CONTENTS

Whale killing methods

The IWC has examined methods of killing whales since it established a working party in 1959 that resulted in a comprehensive report in 1961. The level of attention increased again with the holding of a specialist workshop in 1980 and the banning of the use of non-explosive harpoons. During the past ten years both Japan and Norway have made major improvements in their whale killing technology. This includes advances in the triggering mechanism for the explosive grenades used in the minke whale hunts, and the introduction of an improved explosive material, penthrite, which has greater power than the traditional black powder. These improvements are such that they are now also being introduced into the aboriginal subsistence whaling hunts in Alaska and Greenland. Any assessment of the efficiency, usually measured by the time to death in the whaling operations, relies on a somewhat subjective indication of insensibility and death. There is still a need to relate the cause of death to the observed time to death, as well as the collection of information on the physiological status of hunted animals.

A Workshop on Whale Killing Methods was held in the UK in June 1992 and was re-convened in Ireland in May 1995 to review and evaluate progress on the action plan it adopted, and to review the use of the electric lance as a secondary method for killing whales. A proposal to ban the use of the electric lance failed to receive a sufficient majority when it was discussed at the 1996 Annual Meeting of the Commission because of the conflicting evidence. A further Workshop was held in 1999.

The most recent Workshop was held in Berlin, 2003; the Chair’s summary report from the meeting is given below. (Click HERE for a link to the full Workshop report as a pdf).

In 1986, as part of the Special Issue Series, the IWC published a Bibliography of Whale Killing Techniques. (Click HERE for further information and ordering).

CHAIRMAN’S REPORT TO THE COMMISSION ON THE WORKSHOP ON WHALE KILLING METHODS AND ASSOCIATED WELFARE ISSUES

Dr J. Geraci (Chair) and Dr N. Gales (Vice-Chair)

The Workshop was conducted in Berlin from the 7-9 June 2003. Twenty five working papers from nine Contracting Governments were presented and discussed in the context of the Workshop Agenda Items (description of killing methods in use and under development, assessment of methods including review of time to death, hunter safety and associated problems, evaluation of criteria for death, collection of animal welfare data, and development of a revised action plan).

While there are still areas in which improvements can be made, there can be little doubt that the papers and discussions at this workshop represent substantial progress in the development and application of killing methods, and these are reflected in a general trend of improved data on time to death and instantaneous death rate. There have also been encouraging improvements in the provision of relevant data on whale killing methods from Contracting Governments, and it is hoped that this trend will continue.

Many of the advances that are detailed in the full report from the Workshop can be attributed to the excellent work of Norwegian scientists, veterinarians and technicians. Their improvements in penthrite grenades, harpoon delivery systems, secondary killing efficiency and post-mortem determination of the effectiveness of the aforementioned have advanced the application of whale killing methods not only in Norway, but also in the several countries to which Norway has provided equipment or technical advice.

It is reasonable to surmise from this Workshop that the use of appropriately powerful penthrite grenades, fired from improved delivery systems represents the current state of ‘best practice’ for a primary killing method. Similarly, several important papers on the ballistics, technical characteristics and field application of guns used as secondary killing methods can now allow users of this technology to make informed decisions on the most appropriate calibre and power choices for their weapons. Moves to incorporate these current ‘best practice’ methods will lead (and have led) to better and safer outcomes for the hunters, and more humane outcomes for the whales.

Discussions at the workshop highlighted the important practical, logistic and fiscal differences that exist between Commercial Whaling and Aboriginal Subsistence Whaling, particularly in the manner and extent in which data are collected, and the degree to which effort can be invested in the development and application of improved killing methods. Contracting Governments representing Aboriginal Subsistence Whalers were keen to ensure that workshop participants understood these difficulties and the degree to which they contributed to the differences in whale killing techniques and performance between the different types of whaling.