Whaling history spans thousands of years and is a rich part of many indigenous cultures. These cultures see whaling as a form of subsistence hunting; however, commercial whaling is based on profit. Historically, whales were harvested for their meat, bones, and oil. Commercial whalers would target a population of whales until nearly decimated, then move on to find new sources. Once plentiful, the population of the earth's large marine mammals is a fraction of what it used to be. Today, whaling is limited in scope and fashion by the International Whaling Commission.
Whales were once prized for their oil, which was used in the lighting of lamps, the making of soap and in the manufacture of wool and leather. Whale oil was also originally used in the manufacture of margarine. Sperm whale oil was more valuable than baleen oil, and sperm whales were the source of ambergris, used in the perfume industry. Whale bones, or more correctly baleen plates, were used for items like corsets, umbrellas, and the supports for hoop skirts. These uses of whale products declined when other solutions, such as steel and kerosene, were discovered.
However, whales are still targeted by whalers today. Despite a moratorium on whale hunting, Japan, Iceland and Norway continue to target whales, including:
- Humpback whales - Humpback whales are large baleen whales, stretching up to 50 feet with the ability to sing. These whales have a unique fluke, or tail, pattern that has pioneered the way for the use of photoidentification methods that allow scientists to track individual populations and migration patterns. These slow swimmers prefer to stay close to shore, which enabled whalers to easily hunt and decimate their populations.
- Sperm Whale - These whales have a high grade of whale oil and have long been prized by the whaling industry. Unlike the other targeted whales, sperm whales are a toothed whale, as opposed to possessing baleen ridges. Up to 60 feet long, these whales can dive the deepest of other whales. Unlike the signing humpback whales, sperm whales make clicking noises while swimming.
- Bryde's whales - Bryde's whales live in tropical and sub-tropical zones. These whales are about 40-50 feet in length. This whale, like many targeted by whalers, is a baleen whale; however, these whales, like sei whales, contain little blubber which saved them from early whaling efforts.
- Sei Whales - This species of whale is strikingly similar to Bryde's whales, and until the 1900's were considered the same. However, sei whales are bigger, tend to live in the northern regions, and are the fastest of the baleen whales. They tend to live in more coastal areas than Bryde's whales and have a greater migration pattern.
- Fin Whales - This whale is one of the fastest whales, swimming up to 23 m.p.h. these whales get up to 78 feet in length and is a baleen whale. These whales became the target of whalers when the population of blue whales was depleted. Unlike slower moving whales, this whale escaped early whalers because of its speed and preference for open water. Modernized commercial whaling killed up to 30,000 fin whales each year from 1935 to 1965.
- Minke whales - These whales are the most common target of whalers today, and are harvested for their meat. They are smaller, averaging 26 feet, and therefore not prized previously for their low yield. Norway set a quota of over a thousand minke whales in 2008, though the final numbers were smaller. Demand in Japan for whale meat has declined; however, quotas have increased.
- Right Whales - Right whales, like other baleen whales, are slow swimmers that stay close to shore and reach sizes up to 60 feet. Considered and easy kill with the added benefit of floating when dead, these whales were a commercially viable product, leading to their near extinction. These whales are the most endangered, as their numbers have been depleted to less than 4,000 whales left in the world. Their recovery is uncertain; however, they are no longer a target for commercial whaling.
Whaling has a long a grisly past of killing whale populations in one area and species then moving on to the next. Whale by-products, including meat, are no longer considered necessary or a staple of any diet, and despite the effort of the International Whaling Commission to conserve these populations, whaling continues by a few rogue nations who thinly justify the practice.
Sources:
http://www.wdcs.org/submissions_bin/Whaling_factshee t2008.pdf
http://www.acsonline.org/factpack