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IWC harvest statistics - 1972
This table shows all the catches of large whales which are known to the IWC, excepting for incidental catches.
  • It contains data from both member and non member nations.
  • The numbers include lost whales including any struck & lost.
  • The `other' column contains small whales (bottlenose, killer, pilot etc.) unless otherwise noted.
  • The table lists only small whales for which the IWC has individual records - no other small whales are included.
  • No numbers are given for the USSR pelagic catch prior to 1972 - the original `official' records are now known to have been falsified, and the correct numbers are currently being sought.
  • In 1972 the International Observer Scheme was instituted and the numbers are then thought to be more reliable.


If anyone has other information on catches of large whales which are not reported here, the IWC would be pleased to receive information on them.

The USA aboriginal catch is taken off Alaska and the USSR aboriginal catch off Kamchatka.

Abbreviations: * Indicates catches for which no individual data is available i.e. which are not included in the IWC database

Areas:

  • NA / SA : North / South Atlantic
  • At:  Atlantic
  • NP / SP: North / South Pacific
  • IO: Indian Ocean
  • SH: S. Hemisphere

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    L:   Lost       S/P:  Caught under special permit
Nation Area L S/P Dates Blue Fin Sperm Hback Sei Brydes Gray Minke Bowhd Other Total    
Canada (E) NA - - May72-Nov72 - 360 43 - 183 - - 97 - - 683    
Denmark: Greenland NA - - Jun72-Nov72 - 1 1 3 - - - 156 - 1 162   Minke: no data i.e. not coded
Denmark: Faroe Is. NA   -   - - - - - - - 1 - - 1 *  
Iceland NA - - Jun72-Sep72 - 238 76 - 132 - - 35 - - 481   Minke estimated: Sigurjönsson 82
Norway NA - - Mar72-Sep72 - - - - - - - 2,65 - 45 2,695    
Spain NA - - May72-Nov72 - 97 236 - 13 - - - - - 346    
Portugal: Azores NA   -   - - 327 - - - - - - - 327 *  
Portugal: Madeira NA   -   - - 63 - - - - - - - 63 *  
USA (aboriginal) NP   -   - - - - - - 1 - 38 - 39 *  
USSR (aboriginal) NP   -   - 2 - 4 - - 181 - 1 - 188 *  
Japan (pelagic) NP - - May72-Sep72 - 426 1,567 - 2,041 5 - - - - 4,039    
USSR (pelagic) NP - 24 Jun72-Oct72 - 250 1,736 - 71 71 - - - 5 2,133    
Japan NP - - May72-Dec72 - 82 3,021 - 214 125 - 341 - - 3,783   No data for 41 of 341Mi
Korea NP   -   - 1 - - - - - 767 - 1 768 *  
China NP   -   - - - - - - - ? - - ? * Estimate: 10-100Mi/yr, 1963-79
Brazil SA - - Jun72-Dec72 - 1 66 - 5 - - 702 - - 774    
Chile SP   -   - - 337 - 15 - - - - - 352 *  
Peru SP   -   - 9 1,554 - 337 - - - - - 1,9 * Sei may be Bryde’s
S.Africa: Durban IO 5 - Mar72-Oct72 - 51 1,645 - 4 3 - 135 - 17 1,855    
Australia (W) IO 2 - Mar72-Dec72 - - 955 - - - - - - - 955    
Bahamas (Sierra) SA 1 - Nov72-Jun73 - 1 - - 316 - - 2 - - 319    
Sao Nicolau                             ?   No information: catching off S.Africa 70-72
Norway (pelagic) SH - - Feb72-Feb72 - - - - 3 - - - - - 3    
USSR (pelagic) SH 4 12 Nov72-May73 7 619 7,9 5 940 5 - 3,653 - 42 13,171    
Japan (pelagic) SH 3 - Nov72-Mar73 - 1,142 843 - 2,919 - - 2,092 - - 6,996    

Source:
The Secretariat of the International Whaling Commission,
Cambridge, supplied to author October 1999 by IWC

IWC References:
Best Rep. Int. Whal. Commn. 42 (1992) 697-9
Gong 88 Bull.Nat Fish. Res. Dev. Agency 41: 35-54 (1988)
Kapel Rep. Int. Whal. Commn. 29 (1979) 197-200
Larson 90 Pers.Comm.
Park 87
Sigurjönsson Rep. Int. Whal. Commn. 32 (1982) 287-95

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