About 200 Dolphins Captured as Taiji Hunting Season Begins

Sep 01, 2026 | News On Japan

Wakayama - The traditional whale and dolphin drive hunt in Taiji, Wakayama Prefecture, opened for the season on September 1, with fishermen capturing about 200 bottlenose dolphins during the first hunt.

Shortly after 5 a.m., fishermen boarded nine boats and headed offshore to begin the season.

Anti-whaling activists were seen in the area holding placards, but no major disturbances were reported.

Drive hunting is a traditional fishing method in which boats surround groups of whales or dolphins migrating offshore and drive them into a cove, where they are captured.

During the first hunt of the season, fishermen located a pod of bottlenose dolphins about 20 kilometers offshore and drove around 200 of them into a cove before capturing them.

The drive-hunting season is scheduled to continue through the end of April 2027.

Source: YOMIURI

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