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Hatanaka To Head ICR
 The Institute of Cetacean Research (ICR), a non-profit organization dedicated to the research of whales, appointed Dr. Hiroshi Hatanaka on January 29, 2004, as its new Director-General succeeding Dr. Seiji Ohsumi, who completed his 8-year term.
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| Dr.Hatanaka |
Hatanaka, who formerly headed Fisheries Research Agency, had been involved in the whaling issue for many years as a member of the IWC Scientific Committee.
In assuming the post, Hatanaka told the press that he intends to further advance and expand the institute’s whale research programs, which have been vigorously promoted by his predecessor. The institute will place emphasis on clarification of competition over food between cetaceans and coastal fish stocks and development of a comprehensive management scheme for fish and whales. It will also stress the educational and publicity activities to enlighten the public about traditional whale diet culture in Japan, he said.
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New Large Whale Species Discovered for the First Time in 90 years
The Fisheries Research Agency announced on November 21, 2003, that it discovered a new baleen whale species of Genus Balaenoptera distributed from Japan’s near-shore to the South Pacific and the Indian Ocean, and named it as “Tsunoshima”whale ( Balaenoptera omurai). This was the first discovery of baleen whale species in 90 years since Bryde’s whale ( Balaenoptera brydei) was confirmed in 1913.
In 1998, a baleen whale of 11 meters long died after it collided with a ship off Tsunoshima in Yamaguchi Prefecture, western Japan. As a result of joint studies of this whale by Iwate Prefectural Museum and the National Science Museum on such aspects as external morphology, skeleton and mitochondrial DNA, it was clarified that this was of an unknown species of the fin whale family. The whale was named Tsunoshima whale and was made public in the Nature magazine.
Tsunoshima whale landed at Tsunoshima Motoyama Port
(Photos taken by Mr. K. Ikemoto; by courtesy of the
National Science Museum) |
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