Five vessels, their harpoons concealed beneath tarpaulins, left Kushiro in northern Japan on Monday morning. At around the same time, three whaling boats left Shimonoseki in south-western Japan.

The first whales were brought ashore hours later: two grey minke whales. One of the animals, more than eight metres long, was hoisted from a ship onto a truck and driven to a warehouse where whalers lined up to pour ceremonial cups of sake over its body – a ritual to purify and celebrate the catch.

“Today is the best day,” said Yoshifumi Kai, head of the Japan Small-Type Whaling Association. “It was worth waiting for 31 years.”