Sea Shepherd

Sea Shepherd’s ships have finished the most successful...

Fri, 22 Mar 2013 21:56:02 -0500

Sea Shepherd’s ships have finished the most successful anti-whaling campaign ever. If you can visit any of the ships when they make port, shower them with love. :D

trooperschaf: Well… what can I say? I like making amigurumi....

Thu, 21 Mar 2013 16:23:21 -0500

trooperschaf:

Well… what can I say? I like making amigurumi. Those are meant to be Peter Hammarstedt, Paul Watson and Maddy (Chief of SSCS Germany). The glasses of Peter and Maddy are still to come, I got to find some wire first.

It’s like the emotion cute solidified and became cuddleable.

Once More Into the Southern Ocean Breach - 3/3/2013

Mon, 04 Mar 2013 00:02:00 -0600

The SSS Steve Irwin turns around

The Japanese whaling fleet are now acting like a serial killer in a bad horror movie - when the heroes turn their back and the credits are about to roll, the killer rises up again, this time with harpoon in hand to kill another defenseless whale.

The retreating Japanese fleet has turned around and are heading South again.

When the Sea Shepherd ships broke away from the northbound whaling fleet, they did so in order to conserve fuel for the long trip back to Melbourne. But before parting ways, Sea Shepherd crew members placed a tracking device on the Sun Laurel to monitor their progress northward.

The Sun Laurel has now turned around and is heading south again and this can only indicate that the Nisshin Maru has also turned and is heading south. Although there are very few days left in the whaling season, there is still the possibility that the Nisshin Maru can refuel and return for a few days of whaling; although they will not be able to kill many whales, the death of even a few is of grave concern to the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society.

Therefore the Sam Simon will transfer fuel to the Steve Irwin and the Sam Simon will head to Fremantle instead of Melbourne to refuel.

The Bob Barker was intending to transfer fuel to the Steve Irwin but they will now retain that fuel to resume the pursuit of the whaling fleet.

After refueling from the Sam Simon tomorrow, the Steve Irwin will follow the Bob Barker back to the Southern Ocean to intercept the whaling fleet.

The Bob Barker has changed course and is once again in pursuit of the whaling fleet.

Operation Zero Tolerance has been resurrected. It looks like another ten days of high seas pursuits in an ocean becoming colder and more hostile each day.

“It appears that the Japanese whalers have been ordered south to kill a few token whales so as to not be totally humiliated this season,” said Bob Barker Captain Peter Hammarstedt, “so it is once more back into the breach. We know where the Sun Laurel is and we intend to intercept them once again.”

The Steve Irwin will take fuel from the Sam Simon at Heard Island before returning to the Southern Ocean to assist the Bob Barker.

“It is still three days back to the whaling grounds with no more than a week left to kill whales and the weather is getting progressively worse,” said Captain Siddharth Chakravarty of the Steve Irwin.

“It is not economically practical for the whalers to return at this late date,” said Sea Shepherd Australia director Jeff Hansen. “But this is no longer about whaling. It is about the Japanese government not appearing weak. They have been humiliated by Sea Shepherd. They are returning to the Southern Ocean so they can claim they were not chased out by Sea Shepherd, even though it is very clear they were. It looks like we will have to chase them out of the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary once more”

With the weather deteriorating, the seas becoming rougher, with the plankton blooms dispersed so also have the whales become dispersed, the conditions are no longer easy for whaling operations.

The Bob Barker is not far from the returning whaling fleet.

Sea Shepherd Australia Escorts the Japanese Whaling Fleet Out of the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary

Fri, 01 Mar 2013 15:45:17 -0600

POSITION AT MARCH 1ST AT 1858 HOURS AEDT 59°59’ SOUTH AND 60° 32’ EAST

Commentary By Paul Watson - Observer

The SSS Steve Irwin escorts the whaling fleet
photo: Sea Shepherd Australia/Eliza Muirhead
The Japanese whaling fleet has left the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary and is heading north.

The ships crossing north of sixty degrees are the Nisshin Maru, Yushin Maru, Yushin Maru No. 2, Shonan Maru No. 2, the Steve Irwin and the Bob Barker.

The entire Japanese whaling fleet is now north of sixty degrees and out of the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary.

The Panamanian-flagged Korean-owned fuel tanker Sun Laurel, traveling with the Yushin Maru No. 3 and flanked by the Sea Shepherd ship Sam Simon, is 120 nautical miles north of the Nisshin Maru and is continuing northward at eleven knots.

Since the Japanese whaling fleet arrived in the Southern Ocean at 2330 Hours on January 28th, 2013, the Sea Shepherd ships have chased the fleet for over 6,240 miles westward, from the Ross Sea to Pryzd Bay, from 164° 02’ West to 60°20’ East.

The campaign saw two confrontations to prevent the killing of whales and three confrontations to prevent the illegal fueling of the Nisshin Maru from the Sun Laurel.

During the campaign the Sea Shepherd crews did not throw any projectiles or deploy any propeller-fouling devices. The Japanese whalers threw concussion grenades and hit the Sea Shepherd crewmembers with water cannons. All three Sea Shepherd ships were damaged after being struck multiple times by the 8,000 ton Nisshin Maru.

Is whaling over for the season? We are not positive but we are 80% sure that it may be over.

Sea Shepherd will not intervene against any legal transfer of fuel between the Nisshin Maru and the Sun Laurel above sixty degrees South but the Sun Laurel is over 120 miles to the North and still moving northward at 11 knots. It would take at least 48 hours to rendezvous with the Sun Laurel to refuel and another four days to return to the whaling area. This would leave about a week to kill whales and with the weather quickly deteriorating it would hardly be worth the effort.

How many whales have been killed? Sea Shepherd can only confirm the death of two Minke whales. Some whales could have been taken on the run westward; the Nisshin Maru and the Yushin Maru No. 2 had two days to whale unobstructed until the Sea Shepherd ships caught up with them.

We can confirm that the Yushin Maru and the Yushin Maru No. 3 did not kill any whales this season. These two vessels were under observation at all times.

My conservative estimate of the number of whales killed this year is no more than 75. It could be much lower but certainly not higher. Last year I predicted the whalers would take 30% of their kill quota. The actual kill was 26%.

Although Operation Zero Tolerance did not realize zero kills, this campaign will see the lowest take by the Japanese whaling fleet in the entire history of their Antarctic whale hunts.

The Sea Shepherd Conservation Society campaign led by Sea Shepherd Australia has been enormously successful and the crew of all three Sea Shepherd ships are satisfied with what has been achieved this season.

All three Sea Shepherd ships will continue to follow the whaling fleet north to ensure that they do not return to kill whales.

Bob Barker and Steve Irwin Escorting the Nisshin Maru Out of the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary
photo: Sea Shepherd Australia/Tim Watters

The Nisshin Maru rams the SSS Bob Barker, SSS Steve Irwin, and...

Wed, 20 Feb 2013 23:13:33 -0600

The Nisshin Maru rams the SSS Bob Barker, SSS Steve Irwin, and South Korean tanker Sun Laurel

20 February 2013 — The Japanese whalers’ factory ship, the Nisshin Maru, rams the much smaller Sea Shepherd ships, the Bob Barker and Steve Irwin, along with the Korean tanker, Sun Laurel, in the Antarctic Whale Sanctuary

The Nisshin Maru knocking out the Bob Barker’s radar and...

Wed, 20 Feb 2013 15:33:05 -0600

The Nisshin Maru knocking out the Bob Barker’s radar and masts.

The Nisshin Maru ramming the Bob Barker with their massive bow.

Wed, 20 Feb 2013 15:32:40 -0600

The Nisshin Maru ramming the Bob Barker with their massive bow.

Sparks flying as the Nisshin Maru hits the superstructure of the...

Wed, 20 Feb 2013 15:32:15 -0600

Sparks flying as the Nisshin Maru hits the superstructure of the Sun Laurel, and bends the davit on their lifeboat.

The Nisshin Maru moments before repeatedly ramming the Sun...

Wed, 20 Feb 2013 15:31:16 -0600

The Nisshin Maru moments before repeatedly ramming the Sun Laurel refueling vessel.

The Nisshin Maru blasted the Bob Barker with water cannons, and...

Wed, 20 Feb 2013 15:30:01 -0600

The Nisshin Maru blasted the Bob Barker with water cannons, and rammed them into the Sun Laurel.

As the Steve had to run to avoid further damage from the...

Wed, 20 Feb 2013 15:29:35 -0600

As the Steve had to run to avoid further damage from the Nisshin’s rammings, the Bob Barker took the Steve’s place at the port side of the Sun Laurel.

The second time the Nisshin Maru rammed the Steve Irwin.

Wed, 20 Feb 2013 15:29:00 -0600

The second time the Nisshin Maru rammed the Steve Irwin.

The first time the Nisshin Maru rammed the Steve Irwin.

Wed, 20 Feb 2013 15:28:38 -0600

The first time the Nisshin Maru rammed the Steve Irwin.

The Nisshin Maru moments before ramming the Steve Irwin. Photo...

Wed, 20 Feb 2013 15:28:08 -0600

The Nisshin Maru moments before ramming the Steve Irwin. Photo by Eliza Muirhead/Sea Shepherd.

Wed, 20 Feb 2013 15:27:33 -0600

Wed, 20 Feb 2013 15:27:02 -0600

Wed, 20 Feb 2013 15:26:36 -0600

Wed, 20 Feb 2013 15:26:05 -0600

Wed, 20 Feb 2013 15:25:36 -0600

The chaos of six poaching ships against three conservation...

Wed, 20 Feb 2013 15:25:09 -0600

Sea Shepherd

Sea Shepherd’s ships have finished the most successful...

trooperschaf: Well… what can I say? I like making amigurumi....

Once More Into the Southern Ocean Breach - 3/3/2013

Sea Shepherd Australia Escorts the Japanese Whaling Fleet Out of the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary

POSITION AT MARCH 1ST AT 1858 HOURS AEDT 59°59’ SOUTH AND 60° 32’ EAST

The Nisshin Maru rams the SSS Bob Barker, SSS Steve Irwin, and...

The Nisshin Maru rams the SSS Bob Barker, SSS Steve Irwin, and South Korean tanker Sun Laurel

The Nisshin Maru knocking out the Bob Barker’s radar and...

The Nisshin Maru ramming the Bob Barker with their massive bow.

Sparks flying as the Nisshin Maru hits the superstructure of the...

The Nisshin Maru moments before repeatedly ramming the Sun...

The Nisshin Maru blasted the Bob Barker with water cannons, and...

As the Steve had to run to avoid further damage from the...

The second time the Nisshin Maru rammed the Steve Irwin.

The first time the Nisshin Maru rammed the Steve Irwin.

The Nisshin Maru moments before ramming the Steve Irwin. Photo...

The Nisshin Maru ramming the Bob Barker. ©Sea Shepherd /...

The Nisshin Maru turns to ram the Bob Barker.© Sea...

The Nisshin Maru ramming the Bob Barker. ©Sea Shepherd /...

The Nisshin Maru ramming the Sun Laurel.© Sea Shepherd/Glenn...

The Nisshin Maru ramming the Steve Irwin.© Sea Shepherd/Glenn...

The chaos of six poaching ships against three conservation...