60 Million Won 'Sea Lotto'... 5.2m Mink Whale Bycatch Off the Coast of Goseong

A mink whale approximately 5.2 meters in length was bycaught in the waters off Goseong, Gangwon Province.

On the 10th, the Sokcho Coast Guard announced that in the morning, a 6.67-ton gillnet fishing vessel, vessel A, bycaught a whale while hauling nets about 5 km east of Daejin Port, Goseong County. Yonhap News reported that the whale measured about 5.2 meters in length, about 2.41 meters in girth, and weighed approximately 1.5 tons. After consulting with the National Institute of Fisheries Science Whale Research Center, the Coast Guard confirmed that the whale was a mink whale. No signs of capture using illegal gear such as harpoons were found.

Mixed mink whale
[Photo by Sokcho Coast Guard, Yonhap News]

Persons who illegally capture whales face imprisonment of up to three years or fines up to 30 million won under the Fisheries Act and the Act on the Conservation and Management of Marine Ecosystems. However, mink whales found dead after being caught in nets are an exception; such dead bycaught mink whales are sold for large sums and are called the so-called "lottery of the sea." Mink whales are not designated as marine protected species, so they can be sold at auction. According to the notice on the conservation and management of whale resources, if a whale is stranded or drifting without being bycaught in nets, it cannot be distributed or sold and must be discarded. This mink whale was sold at auction for 60 million won.

A Coast Guard official said, "If a dead whale is found while fishing near the coast or at sea, please report it to the Coast Guard."

Earlier, the East Sea Regional Coast Guard announced that due to the continuous occurrence of bycatch cases where whales, including mink whales, are caught and killed in nets along the East Coast, a special crackdown on illegal capture and distribution of whales will be conducted. Mink whales are sold at auction for between 30 million won and over 100 million won per individual. This special crackdown will be carried out for about two months until December 9.

A Coast Guard official said, "Illegal capture disguised as bycatch is expected to become increasingly rampant," and added, "We will take the lead in preserving protected marine species such as whales."