Japan's Annual Antarctic Expedition Returns With 333 Whale Carcasses

For the second consecutive year, Japanese whalers have returned to port after an Antarctic expedition with the carcasses of 333 whales. The five-ship fleet, put forth by the country's Fisheries Agency, killed the minke whales during a months-long voyage to southern waters for what it calls ecological research.

The agency released a statement describing the mission as "research for the purpose of studying the ecological system in the Antarctic Sea," according to Agence France-Presse.

The Associated Press reports that Fisheries Agency official Shigeto Hase lauded a successful expedition in Shimonoseki, the home port for Nisshin Maru, mother ship of the Japanese fleet.

"It was great that we have achieved our plan," Hase told those gathered for a welcome ceremony, including the city's mayor and about 200 local people, the Australian Broadcasting Corp. notes. "We will steadily continue our research toward a resumption of commercial whaling."

It is not by chance that the word "research" served as the centerpiece of both statements.

More