51动漫

A claim by Japan that whales eat more of the oceans鈥� fish than people do is set to stir up a row at July鈥檚 meeting of the International Whaling Commission in London.

Japan hopes to use the results from its controversial 鈥渟cientific鈥� whaling programme to convince fishing nations to vote for the resumption of whaling to help protect their fish stocks, says Joji Morishita of the Japanese government鈥檚 Fisheries Agency and a delegate to the IWC.

The unpublished findings, seen by 51动漫, come from last autumn鈥檚 scientific slaughter of whales in the north-west Pacific. As well as minke whales, the catch included Bryde鈥檚 and sperm whales for the first time.

Japanese anchovy made up more than 70 per cent of the stomach contents of the 43 Bryde鈥檚 whales killed during the seven-week hunt. Anchovy, walleye pollock and Pacific saury made up 90 per cent of the diet of the 40 minke whales taken. 鈥淭hese are all important fisheries for Japan,鈥� says Morishita. 鈥淎nti-whalers say they only eat krill and squid, but we can show otherwise.鈥�

Cetacean scientists from outside Japan are sceptical of the claims, however. 鈥淚t鈥檚 an open question right now whether whales damage fisheries,鈥� says Russell Leaper, a marine biology consultant to the IWC based in Edinburgh. 鈥淓ven if they are eating fish, it doesn鈥檛 mean there is direct competition. I think the Japanese are jumping the gun, but it is something the IWC scientific committee will want to look at.鈥�

Big appetites

Japanese fish catches have halved since the IWC imposed an international moratorium on commercial whaling 16 years ago, says Morishita. 鈥淲e don鈥檛 say whales are the only reason for depressed fish stocks, but whales are major components of the marine ecosystem. So we think there may be some connection.鈥�

Japan鈥檚 Institute of Cetacean Research last year estimated that whales could be eating between 250 and 440 million tonnes of fish a year 鈥� between three and five times the amount caught by the world鈥檚 fishing fleets.

鈥淲e consider that, at least, there is probably direct competition between cetaceans and commercial fisheries in the North Pacific and the North Atlantic,鈥� says the institute鈥檚 Tsutomu Tamura.

Emotion and politics

Japan has abided by the IWC鈥檚 moratorium on commercial whaling, while still taking a limited catch for 鈥渟cientific research鈥�. Opponents claim they are simply exploiting a loophole in the IWC rules. Now the country wants to be able to resume commercial whaling of abundant species such as minke.

鈥淪ome whale stocks, such as blue whales, are in need of protection, but a blanket moratorium is not scientifically justified,鈥� says Morishita.

He calls the moratorium 鈥渆motionally and politically inspired鈥�, and contrary to the treaty establishing the commission, which requires that whale stocks are 鈥渟cientifically managed鈥�.