Whale researchers have new data on humpback whales giving birth along the busy “humpback whale highway” off the coast of Australia.
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Whale researchers combined 19 with modern sightingsth It reveals century records and new information on when and where the whales of the unearth will give birth along the busy “humpback whale highway” off the coast of Australia.
According to a study led by researchers at the University of New South Wales, humpbacks are born not only in the birth zone at the end of their travel route, but also along the way, and even south.
The pattern raises new questions, including the need to raise awareness to protect newborn whales throughout the winter journey, the author wrote in a study published May 21 in the science journal Frontiers, the marine science.
“Hundreds of humpback moths were born outside of established breeding grounds,” said Tracy Rogers, senior author of the University of New South Wales. “Birth along the ‘humpback whale highway’ means that these vulnerable calves, who are not yet strong swimmers, need to swim much faster than they would have been born in breeding grounds. ”
Newborn humpback whales are not as strong as adult whales, and “the newborn mother swims much more slowly,” Rogers said. “Newborns are like great Dane puppies. They have long, huge fins that need to grow. They are not particularly strong swimmers.
As it approached extinction, the humpback whales were rebounded thanks to conservation programs. Today, the population is estimated to be around 50,000.
The sightings of this study were collected in areas ranging from Queensland to Tasmania and across the South Island of New Zealand.
“Historically, we believed that humpback whales migrating north from nutritious southern waters to the north, migrating to warm tropical waters such as the Great Barrier Reef,” says Jane McFlew, a doctoral candidate at the University of New South Wales University of Sydney and Whaledale Watching Skiper.
“The pattern we see is mother whales traveling through the busiest transport lanes and urbanized areas with calves,” McPhee Flew said. Her first calf sighting in Newcastle in 2023 was home to the world’s largest coal export port and within a busy transport lane.
“This means these vulnerable animals are at risk of boat strikes, entanglement and contamination.
There are still questions about whales moving. This includes how humpback whale mothers use different marine environments along their travel routes and why they continue to move north after birth, despite the fact that there is no food in the tropics.
USA Today’s national correspondent, Dinah Voyles Pulver covers climate change, wildlife and the environment. Contact her at dpulver @usatoday.com or @dinahvp.
