Essentially, it creates opportunities for new levels of damage.  Hunting inherently means harming individuals at the time.  With animals that have close-knit family groups and good memories, though, you now also have the possibility of lasting trauma in the survivors.

For whales it goes a step more, since they have at least some level of culture, like dialects.  It’s not hard to imagine sustained hunting could have some lasting effect on these, and disrupt or wipe out cultural groups even if the species is not threatened.

I don’t know how serious you think these might be, but they definitely make animals like whales or gorillas a different case.

Edit: I’m perfectly OK with you making jokes about it, I just won’t be laughing.

From what I understand, he’s not facing those charges for serving whale meat, which isn’t that much of a crime (sadly), he’s facing it for conspiracy, lying to the feds, and a whole lot of other attempts at covering it up. That’s where these charges come from, and “life” is the harshest possible sentencing that he will likely NOT get.

I would like to see more punishment for the person who was supplying him. Also, I don’t think it’s crazy to seriously punish somebody for contributing to the even possible extinction of a species. That’s potentially robbing all future generations of humans of an amazing animal. A crime against humanity imho. This was not a cultural misunderstanding, both of these guys knew it was illegal and exactly why, and sought to profit from it. I have little sympathy.

Quinn: Yeah, I think I read that someplace.

Whale: Would you eat a rectal thermometer!? Answer me, damn you!

Quinn: Uh… no.

Whale: Well, I would. (eats Quinn the fish)

Quinn: HEY!

Whale: Ah, mercury. Sweetest of the transition metals.

http://video.adultswim.com/sealab-2021/they-told-me-you-had-gone-totally-insane.html

*drools on self*