The male humpback whale traveled more than 13 000 kilometers from the coast of Colombia to Zanzibar. While looking for a mate, he set a record for the distance of migration for his species.
This is reported by Live Science magazine.
Scientists assume that the whale traveled precisely for the purpose of mating, because it moved from one breeding place of whales to another. The fact is that thanks to the efforts to protect these animals, the number of individuals has increased, and, accordingly, the competition between them has increased.
With the help of AI, scientists analyzed pictures of whales from the website Happywhale, where users share their observations of the animals. A male humpback whale was first identified by its tail fin in 2013 and 2017 near Colombia. In 2022, the same individual was already spotted off the east coast of Africa near Zanzibar.
The distance between these points is 120 degrees of longitude and 13 046 kilometers along the arc that connects them on the globe. But in reality, the animalʼs journey was much longer. The whale probably traveled south from Colombia through the Southern and Atlantic Oceans to its breeding grounds in the Indian Ocean. In both places, he was seen in groups of other males competing for the femaleʼs attention.
Humpback whales migrate to colder waters for food and to warmer waters for reproduction. However, there is now evidence of their traveling to different places to find a mate and mixing of populations from several oceans. The whale could overcome such a distance due to lack of food or climate change, they want to investigate this more thoroughly.
- In autumn, about 40 pilot whales jumped out of the water in New Zealand. Most were saved. The reason may be climate change: due to the increase in ocean temperature, their prey moves closer to the shore, and the animals are forced to look for food in the shallows.
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