Poaching is the illegal hunting of animals on land that is not owned by that person or animals that are under official protection. Usually, that particular animal possesses something that is considered valuable (Skin, ivory, etc..). In this case, the poaching of whales is being discussed. In the past, whales were mainly hunted for oil, blubber, and sometimes meat. The uses of these were very purposeful, especially during through the …show more content…
Commercial whaling is responsible for hunting the larger whales close to extinction. Research whaling is conducted by Japan’s government. Japan abuses a loophole in the ICRW that saying whales used for scientific study can be hunted so they have legal justification for whaling. Bycatch whaling is the accidental catch of a whale in a fishing net. Bycatch whaling is responsible for hundreds of thousands of whale deaths globally each year. Small type whaling is like commercial whaling but is focuses on the smaller whales. According to the International Whale Protection Organization, “In Japan up to 20,000 small cetaceans are killed annually including rare beaked whales and a massive Dall's porpoise hunt. Porpoises and dolphins are often killed with hand harpoons from coastal fishing boats. Although some beaked whales can grow to be larger than minke whales, these and other small cetaceans are not protected by the