Whale Hunting

I spent a week in the remote village of Lamalera on the island of Lembata, East Nusa Tengarra. The villagers still use small, traditional boats and large bamboo harpoons to hunt full-sized whales, sharks, and dolphins. The hunts are extremely dangerous with severe injury or loss of life always a threat so it wasn’t without a degree of uncertainty and trepidation that I joined them on one. Due to the numbers they catch it’s considered a sustainable practice and still allowed under international law. The hunts have been a part of their traditions, customs and way of life for 100’s of years and provide their main source of food and income