STUDY OF WHALES

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume XVII, 28 September 1927, Page 6

STUDY OF WHALES

RESEARCH IN ANTARCTIC. THE “DISCOVERY”’ EXPEDITION Rugby. Sept. 26. After spending two years in the Antarctic. the research ship Discovery, with her staff of scientists aboaru. reached Falmouth yesterday. The expedition was organised principally with the object of preventing the extermination of whales in the south. They have been practically exterminated in the north. From the research standpoint the voyage has been a complete success, despite theextremely rough weather. A research station has been established at Grvt vick South Georgia, where Dr. Stanley Kemp, superintendent of zoological survey in India, who was director of tho Discovery’s scientific work, has left part of his staff to continue tho statistical study of w-hales. Much of the information obtained has still to be sifted and some lime must clapso before results are obtained from tho work done in marking whales. Hump-bucked whales wore hunted very extensively some years ago. and it was possible that they might have changed their routes of migration, and they were not in reality so scarce as they seem to be said Dr. Kemp. The 1925-26 season was extraordinarily good both in South Georgnia and the South Shetlands, but tho 1926 27 season, although good in South Georgia, had been almost a complete -failure in the South Shetlands. That would appear to be due to physical conditions of which wo are at present ignorant. From the data obtained it is hoped a policy will be evolved which will prevent tho wholesale extermination of whales.