There are a number of factors contributing to the current endangered status of whales such as overfishing, pollution, dam/bridge construction, private/commercial boating and commercial whaling, but out of these contributing factors commercial whaling has had the largest affect on the endangered status of today’s existing whale populations.
In fact the hunting of whales (by humans) has existed for thousands of years; as far back as prehistoric times.
One of the oldest methods known for capturing whales was to place several small boats beside a whale in an attempt to scare it and drive it to shore where it would land on the beach and could be killed.
Despite whales being hunted for thousands of years the majority of those early hunting endeavors had little impact on the current overall endangered whales situation we now face today.
In the past few resources existed to allow groups of people or companies to hunt whales in large numbers, however as technology advanced in later years (around the 1,700’s) the ability to hunt whales became easier and companies/corporations began hunting whales in organized fleets.
Advancements in technology also led to the raw materials of whales becoming highly sought after by various countries that were able to use their oil, blubber and other parts to make various products and goods.
For those involved in hunting whales it became a very lucrative profession which boosted the commercial whaling industry and led to competition, ultimately increasing the rate that whales were being killed annually.
In the past whales were hunted for raw materials such as their oil and meat which was used to make:
- Oil – Lamp oil, soap, perfume, candles and cosmetics
- Food – Cooking oil, margarine and whale meat
- Clothing – corsets and umbrellas
- and various other products including tools such as fishing hooks.
A brief overview of the commercial whaling industry
Although whales were being killed many centuries ago it is believed that (at the time) these mini hunting expeditions hadn’t caused much ecological damage due to limited technology.
Most killings mainly remained limited to the coast line and surrounding ocean, and resources for hunting weren’t nearly as advanced as they became in more recent years.
Eventual hunting methods became more sophisticated and people took to the ocean to hunt these large marine mammals.
As technology, boats, and hunting equipment evolved between the 17th and 20th centuries the rate at which whales were being killed greatly increased.
Hunting for oil became a very lucrative business and as a result created highly competitive (international) markets.
These increasingly competitive markets eventually led to the growth of the whaling industry.
In some ways you could say that the whaling industry existed well before the 17th century, but advances in technology and the increase in globalized commercial whaling during and after the 17th century played a major role toward the current condition of endangered whales.
Also during the 1700’s the industrial revolution began which further increased the need for whale oil and helped cause a boom in the commercial whaling industry.
Everything from trains and cars to lamps and soap saw the use of whale oil as an essential ingredient in their products.
From the 17th century until the mid 1900’s commercial whaling took its toll on numerous species until tighter regulations and the eventual ban on commercial whaling put a stop on hunting whales and other marine mammals.
The current condition of endangered whales
Whale oil is rarely ever used anymore by most countries due to the creation of alternative resources, the enforcement on illegal commercial whaling practices and the overall opposition against killing whales in many countries.
Today small scale whale killings are done primarily as a way to obtain the whales meat and sell it as food in countries that either loosely monitor commercial whaling practices or by those that use legal loopholes to continue whaling.
In some countries whale meat is even considered a delicacy and may be sold at a premium price.
One loophole that has been known to be used for commercial whaling practices in the past is to capture a whale and claim that it is for research purposes then turn around and sell the meat with the explanation that it is the best way to get rid of the whales corpse.
The purpose of gathering whales for research purposes is to better understand the health of local populations in order to determine their condition and suggest improvements aimed at protecting the species and improving their habitat.
Some organizations and activists believe that this is simply a loophole that is being exploited which allows certain countries to get away with continuing their commercial whaling practices.
Although numerous counties have adopted policies and laws that prevent commercial whaling there are a handful of countries known to still participate in commercial whaling to this day, however growing pressure from other countries and organizations appears to be causing a declining interest in hunting whales as people become more and more aware of the current situation and its affect on whale populations.
The negative PR that countries participating in illegal whaling are receiving is also helping to discourage continued whaling efforts and some experts believe that these countries could become more profitable by creating a strong whale watching industry rather than continuing to hunt these marine animals for food.
Thankfully the ban on commercial whaling has had a largely positive effect on improving the current condition of whales, however it remains uncertain which species will fully recover and which ones may not be able to repopulate fast enough to avoid possible extinction.
Today the current status of endangered whales remains the cause and outcome of human actions.
The International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling
In 1931 international agreements were made to begin trying to regulate the whaling industry in the hopes of preserving the endangered whale species, and in 1946 the International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling was signed by a collection of countries.
The International Whaling Commission was set up to help regulate whale killings with those countries who signed into the agreement in an attempt to stabilize whale killing, monitor the whaling industry and help prevent killings of endangered species.
In 1986 to further enforce the non killing of whales the International Whaling Commission adopted a moratorium which prohibits commercial whaling (killing whales for commercial reasons) to try to minimize any opportunities for further endangerment to the species.
Although this agreement exists countries that did not opt into the agreement focus on their own regulations on whale killing rather than the International Whaling Commissions regulations.
In the 1950’s a new era in the whale industry began known as whale watching.
Whale watching is the act of watching whales in their natural habitat.
As many of the species have become endangered humanitarians, scientist, whale lovers and other groups of people have become supportive of the protection of whales and consider whale watching an activity that allows them to further appreciate and enjoy whales as well as a way to bring in additional capital to existing and growing nations.
Today whaling watching has become an annual billion dollar business bringing in thousands of works and serving millions of whale watchers each year.
To further support the improvement of current whale populations some companies and organizations give away a percentage of their earnings to improve whale research, conservation efforts, anti-commercial whaling laws and whale habitats so that these marine mammals can continue to recover from past conditions.
They also use whale watching and other tourism activities to educate people on the condition of existing whale populations and the importance of supporting these marine mammals and keeping the ocean clean.
The extent to which these companies and/or organizations participate in helping the whale species varies in terms of education, financial backing and other forms of assistance.
Other factors affecting current whale conditions
As stated earlier whales are currently facing threats from pollution, aquatic construction such as building dams and bridges, overfishing, private and commercial boating and small scale (illegal) commercial whaling.
Pollution– The continuous issues with chemical pollution in the ocean combined with oil spills and garbage continues to have an effect on recovering whale populations, however dolphins that live close to the coast line or in rivers may face even more ecological threats.
In addition to chemical pollution and garbage whales may also be affected by noise pollution from man-made equipment such as loud jet engines, sonar, underwater explosives and other types of equipment that can interfere with echolocation or cause damage to the whales hearing.
Aquatic construction – The construction of bridges, dams, waterways and other materials may affect traveling whale pods by separating groups of whales and preventing them from being able to meet up with family and friends.
This type of construction over the years appears to have a large result on dolphin populations, especially river and coastal dolphins that are segregated or harmed by the creation of dams and bridges, and in some situations these constructions may even affect their food supply.
Overfishing – Overfishing is when a company continues fishing to the point where it has an ecological impact on the sustainability of a particular population of fish or other ocean animal.
In certain areas overfishing is making it difficult for whales and other marine mammals to find sufficient food sources causing these marine mammals to leave or possibly starve.
Private/commercial boating – Whales and dolphins are known to be occasionally struck by passing boats.
As the rivers and ocean become more congested with boats and ships the likelihood of whales being seriously injured or killed also increases.
Small scale commercial whaling – As stated earlier there are a number of countries that still participate in commercial whaling.
Although commercial whaling has largely declined small scale hunting efforts can still have an affect on existing whale populations.
Even though killer whales are known to attack whales on rare occasions their attacks are so few that they can not be considered a cause of the endangered whale species.