A group of 100 to 200 narwhals were caught between the ices in the Arctic region of Pond Inlet, Nunavut, as they became separated from the main sea last week, Canadian officials announced. The whales face a slow death, as they will be surrounded and eventually overwhelmed by the ice sheets. Hunters have already began killing them, as environmentalists said that this is the most humane thing to do, so as to spare the animals from undue suffering.
Although fishermen have a quota of just 130 whales per year in the region, authorities say that they will most likely be granted permission to hunt the small whales, so as not to waste their meat and blubber. Special dispensations will be handed out to Canadian hunters so that they can finish hunting the whales by tomorrow. The animals only breathe through tiny holes in the ice and will soon be left with no way of breathing; thus, they will be suffocated.
"They have to have a tag for every whale that is taken, so if it gets to the point that it's determined that there are more whales there than they have tags for - and these whales are going to die, more than likely - in consultations with the Nunavut Wildlife Management Board, we would allow them to take whales," said Keith Pelley, spokesman for the Department of Fisheries and Oceans.
Hunting practices for narwhals imply the use of special tags issued by authorities. If the number of tags is lower than that of whales, hunters exceeded the quota and they are to be punished. Most likely, there will be no more killing of narwhals this season, as officials say that, although the populations in the region will not suffer terribly if the trapped animals are killed, further exploitation will lead to a decline of the species as a whole.
The hunters are now using harpoons and rifles to kill the narwhals as fast as possible. The practice is sanctioned by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans, which announced that "The community has started a humane harvest to take these animals before they perish".
