During the heyday of commercial whaling in the 1960s, the town of Taiji prospered as the cradle of whaling, supplying gunners to seven fleets of Japanese ships that headed south to the Antarctic to hunt the giant mammals.
Today, just 10 people in the town in the southeastern part of Wakayama Prefecture continue the tradition, seizing small coastal water whales that are excluded from the International Whaling Commission's ban on commercial whaling.
Japanese have long been accustomed to whale meat, which was a major source of protein in the lean years after World War II.
Deep-fried whale meat was a staple listed on school lunch menus and was the basis of many popular dishes that appeared on tables in homes.