In a very rare event, the body of a dead blue whale has washed up on a beach in North Iceland, causing quite a stir in the scientific community. Read the full story

No one would deny that most doctors have a lot of heart, but surgeons at one Danish hospital are leaving no room for debate. The 200-kilo heart of a giant finback whale has been delivered to Skejby Hospital in Arhus, after the creature became trapped and died in Vejle Fjord a month ago. Read the full story

A Copenhagen museum and Vejle Fjord Council are fighting over who will display the skeleton of a beached Whale that died on Sunday in the town’s harbour. Vejle Mayor Arne Sigtenbjerggaard has ordered the body of the Finback whale to be cut up and the bones removed to serve as a tourist attraction for the area. Read the full story

Norway’s main fish sales group has decided to call off the annual whale hunt along the country’s coasts this year due to a low demand for whale meat. The organisation that handles the sale and distribution of the whale meat, Norges Rafisklag, claims there simply aren’t enough customers to warrant continuing the hunt. Read the full story

There is little to no market for whale meat in Japan, according to the manager of the import company Asian Trading Co Ltd, which has been Hvalur hf.’s main Japanese customer.

The manager said Asian Trading does not intend to purchase Icelandic whale meat from Hvalur hf. this year. Read the full story

Norway’s Fisheries Ministry announced that it has lowered the annual quota of minke whales allowed to be caught by commercial fishing companies by 16 percent. The new quota will take effect in 2009, allowing whalers to catch 885 minke whales next year as opposed to 1,052 this year. Read the full story

A recent report produced from the Marine Research Institute in Iceland has documented the declining number of minke whales in the waters surrounding the Nordic nation. According to Fish Update, the report claims that since 2001 the number of minke whales has declined by 24 per cent.

According to Iceland Review, the whale count in 2001 was conducted by aircraft and counted 43,600 minke whales in the water around Iceland.

Last year, the same process resulted in just 10,000 to 15,000 minke whales being counted, which, if true, could be a decline of 24 per cent in stock.

Gísli Víkingsson was one of the authors of the report and mentioned that the matter of stock numbers had already been submitted for discussion by the Science Committee North Atlantic Marine Mammal Commission. Víkingsson believes it is possible the drop in numbers could be the result of a migration of minke whales in search of food.

In addition, Víkingsson pointed to significant changes in the marine environment around Faxaflói bay, the area where the most recent count took place.

The minke whale’s primary source of food is sand launce and capelin. The number of these species has been declining, which is also reflected in the decreasing number of other animals who are a part of the same food chain.

Vikingsson does not believe that the decline in numbers is the result of the government’s decision to allow whale hunting to resume in Iceland.

While hunting may not have resulted in such drastically reduced whale stocks, the data seems to contradict arguments made by those in favour of whale hunting. The Icelandic Fishing Vessels Owners ( LÍÚ), for example, have argued that hunting helps keep the ecosystem in balance.