In Iceland, the harpooning of a mysterious cetacean is controversial

Blue whale, fin whale, or hybrid? The controversy swells in Iceland following accusations by an animal rights organization that a blue whale has been harpooned for the first time in 50 years.

"Sea Shepherd volunteers watching the whaling station Hvalur hf, in Hvalfjördur, Iceland, documented the slaughter of a threatened blue whale on the night of 7 July "the international badociation said in a statement. The blue whale has been a protected species since 1966 and its hunt is forbidden by the International Whaling Commission.

Yet many experts in Iceland question the claims made by Sea Shepherd. According to specialists, the harpooned animal has characteristics similar to the blue whale … and the fin whale, the second largest animal living on the planet behind the blue whale. But the only Icelandic fin whale hunt, Hvalur hf, was allowed in April to return to sea.

A hybrid species?

The animal thus has "a broad dorsal side with a small fin like fin whales, which may explain why he was killed as such " said Gisli Vikingsson, marine biologist and whale scientist at the Institute for Marine and Freshwater Research . "Its size and its marks on the skin on the sides are however close to the blue whale" he added.

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"We harpooned him thinking that it was a fin whale Hvalur hf defended, by the voice of Kristjan Loftsson, his CEO interviewed by AFP. We see blue whales at sea all the time without ever touching them because we identify them with the breath from their vents. In fact, the bloom is more important in blue whales than in other species of whales.

According to Gisli Vikingsson, it could be a hybrid species resulting from a cross between the blue whale and fin whale, a rare phenomenon. Since 1987, five such animals have been observed in the Icelandic seabed, according to Loftsson. They all suffer from infertility.

"Inaccurate and Imperfect Activity"

By By the end of July, the first test results should be known – but may not be enough. A DNA test, initially scheduled for this autumn, will also be quickly practiced in the face of the debate over the taking.

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"This shows how imprecise and imperfect this activity is and that there is absolutely no need to pursue it" said Sigursteinn Mbadon, Head of the International Fund's Icelandic Office for the protection of animals. "Hybrids are even rarer than blue whales, which are themselves listed as endangered species" he added, calling for an immediate halt to the hunt. Fin Whale

There is no law regulating hybrid whaling. On the other hand, its trade is governed by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora.