Monday, February 11, 2008

Japanese whaling

In case you are unaware, many of the world's whale species are dwindling and some are in peril of becoming extinct. Many people believe that it will be a long time until these animals are gone, but the liklihood of the right whale disappearing in only a few centuries is very high. Maybe a few centuries seems like a lot, but in the context of the earth, it's a blink of an eye.


Many countries have put strict regulations or restrictions on the hunting and killing of whales. Unfortunately, some countries still profit from the sale of whale meats and oils and continue to hunt whales with little regard for regulations. Japan has designed a "scientific" study that allows them to kill up to 1000 whales a year for study. Recently an Australian customs ship took this photo of a Japanese vessel hauling aboard what appeared to be a mother and calf Minke whale pair.

The Japanese denied the claim that this was a mother/calf pair and also said that by publishing the pictures, Australia was spreading propaganda.






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