Season 1
Whale Wars is an American docu-reality television series produced by RIVR Media which follows Captain Paul Watson, founder of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, as he and his crew aboard the MV Steve Irwin attempt to deter Japanese ships that hunt minke and fin whales in the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary in the name of research.
The series premiered in the USA on Animal Planet on 7 November, 2008. A third season was ordered by Animal Planet in 2009.
Whale Wars premiered in South Africa on DStv's Animal Planet channel on Saturday 9 May 2009, at 19h30. See "Seasons" below for seasonal broadcast dates and times.
Season 1
Highlighting both the controversial whaling trade and the tactics that Sea Shepherd and its staff and volunteers use to attempt to cripple it, Whale Wars documents the group's three-month sojourn across icy Antarctic waters at the far end of the globe.
Each week, Animal Planet embarks on a powerful and adrenaline-fuelled adventure and spotlights how Sea Shepherd takes action against alleged illegal whaling operations.
The society's fight to eradicate Japanese whaling on the high seas – where international laws are interpreted by different countries and organisations in different ways – utilises some aggressive techniques.
These include ramming and disabling whaling ships, disrupting whale carcass processing, engaging in physical entanglement and boarding and dispersing fleets of whaling vessels.
Seasons
(All seasons air exclusively on Animal Planet)
Season 1 (7 episodes)
Premiere: 9 May 2009 | Finale: 20 June 2009 | Saturdays, 19h30
Season 2 (11 episodes)
Premiere: 9 September 2009 | Finale: 18 November 2009 | Wednesdays, 21h00