Journal article
First humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) re-sighting between Azorean waters and the Barents Sea (Murman coast, northwestern Russia)
Polar Biology, Vol.45, pp.523-527
03/2022
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Source: InCites
Abstract
Humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) are one of the most well studied baleen whales worldwide and one of the species targeted during the historic North Atlantic whaling period. Northwestern Russia (Barents Sea), a poorly studied region for humpbacks, is recognized as an important fishing area for their prey capelin (Mallotus villosus). In the last century, this fish species collapsed, possibly due to overfishing both in Russian and Norwegian waters, which led to these governments imposing strict fishing restrictions. In past decades the southern part of the Barents Sea has faced warming ocean temperatures and less sea ice. Here, we present the first humpback photographic match between the Azores and northwestern Russia (Murmansk, Barents Sea). A humpback whale sighted on 14 March 2019 in the Azorean waters, was resighted opportunistically on 21 June, 2019 off the Murman coast, Russia. The estimated distance between the two sites is approximately 6778 km, representing a migratory speed of 2.88 km·h−1. Strict regulations on the summer capelin fisheries in the Murman coastline and Barents Sea, along with global warming may lead to new habitats for both fish prey and predators (i.e., humpback whales) to return to this region.
Details
- Title
- First humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) re-sighting between Azorean waters and the Barents Sea (Murman coast, northwestern Russia)
- Creators
- Rui Peres dos Santos - University of AlgarveRafael Martins - Futurismo Azores AdventuresAnton Chaiko - HappywhaleTed Cheeseman - HappywhaleLindsey S. Jones - College of the AtlanticFrederick W. Wenzel - National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
- Publication Details
- Polar Biology, Vol.45, pp.523-527
- Publisher
- Springer
- Grant note
- This work was supported by a PhD Grant funding (UI/BD/151306/2021) from Foundation of Science and Technology (FCT).
- Identifiers
- 991012987892702368
- Copyright
- © The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature 2021
- Academic Unit
- Faculty of Science and Engineering; Marine Ecology Research Centre; Science
- Language
- English
- Resource Type
- Journal article