Viking-Age Hunters Took Down the Biggest Animal on Earth

Re:Viking-Age Hunters Took Down the Biggest Animal on Earth by dieselgate on Friday May 10, 2024 @01:41AM (#40315785)

Interesting timing to see this since today/yesterday saw a headline about a cruise ship coming in to port with a dead whale stuck to the bow. We’ve come from “losing 5 spears in a day and giving up whale hunting” to killing them accidentally.

From a purely historical lens whale hunting in a small boat is one of the most extreme things I can imagine. The closest I’ve physically come to whales is sailing and hearing a pod breathing while swimming past - I was scared since the unexpected sound was quite loud and deep.

Just spit balling here but interesting to think of whales “hunting humans” as we’ve seen them start taking out more pleasure craft around Europe (and elsewhere?) in the past few years. Would be curious to “hear” their side of history!

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Re:Viking-Age Hunters Took Down the Biggest Animal on Earth by cjk2 on Friday May 10, 2024 @03:03AM (#40316138)

I suspect they are just pissed off with us.

I did a whale watching tour from Húsavík last year on a cranky old boat. We found one but the poor thing was asleep apparently, just surfacing every few minutes to breathe. Immediately buzzed by about 5 boats full of people every time it surfaced, two pictured here: https://imgur.com/a/g4em6sc . I think I'd be in the mood to tip a fishing boat after that every day.

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Re:Viking-Age Hunters Took Down the Biggest Animal on Earth by jajko on Friday May 10, 2024 @08:34AM (#40318223)

I did the same in Husavik some... 8 years ago in wintery conditions (april iirc, inland was completely inpassable and even ring road had heaps of snow) and they were fine, we saw plenty of them and pretty active (mostly mink whales). Maybe bad luck or they are quite seasonal?

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Re:Viking-Age Hunters Took Down the Biggest Animal on Earth by sandworm101 on Friday May 10, 2024 @09:16AM (#40318599)

There was an orca (technically not a whale) on the west coast of canada that famously ripped fishfinders off the bottoms of boats. Evidently it didn't like their noise. But it wasn't just the active ones. It found and ripped them off parked boats too.

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Re:Viking-Age Hunters Took Down the Biggest Animal on Earth by CRConrad on Sunday May 12, 2024 @08:09AM (#40333781)

Technically yes, a whale. Orcas are the biggest dolphins, and dolphins in turn are the smallest whales.

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Re:Viking-Age Hunters Took Down the Biggest Animal on Earth by slices on Friday May 10, 2024 @10:53AM (#40319772)

Very similar experience, it was cool seeing & hearing a whale up close, but man that must be annoying for the whale.

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