The Australian government has stopped the anti-whaling group Sea Shepherd from using unmanned drones over the Antarctic.

A group of infamously aggressive whale-hunting opponents say that they have tracked down and photographed hunters participating in Japan’s annual Antarctic whale hunt using an unpiloted drone aircraft to spot their ship.

Japanese whalers have suspended their annual Antarctic hunt, citing harassment by an environmental group that has been working to block their fleet's ships.

Militant activists fighting against Japan's Southern Ocean whaling campaign said on Wednesday that they had tracked down and were chasing a factory ship key to the Antarctic harpoon mission.

Officials said Tuesday that an anti-whaling activist from New Zealand is in custody on a Japanese vessel and will be taken to Japan to face charges after secretly boarding the ship as part of a protest.