The Australian government has condemned Japan's "regrettable" decision to withdraw from the International Whaling Commission and resume commercial whaling. The Japanese government's withdrawal from the
This image of a minke whale and a calf being dragged on to a Japanese whaling ship is just one of a sequence showing the mammals being chased and slaughtered in the Antarctic Ocean, say Australian
The Federal Government has criticised crew members aboard the anti-whaling vessel Steve Irwin for throwing stink bombs at Japanese whalers in Antarctic waters. The Sea Shepherd activists bombarded the deck of the Nisshin Maru with bottles and packets containing foul-smelling and slippery substances earlier today, about 175 nautical miles off the coast of the Australian Antarctic Territory. In a statement issued earlier today, Sea Shepherd captain Paul Watson described the confrontation as ''non-violent chemical warfare'' designed to disrupt the processing of whales harpooned at sea. But Foreign Affairs Minister Stephen Smith condemned the actions of the Steve Irwin crew today, saying the Australian embassy in Tokyo had been told that three or four crew members on the Japanese vessel were treated by a ship's doctor as a result of the bombardment. ''I absolutely condemn actions by crew members of any vessel that cause injury - or have the potential to cause injury - to anyone on the high seas,'' Mr Smith said in a statement. The minister said while the Government was committed to bringing an end to Japan's whaling activities in the Southern Ocean, it ''strongly discourages activity which could be illegal or unsafe (or) which could lead to injury or loss of life at sea''. Captain Watson said the bombs were made from ''organic, non-toxic materials designed to harass and obstruct illegal whaling operations''. The confrontation took place after a 24-hour chase in which the Steve Irwin gradually closed on the bigger vessel. Captain Watson said four uniformed and armed Japanese Coast Guard officers appeared on the decks of the Nisshin Maru to videotape events. An audio tape playing over loudspeakers warned: ''This is the Nisshin Maru captain. Stop your destructive actions immediately. If you dare to board this vessel you will be taken into custody and restrained as illegal intruders under Japanese law.'' Sea Shepherd has pursued the Japanese fleet for three months without catching up with the Nisshin Maru, which is the key vessel in the seven-ship operation. After shaking off a tailing Japanese trawler on Saturday, the Steve Irwin located Nisshin Maru and two harpoon-equipped catcher ships hidden among heavy ice in Porpoise Bay, which is about 2200 nautical miles south-west of Hobart. Captain Watson said they homed in on a signal from an electronic surveillance bug planted by activists on the catcher ship Yushin Maru No.2 He said while the catcher ships scattered, the Nisshin Maru broke out of the bay and steamed north last night with the Steve Irwin in pursuit. ''They seem to be heading for some nastier weather north of us,'' Captain Watson said. ''Perhaps they think they may be able to lose us. I hope not. ''It's been a long haul but finally we have our teeth in their stern. We will try to hold on for as long as fuel and weather allow us to do so.''
Two anti-whaling activists who had been detained by Japanese whalers for three days have now been freed. The activists
Following intense pressure from the International Whaling Commission (iwc), Japan has dropped plans to hunt humpback whales during this year's annual whaling expedition, which is underway in the
THE Southern Ocean is usually one of the world's loneliest shipping lanes. This month it has turned into an unseemly battleground over a bid by Australia's government and various environmental groups to stop Japan hunting and slaughtering whales. Japan aims to kill more than 900 minke and 50 fin whales from a region bordering Antarctica by mid-April.
This publication details the successful story of participatory conservation of Whale Shark (Rhincodon typus) in Gujarat lead by WTI.
A five-metre minke whale strayed 1,600 km from the Atlantic Ocean and ran aground on a sandbank in the Amazon jungle's Tapajos river on November 13. Though it was spotted and freed, it did not
Market forces have achieved what international laws could not. Iceland, one of the prominent defaulters of the International Whaling Commission (iwc), has had to put a stop to whaling due to the
Chilean scientists recently identified fossils of whales believed to have died around five million years ago. The fossils were discovered a month back by some teenagers while on a field trip near Los
A fragment of an exploding harpoon used by whalers in the 1800s has been found in a whale caught off Alaska, suggesting that the animal could be nearly 130 years old. The find has given
