WHALES

Early whaling methods when sailing ships and row boats were used did not make a huge impact on whale numbers but when modern whaling methods were introduced with motorised ships and explosive harpoons whale numbers plummeted. In 1949 there were an estimated 18,000 humpback whales in Australian waters. By 1960 this had been reduced to just 800. From the 1950s to 1979 it is estimated that 330,000 sperm whales were slaughtered.

Whalers used to always shoot the female whales first as they knew the male whale would stand by and try to defend the dying female, they could then turn their guns on the male and kill him too.

Whaling was banned in Australia in 1978 with the last whaling station at Albany being closed down. In Albany alone they had managed to slaughter 12,625 sperm whales since 1963. At the time our state Premier (Charles Court) tried to defend the indefensible by claiming that the Federal Government was ‘putting whales above people.’

Even the local shire council argued against the closure of the whaling station on economic grounds. How far we have come! Who in their right mind would argue for the continuation of whaling today?

Closure of the last whaling station put 100 people out of work but since then the whale watching industry around Australia has employed thousands and has generated many millions of dollars from tourists eager to see these magnificent mammals. It is clear now that live whales are worth many times more than dead ones. How foolish the pro-whalers must feel in light of this.
 

A live whale will return year after year bringing tourists, providing jobs and enriching our experience of life time after time. A dead whale can only be exploited ONCE!

Whale numbers along the west coast have slowly increased to a point where now whale sightings during the migration season are very common.

Whales which visit Australian waters include the Southern Right Whale, Humpback, Sperm, Blue, Minke, Pilot, Orca (the name Killer whale is an insult to these creatures, after all the smiling dolphin has a mouth full of teeth that it uses to kill its prey.) and Dolphin. Altogether 40 species of whales live in or migrate through Australian waters.

Whales are intelligent, inquisitive creatures and they need our protection.

Please support all efforts to ban whaling by countries like Japan, Russia and Iceland. Whaling is indefensible and must be banned in all the worlds oceans. Pollution is causing all sorts of havoc in the seas and whales are having a hard enough time surviving without needless slaughter.

Japan in particular exhibits a 'bloody minded' obsession with the slaughter of whales and dolphins. The Japanese government corruptly supports whaling and the slaughter of dolphins in Japanese waters. They bribe small bankrupt nations in order to get votes to support the insupportable in the IWC. What else could you expect from a nation that butchered innocent civilians during WWII ? Japan has NO FACE in international affairs until it grows up and stops this obscenity.