The Sea Shepherd crew reports that the Japanese whaling fleet managed to kill one whale today, even in the midst of a hot pursuit from the anti-whaling ship, the Steve Irwin.

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Captain Paul Watson deployed his two small boats to the Nisshin Maru, the whaling fleet’s factory ship, where crew members threw “rotten butter bombs” onto the deck in an attempt to spoil the fresh whale meat. The whalers responded by throwing whale blubber back at the activists.

The Japanese ship also cranked up their Long Range Acoustic Weapon (LRAD), an ear-piercing weapon that can cause dizziness and nausiea, forcing the small boats to retreat.

The crew has been chasing three harpoon boats and the enormous Nisshin Maru factory ship for six days. This is the first whale the Japanese have killed with Sea Shepherd present this season.

“We lost one today,” said Captain Watson. “My crew is sad and they are angry. We did not see the kill but we saw the corpse and we saw the blood. It is difficult to cover the movements of three hunter killer boats and to stay on the tail of this floating abattoir but we are doing the best we can with the resources we have.”

UPDATE:

Things continue to heat up in the antarctic–the next season of Whale Wars is bound to be even more exciting than the first. Sea Shepherd is reporting that their ship, the Steve Irwin, collided with one of the Japanese harpoon vessels after it crossed across its path. Also, they say two more whales have been killed today.

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Photo Credit: Sea Shepherd