Migratory patterns and behaviour of humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) along the highly urbanised Gold Coast environment

A whale watch industry vessel was utilised to support research on the migratory patterns and behaviour of humpback whales in the Gold Coast bay, southern Queensland, Australia. Large numbers of whales use the bay as a temporary aggregation area and 1063 pods were recorded during 2008-2012, with 641 individual whales identified. Study data provided important information on pod composition, behaviour and migratory patterns of these whales. These baseline data can be used to improve management of whales in the urbanised coastal waters in the Gold Coast bay to reduce environmental pressures on these whales as their population continues to grow.