Save Our Whales – Sea Shepherd
Welcome back!
The whaling Industry claims with its current modern hunting equipment, whales are killed ‘quickly and humanely’. This investigative report video shows a much different story of a Minke whale’s long agony after it was harpooned.
Photo Geocco.com
It doesn’t come as a surprise that unknown individuals targeted the Willassen Senior — the outlaw Norwegian whaling vessel that was scuttled on the evening of August 30th, 2007.
An undercover video of a Norwegian whale hunt taken in May 2005, was released early September this year by the World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA) and the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA). The recording is believed to be the first of its kind captured by a non-governmental organization (NGO) in more than a decade. Norway claims to be the best in the business when it comes to accuracy and relative humaneness of commercial whale kills, but the video reveals a different picture.
The Willassen Senior was documented pursuing a Piked (Minke) whale. It was harpooned and riddled with bullets from a high-powered rifle. The whale spent 15 minutes diving, resurfacing, and rolling about on the surface in extreme agony before it finally gave way to the attack and died.
Whaler Ship Hunting A Minke Whale
This Is Sea Shepherd
Paul Watson, environmental activist, was asked to leave Greenpeace because he pulled a club from a hunter’s hand to protect a baby seal. He decided that protecting the environment was so important that he created his own organization — The Sea Shepherd.
Sea Shepherd Episode 7
Sea Shepherd Conservation Society acts to thwart illegal whaling.
Sea Shepherd For Compassion
Confronting The Killers At Sea
In 1986, the International Whaling Commission (IWC) enacted a world-wide ban on all commercial whaling. Since then, Iceland, Norway, and Japan have brutally slaughtered more than 25,000 whales under pretenses of scientific research and commercial purposes. The IWC doesn’t have the resources to enforce the moratorium. Sea Shepherd, guided by the United Nations World Charter for Nature, is the only organization whose mission is to enforce these international conservation regulations on the high seas.
Sea Shepherd’s mission is to end the destruction of habitat and the slaughter of wildlife in our world’s waters in order to conserve and protect its ecosystems and flora and fauna. By their investigations and ‘campaigns’ they have exposed and confronted illegal activities on the high seas, thereby safeguarding the oceans and ensuring the very survival of our sea creatures for generations to come.
Victories from Sea Sheppard’s past 30 years include:
Ending the careers of 9 illegal whaling vessels, saving thousands of whales.
Shutting down half of the Spanish whaling fleet
Scuttling half of the Icelandic whaling fleet and whale processing station
Scuttling of the Norwegian whaling vessels Nybraena and Senet
Confronting and opposing Japan’s illegal whaling in Antarctica
Sea Shepherd Launches Operation Migaloo to Defend Whales in Antarctic Whale Sanctuary
This December, Sea Shepherd Conservation Society will embark on its 4th expedition to the waters off the coast of Antarctica, with the launch of its recent Antarctic whale defense campaign — Operation Migaloo. Sea Shepherd has drawn a line in the sand for the humpback whale featured on its logo and will not rest while Japanese whalers target nearly 1000 whales for certain death, including 50 endangered humpback whales and 10 endangered fin whales in the Southern Oceans.
Photo Sea Shepherd
The campaign is named in honor of Migaloo, an endangered albino humpback who has become a national icon in Australia. The ruthless Japanese pirate harpooners designs on the endangered humpbacks would threaten Migaloo and his entire family’s existence.
Captain Paul Watson, founder and President of Sea Shepherd, will embark on the Robert Hunter to enforce international conservation law and prevent the illegal slaughter of endangered species by the outlaw whaling fleet.
“I did not establish the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society as a protest organization.” said Captain Watson. “I have not gone to sea over all these years to simply bear witness to the atrocities that whalers continue to inflict upon the most gentle and intelligent beings in the seas. We are sea cops — operating legally under the guidelines of the United Nation’s World Charter for Nature, which allow for the enforcement of international conservation law by non-governmental organizations in international jurisdictions.”
Photo Sea Shepherd
For more than 3 decades, Sea Shepherd has been at the forefront of the whale wars, defending the gentle giants wherever and whenever they can. Sea Shepherd has tackled overwhelming odds with insufficient resources, won many victories, and saved the lives of thousands of whales.
From 2005 to 2006, Sea Shepherd harried the Japanese fleet enough to ensure they went home 83 whales short of their self-appointed quota. Between 2006 and 2007, the Japanese whalers fell more than 500 whales short of their illegal quota. Sea Shepherd will return this year with a ship to match the speed of the Japanese fleet, new equipment for intervention, and an international crew of dedicated volunteers willing to spend their holidays at the bottom of the earth on a historic voyage to save whales.
Sea Shepherd is on a quest to protect one of the greatest treasures of the seas — the great whales. “We are obsessed with stopping the Cetacean Death Star, that viciously cruel killing machine otherwise known as the Nisshin Maru, and her ruthless fleet of hunter/killer boats armed with their explosive deadly blunt harpoons.” said Captain Watson. “Because if we kill the whales, the sharks, the seals, and the sea turtles, we will destroy the very foundation of life in the oceans — and in so doing, we will destroy humankind.”
Sea Shepherd is looking for dedicated individuals to crew aboard their ocean-going ships. If you have what it takes, contact Sea Shepherd.
If you’re more of a landlubber, you can volunteer for Sea Shepherd Onshore.
If neither of those interest you, you can still help by making an Online Donation.
Tags:animal animals conservation extinct extinction harpoon harpooning humpback hunt hunting save Sea Shepherd whale whales whaling
Thanks for posting this essential information. Not enough people are informed of the plight of the whales and its up to all of us to make an effort to let the world know what is happening.
I have heard that the estimated number of whales has been greatly exaggerated and any tales of a certain species recovery are very wrong.
Thanks Listhawk, I agree with you … I don’t think the general public is all that aware as to how prevalent the whaling industry is and how much if a significant affect it’s having on our sea creatures.
Play Second Life, that’s often the case — numbers are grossly overestimated as to how many are alive and downplayed on how few exist when it comes to endangered species.
wow great photos and great post Deborah…..
the whale looks like a rock in that last photo…..
shocking that this goes on…..thanks for bringing it to my attention……
That is something really sad
Thanks Deborah. I am ashamed of myself that I did not know about Sea Shepherd and the incredible work that it has done over the years. I was aware of the illegal practices that take place and Japan’s condoning it as being for research purposes. I did not know about Canada’s legal seal hunt however. I will certainly now be careful about the composition of any fish oil supplements!
They are great shots — taken by Sea Shepherd, Kim. Yes, it’s very tragic that this carries on in modern society.
Extremely so, ONwebCHECK.
No need for feeling ashamed Sue, but now you’re in the know
I’ll be getting into the seal hunts and other creatures that Sea Shepherd works to save in the near future.
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its discusting what some people in the world do to such inoccent things.me and my friends were watching this video and this is discusting and very sad how 25,000 whales have been slaughterd and killed for there meat its a disgrace!!!!
This is very sad to see these whales being killed. I will not let my kids see them because they love animals and fish so much.
Sea Shepherds: Have you not considered the use of a potato gun or water balloon sling to launch your stink and slime bombs at those heartless whalers and seal hunters? Both items would give increased range over one’s arm no matter how strong you are. If you have used these did they work? Best of luck and be careful.