Date: 1/8/2001
For several years Japan has argued that whales are competing with fishermen for limited resources and that whales could be hunted to save fish stocks. This argument has been rubbished by scientists and now the US Government. A paper produced by the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says the claim that whales âcompeteâ with humans for fish is based on âmisleading data that ignores the dynamics of extremely complex marine ecosystems throughout the worldâ.
The paper says fish that feed on other fish are greater predators than whales or other marine mammals. Fish, not whales, eat most of the worldâs fish, and it is a false premise to claim that removing whales will result in more fish being available.