Passage: The Japanese began to catch gray whales beginning in the 1570s. At Kawajiri, Nagato Province, 169 gray whales were caught between 1698 and 1889. At Tsuro, Japan, Shikoku, 201 were taken between 1849 and 1896. Several hundred more were probably caught by American and European whalemen in the Sea of Okhotsk from the 1840s to the early 20th century. Whalemen caught 44 with nets in Japan during the 1890s. The real damage was done between 1911 and 1933, when Japanese whalemen killed 1,449 after Japanese companies established several whaling stations on Korean Peninsula and on Chinese coast such as near the Daya bay and on Hainan Island. By 1934, the western gray whale was near extinction. From 1891 to 1966, an estimated 1,800–2,000 gray whales were caught, with peak catches of between 100 and 200 annually occurring in the 1910s.
How many decades after whaling started did the western grey whale reach near extinction? How many grey whales were caught per year, on average, from 1891 to 1966 based on the largest estimate? How many grey whales were caught per year, on average, from 1891 to 1966 based on the smallest estimate? How many total whales were caught by the Japanese from the 1698 to 1896? How many whales were caught per year on average from 1849 to 1896 in Tsuro, Japan, Shikoku? How many whales were killed by Japanese whalemen per year on average from 1911 to 1933? How many years did it take to catch 1800-2000 grey whales? How many years did the worst of the killings last? In which three areas were many whales take in the early 1900s? Was the most damage done in the 1800s or the 1900s? Were more whales taken between 1698 and 1889 or between 1849 and 1896? Were more whales taken from Kawakjiri or Tsuro? When were the most whales caught? Where did the Japanese set up their whaling stations? Which countries participated in the whale captures?