Several factors contribute to whales’ current endangered status, such as overfishing, pollution, dam/bridge construction, private/commercial boating, and commercial whaling.
Still, commercial whaling has significantly affected the endangered status of today’s whale populations.
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 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, most early hunting endeavors had little impact on the overall endangered whale situation we now face.
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 1,700s), the ability to hunt whales became easier.
As a result, companies/corporations began hunting whales in organized fleets.
Advancements in technology also led to whales’ raw materials becoming highly sought after by various countries that used their oil, blubber, and other parts to make multiple products and goods.
Those involved in hunting whales became a very lucrative profession, which boosted the commercial whaling industry and led to competition, ultimately increasing the rate of whales 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 coastline and surrounding ocean, and hunting resources 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 significantly killed increased.
Hunting for oil became a very lucrative business. As a result, it 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.
Still, advances in technology and the increase in globalized commercial whaling during and after the 17th century played a significant role in endangered whales’ current condition.
During the 1700s, the industrial revolution began, increasing the need for whale oil and helping cause a boom in the commercial whaling industry.
Everything from trains and cars to lamps and soap saw whale oil as an essential ingredient in their products.
From the 17th century until the mid-1900s, commercial whaling took its toll on numerous species until tighter regulations and the eventual ban on commercial whaling put a stop to hunting whales and other marine mammals.
The current condition of endangered whales
Whale oil is rarely used anymore by most countries due to the creation of alternative resources, the enforcement of illegal commercial whaling practices, and the opposition against killing whales in many countries.
Today small-scale whale killings are made primarily to obtain the whale’s 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 considered a delicacy and may be sold at a premium price.
One loophole known 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 to explain that it is the best way to get rid of the whale’s corpse.
The purpose of gathering whales for research is to understand local populations’ health better to determine their condition and suggest improvements to protect the species and their habitat.
Some organizations and activists believe this is a loophole that is being exploited, allowing certain countries to get away with continuing their commercial whaling practices.
Although numerous counties have adopted policies and laws that prevent commercial whaling, a handful of countries still participate in commercial whaling.
However, growing pressure from other countries and organizations appears to be causing a declining interest in hunting whales.
People have become increasingly aware of the current situation and its effect on whale populations.
The negative PR countries participating in illegal whaling receive also discourages continued whaling efforts.
Some experts believe these countries could become more profitable by creating a solid whale-watching industry rather than hunting these marine animals for food.
Thankfully, the ban on commercial whaling has had a largely positive effect on improving whales’ current condition.
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 to stabilize whale killing, monitor the whaling industry, and help prevent killings of endangered species.
In 1986 to further enforce the non-killing, the International Whaling Commission adopted a moratorium prohibiting commercial whaling (killing whales for commercial reasons) to minimize opportunities for further endangerment to the species.
Although this agreement exists, countries that did not opt into the agreement focus on their regulations on whale killing rather than the International Whaling Commission’s regulations.
Whale Watching
In the 1950s, a new era in the whaling 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, scientists, 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 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 workers and serving millions of whale watchers each year.
To further support current whale populations’ improvement, 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 organizations participate in helping the whale species varies in education, financial backing, and other forms of assistance.
Other Factors Affecting Current Whale Conditions
As stated earlier, whales face threats from pollution, aquatic construction such as dams and bridges, overfishing, private and commercial boating, and small-scale (illegal) commercial whaling.
Pollution
The ongoing issues with chemical pollution in the ocean, combined with oil spills and garbage, continue to affect recovering whale populations.
However, dolphins that live close to the coastline 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 human-made equipment such as loud jet engines, sonar, underwater explosives, and other equipment types that can interfere with echolocation or cause damage to the whale’s hearing.
Aquatic Construction
Building bridges, dams, waterways, and other materials may affect traveling whale pods by separating whale groups and preventing them from meeting up with family and friends.
This type of construction over the years appears to have a significant impact on dolphin populations, especially river and coastal dolphins that are segregated or harmed by creating dams and bridges.
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 animals.
Overfishing in certain areas makes it difficult for whales and other marine mammals to find good food sources, causing them to leave or possibly starve.
Private/Commercial Boating
Whales and dolphins are known to be occasionally struck by passing boats. As the rivers and oceans 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, several countries still participate in commercial whaling. Although commercial whaling has primarily declined, small-scale hunting efforts can still affect 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.
The only known natural predators of large whales (besides humans) are attacks from a pack of hungry killer whales.