 While 1631 turned out to be a very good season, the following year, due to the weather and ice, only eight whales were caught.In 1633 eleven ships managed to catch just 47 whales; while a meager 42 were caught by the same number in 1635.The bowhead whale was locally hunted to near-extinction around 1640 (approximately 1000 had been killed and processed on the island), at which time Jan Mayen was abandoned and stayed uninhabited for two and a half centuries.