Eskimos can continue 2,000-year whale hunt
This illustration shows how the bowhead whale uses its "bow"-shaped head to break through the ice. (Credit: Craig George, Department of Wildlife Management, North Slope Borough, Alaska ).
With some help from science, the International Whaling Commission decided at its May 2007 meeting to allow Alaskan Eskimos to continue their subsistence whale hunt.
Alaskan Eskimos have been subsistence whalers for almost 2,000 years. From each whale, 20 to 40 tons of meat and other products are shared among small communities. The International Whaling Commission or IWC determines quotas for whale hunting. Strict guidelines aim to protect endangered whale populations. The Eskimos will be allowed to harvest 56 Arctic bowhead whales each year for the next five years.
John Bickham at Purdue University has studied Alaskan whales. If the Eskimos were hunting two or more whale populations, the IWC might lower the quota. Bickham’s study showed that they were hunting only one whale population – and that those whales are thriving.
John Bickham: The hunt itself is not limiting the population growth or decreasing it. In fact, the growth has continued in the face of this particular hunt.
At the end of the commercial whaling era in the early 20th century, there were only 1,000 bowhead whales in the Alaskan population. Now, according to Bickham, there are more than 12,000.
Thanks today to NOAA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Bickham also said: Because [the Eskimos] live so closely to their environment, they’re entirely dependent upon their environment. They can, in fact, be thought of as part of the environment, part of the ecosystem. They are one of the predators. They have done this for thousands of years, and never have the Eskimos, in their subsistence whaling, endangered whales. It was only a result of western man taking modern technology and commercial whaling which nearly wiped out the bowhead whale. But fortunately, it’s making a comeback and it’s doing well, so it’s still being harvested by the Eskimos.
The Alaskan Eskimo Whaling Commission is responsible for representing Eskimo whaling communities to the IWC.
Study helps preserve arctic whale, Eskimo subsistence hunt
An Eskimo whaling captain describes the hunt
IWC information on catch limits for aboriginal subsistence whaling
Listen to bowhead whale sound recordings at the Macaulay Library archive
Experts study dialects in blue whale songs
Our thanks to:
John Bickham
Professor of Forestry and Natural Resources
Director of the Center for the Environment
Purdue University, Tennessee
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I HAVE LIVED IN FAR EAST, AND ENGLANDBUT ALL MY LIFE, I HAVE WANTED TO GO TO ALASKA. I AM 75 YEARS OLD AND STILL WOULD LIKE TO SEE ALASKA, BUT NEVER WILL BECAUSE I DO NOT WANT TO MEET THESE KIND OF PEOPLE
Dear Jackie:
Why ever not? These Eskimos have been hunting whales for thousands of years without diminishing the health of whales. Like polar bears hunting seals, they are part of the natural cycle. We can learn from these people much about how to be a part of Nature!
Jackie,
Alaska is a wonderful place. There are many areas you can go without seeing “these kind of people.” Try Denali, or Prince William Sound, for example. You’ll see beautiful, wild, un-hunted whales there. You shouldn’t miss the chance.
I presume by “these kind of people” you mean whale hunters. Killing whales (or cows) is not a pretty thing, and I wouldn’t want to watch it happening; but you know, the Eskimos mentioned in the story are subsistence hunters. They hunt to live, just like the whales themselves do, or the polar bears, or lions and tigers… Killing and eating are all part of nature, whether it is done by humans or eagles. I personally think that it’s immoral to hunt animals for sport, but it’s inconsistent to say that eagles are allowed to kill animals to eat, and we are not.
Please reconsider.
Ray
I liked what John Bickham, the scientist we interviewed for this radio show, said about the Eskimos … Because [the Eskimos] live so closely to their environment, they’re entirely dependent upon their environment. They can, in fact, be thought of as part of the environment, part of the ecosystem. They are one of the predators. They have done this for thousands of years …
We’re all, in fact, entirely dependent on our environment and we all are part of our environment. This is what scientists now call a coupled human-environment system.. The Eskimos just live closer to nature than most of us do, and so illustrate this fact more vividly. But it’s true of all of us …
The term “eskimo” as used by Block and Byrd on program #5239 is seen by the native Alsakans as a perjorative word just as the term “falasha” is seen as a negative term by Ethiopians. I assume that Block and Byrd were refering to the Inupiat population of native Alaskans who inhabit the northern Alaskan region which includes Barrow Alaska. In fact there are several tribes of native Alaskans and they all look upon the word “eskimo”, a word which means raw flesh eater, as a description assigned them by a non-native Alaskan culture. In the interest of good science (and good public relations) I feel the producers of Block and Byrd should issue a correction and apology. Earth and sky is a very well produced, informative program and I’m sure the native Alaskans who were listening to their PBS stations probably thought, “oh well, even the scientists on the program aren’t really aware of what the word “Eskimo” means to us…what are you gonna do.” Hopefully, correcting this will be a step in the right direction for human relations.
Correction to comment #5.
The word “perjorative” is spelled pejorative. Thank you.
David, thank you for commenting on your concern. We try to be sensitive to the cultural connotations of words, terms, and names, and in fact this issue did come up while editing the script. The scientist here, John Bickham, used “Eskimo” exclusively in the interview. And in situations of uncertainty, when cultural terms and connotations are constantly shifting, we usually stick to the knowledge of the scientist who has specific expertise on the subject.
We welcome any links to information you might have on the culture of native Alaskans.
“Those people” were there first, and don’t care if you stay home.
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There are plenty of whales. They should be usable by natives for food, and I doubt the government can or should stop them from hunting.