MARINE MAMMALS 215 



pieces. The blubber and viscera are cut up with the aid of flensing knives 

 and long-handled hooks. One of the California companies has designed 

 and installed a rotary crusher for chopping up bones, blubber, and vis- 

 cera; it can accommodate an entire skull or vertebral column. The blub- 

 ber, bones, and viscera are then hauled to a commercial rendering plant 

 for extraction of oil and preparation of meal. 



Products. Meat. Whale meat is the most important product of the 

 United States whaling industry. The meat of baleen whales is preferred. 

 Sperm whale meat, because of its oiliness and dark color, is not much in 

 demand. Most of the whale meat is sold to fur farms for use as mink food. 

 Much of it is also used as an ingredient in canned pet food. Smaller 

 amounts are occasionally used for miscellaneous purposes — food for zoo 

 animals, a culture medium for the larvae of screw-worm flies, etc. 



Whale Oil. In the trade the name 'Svhale oil" is applied only to the 

 glyceridic oil of the baleen whales and not to the oil of sperm whales. 

 It is used primarily in the production of soaps, glycerine, and margarine. 



Sperm Oil. Sperm whales and bottlenose whales yield a waxy oil. Sperm 

 oil has many uses — principally in cosmetics and as a lubricant. 



Meal. The cooked blubber, bones, and viscera are processed into meal 

 for stock and poultry feed and for fertilizer. 



Whaling Regulation. The International Convention for the Regulation 

 of Whaling limits shore stations to a six-month season each year (eight 

 months for sperm whales). The following minimum size limits on each 

 species are applicable to whales taken by shore stations, provided the 

 fresh meat is utilized in the country of origin : 



The capture of certain species (gray whale, right whale, and bowhead 

 whale) is prohibited, and it is forbidden to take females which are accom- 

 panied by a calf. 



Other Marine Mammals 



Steller sea lions have been harvested experimentally in Alaska. The 

 ground meat is readily salable to mink raisers. Its protein content is about 

 20 per cent, and fat ranges from 3 to 6 per cent^ The skins are not in 

 demand by tanners because of the numerous scars^ It has not been estab- 

 lished that sea lions can be profitably harvested. A refrigerator vessel is 

 required to conduct the harvest in isolated Alaskan waters and consider- 



