Killing times of minke whales in the Norwegian coastal whaling in the 1981 and 1982 seasons

Abstract

During the whaling seasons of 1981 and 1982 16 inspectors were on the whaling grounds to collect data about weapons and equipment, shooting facilities, hitting areas, reaction to hits, tissue and organ damage and killing times. The inspectors were instructed to confirm the criteria of death by personal observation before reading the time. Consequently the recorded times are appreciably longer than real killing time for a number of whales. The average killing time according to this method was 11 min 50 sec in the 1981 season and 12 min 40 sec in the 1982 season (Table I). 22.4% and 21.8% died instantaneously in the two seasons. Hitting the CNS or the heart was most effective. Hits in the abdominal cavity or the musculature prolonged the killing times considerably.