TROUBLED WATERS - Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society

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Section OneIntroductorySection1 Executive summary 50022 A background to whaling 50063 An introduction to animal welfare 50134 Whales – individuals, societies and cultures 50155 The IWC and whale welfare 5030WHALE WATCH.org
1 Executive SummaryThis review examines the welfare implications of the methods currently used to hunt cetaceans(whales, dolphins and porpoises) for commercial, special permit and Aboriginal SubsistenceWhaling (ASW) purposes. The welfare implications are assessed and the question raised as towhether whaling could be conducted in a reliably humane manner. The report calls on theInternational Whaling Commission (IWC) to urgently address the severe welfare problemsattendant in modern whaling activities.2A REVIEW OF THE WELFARE IMPLICATIONS OF MODERN WHALING ACTIVITIESThe welfare implications of modern whale killing methods• The physiological adaptations of cetaceans to the marine environment have significantimplications for whale welfare during whaling operations. Adaptations for diving may make itdifficult to determine when these animals are dead. Their sheer mass, complex vascular systems andspecific anatomical features may also impede efforts to kill them swiftly and humanely.• In general, current killing methods are not adequately adapted for the species being killed.Morphological features such as size, blubber thickness, skeletal structure and location of vital organssignificantly influence the efficacy of a particular killing method. These differences may effect thecourse of projectiles through the body, as they travel through different thicknesses of blubber andmuscle and encounter bone and vital organs at specific locations. Such factors may also varybetween individuals of the same species, according to age, sex and season. During whalingoperations, where accuracy is often poor, these specific characteristics may greatly increase themargin for error and influence the time to death (TTD) and associated suffering.• Lack of due consideration to species specific killing requirements may be a major contributoryfactor in protracted times to death and may be a particular cause for concern where larger species,such as fin and sperm whales, are killed using methods developed for the much smaller minkespecies.Commercial and special permit whaling• The main killing method used during commercial and special permit whaling is the penthritegrenade harpoon fired from a cannon mounted on the bow of a ship. The harpoon is intended topenetrate about 30 cm (12 inches) into the minke whale before detonating. The aim is to kill theanimal through neurotrauma induced by the blast-generated pressure waves of the explosion.However, if the first harpoon fails to kill the whale, then a second penthrite harpoon or a rifle(minimum calibre 9.3mm) is used as a secondary killing method.• Despite the similarity of the killing methods used, there are marked differences in reportedkilling efficiency between Japan and Norway. According to Norwegian data, in 2002, 80.7 percent of minke whales were killed instantaneously. During the 2002/2003 Japanese minke whalehunt in Antarctica, only 40.2 per cent of whales were recorded as killed instantaneously.• Recent data show that, for commercial and scientific whale hunts, the average time to death is overtwo minutes.
Page 5: ForewordWhales are highly evolved a
Page 11 and 12: 2 A background to whalingPhilippa B
Page 13 and 14: y the weapon’s enormous recoil, w
Page 15 and 16: Japan currently whales in the Antar
Page 17 and 18: Otto, K. 1997. Animal Pain Behaviou
Page 19 and 20: Protecting the welfare of animals i
Page 21 and 22: Toothed whales (Odontoceti)Toothed
Page 23 and 24: Social behaviourMother-calf pairsOn
Page 25 and 26: to store and pass on information to
Page 27 and 28: Communication in great whalesThe mo
Page 29: Self-awarenessOne of the most compe
Page 32 and 33: J.G.M. Thewissen), pp. 158-162. Aca
Page 34 and 35: Whitehead, H., Waters, S. and Lyrho
Page 36 and 37: humanitarian purposes the time take
Page 38 and 39: Welfare and the modern IWCFrom 1980
Page 40 and 41: 1996 UK proposes guidelines for col
Page 42 and 43: Section TwoWhale killing6 Commercia
Page 44 and 45: Table 1 Commercial, special permit
Page 46 and 47: It can be argued that the figures f
Page 48 and 49: Since struck and lost whales can in
Page 50 and 51: equipment to Russian subsistence wh
Page 52 and 53: This is the time from the throwing
Page 54 and 55: Table 3 Aboriginal Subsistence Whal
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International Aid For Korean Animal
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29 In Resolution 1999-1, the IWC no
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For example, Greenland and the Faro
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the past they made an important con
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however, has been made on the exten
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hunt indicate that the whales are s
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8 Weather, sea condition and shipmo
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chance of fog decreases from 15 to
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experienced in December, or y could
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9 The potential stress effects ofwh
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Both chase and pursuit cause stress
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and manifest in a series of lethal
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Ridgeway, S. H. (1966). Dall porpoi
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10 Euthanasia of cetaceansPhilippa
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for the task. The correct target ar
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whales the size of minke whales (Ø
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11 Review of criteria for determini
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It is apparent from Figure 1, that,
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interpreted criteria, comparisons o
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90A REVIEW OF THE WELFARE IMPLICATI
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12 A comparison betweenslaughterhou
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include levels of premature mortali
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the emphasis during some whaling op
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affect an immediate and thereby law
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Table 1 Animal welfare and the Sche
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CIWF Trust, 2002. Farm Assurance Sc
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13 Ethics and whaling under special
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Table 1. Consideration of the 3Rs i
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skin samples, without the need for
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IWC (2001) Report of the Scientific
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Whales and the lawCetaceans (and wh
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scientific and technical committees
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ASCOBANS came into force in 1994. F
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The Treaty of the Panama Canal, ena
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2 As a result, their need for prote
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law says, but also the extent to wh
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15 Whaling and welfarePhilippa Brak
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commercial whaling. Times to death
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eath). Using the current criteria t
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possibility of establishing a simil
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international customary law and exi
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16 Summary of conclusionsModern day
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Glossary136A REVIEW OF THE WELFARE
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138A REVIEW OF THE WELFARE IMPLICAT
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Appendix IIColour plates©Mark Voti
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142A REVIEW OF THE WELFARE IMPLICAT
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Figure 13. Processing minke whales
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TROUBLED WATERS - Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society

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