Pooh Island Whale

The joy that both Native Americans and Colonial Settlers experienced when they came upon whales on Cape Cod beaches has been replaced with sadness and dread for the future of the marine mammals. In Leviathan; The History of Whaling in America, Eric Dolin describes how the Pilgrims soon realized the commercial advantage to be made in the taking of whales and got busy. A couple of hundred years later, I take the problem to heart. Stories of lost whales in harbors and strandings always make me uncomfortable, anxious now. In my carefree youth I ate whale. I didn't know any better. I went to a restaurant where broiled whale was featured on the menu and on a neon sign with a spouting whale out by the road. I tried it, just once. I hope you can forgive me. I suppose it was offered as a novelty item like the incongruous espresso bar in a local McDonalds or the all you can eat [AYCE on the sign out by the road] alligator at a place up the road. More for the curious than the hungry, I suppose.

I haven't seen whale on a menu for a while, but I did see an interesting snippet on ONN [Onion News Network] about Japan developing a new hybrid whaling ship, bigger than a Prius, but still gets good fuel economy. And will there be work for those new whalers you're wondering? I recently read that whales are coming back. An article provided by Cornell University, Department of Applied Economics and Management suggests that “There is now strong scientific evidence that several species of baleen whale and possibly the sperm whale, have recovered to levels that would support commercial harvest.” I don't think I'm ready for US whaling, but if the numbers are up, I fear the harvesters won't be far behind.

The whale pictured above washed up on on Pooh Island, Hancock County, Maine in 2008. Don't bother Googlin' it, Pooh's too small for an official name, but locals need something to call it other than "the big ledge on the south side a hundred feet offshore that's only uncovered about half tide." The smell was so bad I couldn't get near enough to really look it over, but even from an olfactorily satisfying distance it was impressive and I was sad to see the it rotting in the sun. I didn't have to watch it very long. Somebody threw rope around the tail at high tide and dragged it couple of miles offshore much to everyone's relief. Was that legal? I don't know.