Santos, R. P. et al (2022): First Humpback Whale Re-sighting Between Azorean Waters and the Barents Sea

The first re-sighting of a humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) migrating between the Azores and Barents Sea (approximately 6,778 km apart) and demonstrating migratory links between the two regions was documented by Santos et al. (2022).

Objectives

The migratory connection between Barents Sea and Azores was confirmed by documenting the migratory movements of an individual humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae).
Allows researchers to photo identify the whale, track the whale’s movement patterns, and even estimate the whale’s migratory speed and distance.
We apply the model to assess the potential impacts of climate change and fisheries on the migratory patterns of humpback whales.

Impact

The study confirmed the first re-sighting of a humpback whale between the Azores and the Murman Coast of the Barents Sea, covering an estimated distance of 6,778 km over 98 days. The whale’s migratory speed was estimated at 2.88 km/h.
This finding highlights the increasing range of humpback whale migration, likely influenced by changes in ocean conditions and food availability, and calls for international monitoring and conservation measures for migratory whale populations.

Supported UN Global Goals

Santos et al. (2022) implemented Sustainable Development Goal 14 (Life Below Water) by monitoring the migratory movement of humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) between waters of Azores and of Barents Sea, both vulnerable to climate change and fishing. In addition, the study underscores the need for photo identification as a tool to facilitate long term monitoring of migratory species because it can provide key data for use in marine conservation, ecosystem management and the sustainable use of ocean resources.