Waiting
When the weather finally improves, they keep a lookout all day and all night.
Two men in the crow's nest and one at the helm on the wheelhouse roof. The
Arctic summer night is as bright as day. Their rhythm involves six hours watch in
the crow's nest, six hours sleep; six hours watch, six hours sleep etc. Seabirds can
provide a clue as to where the plankton, fish and whales are to be found.
Otherwise, the course is staked out on the basis of previous experience. Experience
that reveals where the minke whale goes at different times of the year, and where
one can find calm seas under conditions of shifting winds.
Lookout
"Cooperation between the helmsman, the lookout and the gunner is of the utmost
importance," says Arne Lauritz.
The minke whale can swim at speeds of up to 12 knots, the whaler can only do 8.
When the call of "Whale" is heard from the crow's nest the boat cannot accelerate.
The engine has to go slowly so as not to make much noise. Changes in revs must
be made gradually.
The lookout evaluates the speed of the whale, its direction and its diving pattern.
The art is to predict where it will surface next time, and ensure that the boat
moves to the correct position. The best strategy is often to stay put and wait until
the whale moves towards the boat.
The Shot
When the shot has been fired it's all hands on deck. The spell of good weather
must be put to the best possible use. The whale is hauled on board across the
deck, and concurrent with the flensing of blubber, the lookout keeps watch for
whales from the crow's nest. The meat is carved out in chunks and cooled down
on grating on deck for 24 hours before being stored in the hold. The meat can be
stored on ice for up to three weeks before it becomes necessary to return home.
The Grenade
The grenade explodes when the harpoon has penetrated about 40 cm into the
whale. A hit near the backbone or vital organs and the whale dies instantly of
shock. The whale is then immediately winched along side the boat in order to
ascertain that death has actually occurred. Whales that do not die instantly are
killed with a high calibre rifle at close quarters.
Each grenade costs NOK 4,000 (c.US$ 500) - yet another reason to shoot well.
The Inspectors
The inspector's reports show that half of the whales died instantly, whereas 9%
lived for over 10 minutes. The longest time to death was 55 minutes, when a
hydraulic tube on the winch broke making it impossible to haul the whale close to
the boat.
The death criteria are extremely strict. All movement must have stopped,
including unconscious reflex movements. This means that the stopwatch often
continues to tick after the animal is dead.
Other Types of Hunt
Norwegian veterinarian and scientist Egil Ole Øen enjoys international recognition as
an expert on the killing and anaesthetization of large mammals. His results from
the Norwegian elk hunt show that 18% of the elk died instantly and that the
average time to death is 6.30 minutes. A sober estimate would show that every
tenth or twentieth elk escapes with serious wounds. Thus it might take hours or
days to complete the kill - if the wounded animal is actually found at all. Øen
says that the same thing happens in all types of big game hunt, and that
Norwegian elk hunting maintains a relatively high standard. During the 1993
minke whale harvest, not one wounded animal escaped.
The Rules
The dark back of the minke whale breaks the surface of the sea for only a few
seconds. The fountain-shaped column of water and breath that is so typical for
most of the larger whales is lacking in the minke whale. To catch a glimpse of them,
the sea must be almost completely calm. A moderate breeze makes keeping watch
futile. Over half the time is spent waiting for better weather. At times like this,
coffee and a smoke are welcome pastimes.
"Trøndergut" has satellite navigation equipment, radar and sonar, but this
equipment is not used when searching for whales. The sound waves from the
sonar frighten the whales. Binoculars only provide a view of a limited section of
the sea surface. The naked eye is the only tool good enough. To be a good
lookout, you need practice.The lookout often sees the whale a few seconds before
it surfaces, and instructs the gunner where he should aim.
The gunner must react instantly. He only has a few seconds when the whale
surfaces, and must make sure that it does so with its broadside turned towards
the boat, and that the range is correct. Aim, fire - or hold back.
A special grenade for small-type whaling was developed in the early eighties and
made compulsory in 1984. It contains an extremely efficient explosive known as
penthrite. After the advent of the penthrite grenade, time to death has been more
than halved.
Inspectors, all of whom are qualified veterinary surgeons, are present on all the
boats taking part in the minke whale harvest. At the very moment a shot is fired,
they start their stopwatches in order to record the time to death. In 1993, the
average time for all the boats together was 3.33 minutes. The time to death has
thereby been halved since the last commercial minke whale harvest, in 1987.
Few such records, if any, are kept of other types of hunt. Even so, there is good
reason to assume that the quality of killing as far as the minke whale harvest is
concerned, is better than in most other types of hunt.
The gunners taking part in the minke whale harvest must pass a marksman's test
and take part in courses in, amongst other things, ethics and rules and regulations.
Serious or repeated breaches of the rules will lead to the confiscation of whaling
permits. This year's reports by the inspectors show no breaches of the rules.