whales were killed in the South Atlantic, 39,000 in the South Pacific, 15,000 in the
North Pacific, 1300 in the Indian Ocean and several hundred in the northeastern
Atlantic. When the first whaling convention was concluded in 1931, all right whale
hunts were suspended.
13
Despite the IUCN listing the South Pacific right whale as ‘least concern’, both its
population trend and overall population status are unknown.
14 Both the North
Atlantic and North Pacific right whale are considered ‘endangered’ although also
here concrete numbers are absent.
2.1.5 Humpback Whale (Megaptera novaeangliae)
The humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) probably belongs to one of the
most famous whale species in the world and is much sought-after by whale tourists
due to its typical leaps out of the water, also close to ships and boats. Since the
humpback whale stretches its tail fluke into the air when diving, scientists have been
able to identify individual whales due to their characteristic markings on their tail
flukes.
The humpback whale has very large pectoral fins, proportionally the largest
amongst the whales, amounting to almost one third of the body length. The scientific
term Megaptera derives from the Greek term mega (large) + pteron (wing). The area
around the mouth is marked by a large number of nobbles. The dorsal fin is shaped in
a humpy (German, Buckel) manner, which has provided the whale with both the
English as well as the German name (Buckelwal).
Female humpback whales are typically 1–1.5 m longer than males. The maximum length of these animals ranges between 16 and 17 m although most humpbacks
are 14–15 m long. In the summer, humpback whales can mostly be found in coastal
and shelf waters while in the winter, in waters around reefs and islands. Humpback
whales are highly migratory and it is a humpback which is believed to hold the
longest whale migration: 5000 km. Interestingly, the purpose and aim of humpback
migration still remains unclear since not all populations migrate along similar
patterns. The stock in the Arabian Sea, for instance, does not migrate at all. It
remains clear, however, that humpbacks return to specific breeding grounds
each year.
Since humpbacks can often be found close to shore they constituted one of the
main targets of commercial whaling operations over several centuries. Given their
global distribution, they also served as a primary food source during colonial
endeavours. In the southern hemisphere, around 238,000 humpbacks were killed
in the twentieth century, 48,000 of which were illegally taken by the Soviet Union.
Although humpback whaling was amongst the first types to be banned, in the
whaling season 1959/60 and 1960/61 the Soviet Union killed around 25,000
13 Kenney (2008), pp. 962–969.
14 Cooke and Zerbini (2018).
2.1 Whales
19
North Pacific, 1300 in the Indian Ocean and several hundred in the northeastern
Atlantic. When the first whaling convention was concluded in 1931, all right whale
hunts were suspended.
13
Despite the IUCN listing the South Pacific right whale as ‘least concern’, both its
population trend and overall population status are unknown.
14 Both the North
Atlantic and North Pacific right whale are considered ‘endangered’ although also
here concrete numbers are absent.
2.1.5 Humpback Whale (Megaptera novaeangliae)
The humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) probably belongs to one of the
most famous whale species in the world and is much sought-after by whale tourists
due to its typical leaps out of the water, also close to ships and boats. Since the
humpback whale stretches its tail fluke into the air when diving, scientists have been
able to identify individual whales due to their characteristic markings on their tail
flukes.
The humpback whale has very large pectoral fins, proportionally the largest
amongst the whales, amounting to almost one third of the body length. The scientific
term Megaptera derives from the Greek term mega (large) + pteron (wing). The area
around the mouth is marked by a large number of nobbles. The dorsal fin is shaped in
a humpy (German, Buckel) manner, which has provided the whale with both the
English as well as the German name (Buckelwal).
Female humpback whales are typically 1–1.5 m longer than males. The maximum length of these animals ranges between 16 and 17 m although most humpbacks
are 14–15 m long. In the summer, humpback whales can mostly be found in coastal
and shelf waters while in the winter, in waters around reefs and islands. Humpback
whales are highly migratory and it is a humpback which is believed to hold the
longest whale migration: 5000 km. Interestingly, the purpose and aim of humpback
migration still remains unclear since not all populations migrate along similar
patterns. The stock in the Arabian Sea, for instance, does not migrate at all. It
remains clear, however, that humpbacks return to specific breeding grounds
each year.
Since humpbacks can often be found close to shore they constituted one of the
main targets of commercial whaling operations over several centuries. Given their
global distribution, they also served as a primary food source during colonial
endeavours. In the southern hemisphere, around 238,000 humpbacks were killed
in the twentieth century, 48,000 of which were illegally taken by the Soviet Union.
Although humpback whaling was amongst the first types to be banned, in the
whaling season 1959/60 and 1960/61 the Soviet Union killed around 25,000
13 Kenney (2008), pp. 962–969.
14 Cooke and Zerbini (2018).
2.1 Whales
19