A deadly season for whales and dolphins in the Faroe Islands
The horrific killing of whales and dolphins continues in the Faroe Islands. On August 13, two separate drive hunts occurred on the southern islands of Sandoy and Suduroy and resulted in the deaths of 565 individual whales and dolphins. Instead of pilot whales, the hunt in Hvalba targeted Atlantic white-sided dolphins, killing 430 dolphins. The other hunt occurred in Husavik where 135 pilot whales were driven and killed. WDC is extremely concerned with this staggering number of dolphins targeted and killed in this hunt. Although it is not uncommon for white-sided dolphins to be targeted in the drive hunts in the Faroe Islands, the last time this species was killed was in 2010, also in Hvalba, where 14 dolphins were killed. In addition, 141 white-sided dolphins were killed in 2009 in Oravik.
To date, an astounding 1085 whales and dolphins have been killed in the Faroe Islands since the first grind was conducted on July 21st. In just the first 24 days of the hunt season alone, the total number of whales and dolphins killed in the Faroe Islands far eclipses the total number killed in all of last season (713 pilot whales).
