunt them commercially.

Of the kingdom Animalia, phylum Chordata, class Mammalia, order Cetacea, there are 11 species listed as endangered: northern right whale, southern right whale, bowhead whale, blue whale, fin whale, sei whale, humpback whale, sperm whale, vaquita, baiji, and Indus susu.

Zoological parks have been developing breeding techniques in an attempt to preserve species populations that are in threat of extinction, but such efforts may be overwhelmed by commercial hunting and consumer demands.

steddyeddy

The right whale so named because they "were the right whale to hunt". Japan isn't going to change for a long time. Whales are some of the few creatures in possession of spindle cells meaning they are capable of higher cortical function and or emotional capacity. Hunting them isn't something that should be acceptable in this day and age.

Black Swan

Japan's Agriculture Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi initiated "Whale Week" to promote the commercial and retail consumption of whale meat, claiming cultural and religious justifications.

aidoh

Do Australia or any South American / African countries have an claim to the southern ocean?

It would be ideal for somebody to 'buy' the southern ocean and set it up as a no-take MPA.

Black Swan

The oceans where whale hunting occurs normally falls into international waters, not territorial.

Japan appears to be stepping-up its hunting when killing 30 whales for the purposes of scientific research AND dinner tables.

deise08

This is so depressing to read!
I only read yesterday that the yangtze river dolphin has now been listed as extinct.
It was a very solemn moment for me and I still find hard to believe.
how in this day and age this is still occurring is disgraceful.

Grid.

Jeez ...can they not leave the poor creatures alone:(.....is there nothing sacrosanct these days!!!:rolleyes:

Black Swan

Anecdotal, but... Day before yesterday I was speaking with a college foreign exchange student from a Persian Gulf country, and he did not seem to understand the problem with hunting whales for food. Said that whale meat had been on his country's menus for as long as he could remember, and his father's and grandfather's menus before that, expected it to be so in the future. He did not seem to have any comprehension for whale species extinction, as if it were a foreign concept.

aidoh

deise08 wrote: »

This is so depressing to read!
I only read yesterday that the yangtze river dolphin has now been listed as extinct.
It was a very solemn moment for me and I still find hard to believe.
how in this day and age this is still occurring is disgraceful.

Yeah the last one apparently died in 2002. Very sad altogether.

aidoh

Black Swan wrote: »

Anecdotal, but... Day before yesterday I was speaking with a college foreign exchange student from a Persian Gulf country, and he did not seem to understand the problem with hunting whales for food. Said that whale meat had been on his country's menus for as long as he could remember, and his father's and grandfather's menus before that, expected it to be so in the future. He did not seem to have any comprehension for whale species extinction, as if it were a foreign concept.

Maybe that's just a conceptual problem that many people have towards marine conservation in general.
It's hard to imagine the vast ocean not teeming with life beneath the surface because we don't live there and don't see the problems.
You can see what 100 football pitches of deforestation per day in the Amazon looks like but it's harder to imagine what less fish, birds and mammals out in the massive ocean looks like.

The Pheasant2

Can't understand how such a developed country can hold such backward ideas regarding the hunting of these amazing animals

Black Swan

Iceland kills endangered species fin whale. Most of the meat from these kills is shipped to Japan. Over 5,540 tonnes of fin whale meat has been exported since 2008.

robp

Black Swan wrote: »

Iceland kills endangered species fin whale. Most of the meat from these kills is shipped to Japan. Over 5,540 tonnes of fin whale meat has been exported since 2008.

There are various whale populations that are in a bad way and should not be hunted. North Atlantic fin whales are simply not one of them. They are very secure.

Black Swan

robp wrote: »

There are various whale populations that are in a bad way and should not be hunted. North Atlantic fin whales are simply not one of them. They are very secure.

Fin Whale (Balaenoptera physalus) is currently listed as endangered by these sources:

• ICUN Red List of Threatened Species
• NOAA Fisheries, Office of Protected Resources
• World Wildlife Fund
• New York Department of Environmental Conservation
  

The fin whale had been listed as one of 6 endangered species in SIMONA L. PERRY, DOUGLAS P. DeMASTER, and GREGORY K. SILBER (1999), The Great Whales: History and Status of Six Species Listed as Endangered Under the U.S. Endangered Species Act of 1973.