Thanks to hunting bans applied in various countries, the number of humpback whales has increased dramatically since the 60s.
He is about to end up run over, his mother saves himI bans on whaling applied in various parts of the world have worked: the specimens of humpback whale present in the Atlantic Ocean are increased from 450 to 25 thousand in the last decades.
To give the good news are the researchers of the University of Washington, who have surveyed the cetaceans by analyzing data from institutions around the world.
On the Brazilian coast, for example, the specimens of humpback whale have risen to 17.000, according to a report by the Humpback Whale Project, an NGO that has been monitoring cetaceans since 1988.
The number of humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) has multiplied dramatically thanks to protective measures harvested since the 60s to protect this then endangered species.
Sixty years ago, in fact, scientists understood that due to hunting whale specimens were dwindling and they were in danger.
In the following years, whaling was therefore banned in several countries, and this allowed the populations of humpback whale to increase to numbers very close to those that existed before hunters decimated the cetaceans.
Previous studies had evaluated only hunting data and found lower numbers: an evaluation by the International Whaling Commission had for example estimated that the humpback whales population had recovered between 2006 and 2015 only about 30% of the specimens present before exploitation.
This new study did instead more accurate estimates combining air and sea data, providing more accurate information on the number of humpback whales present.
Research findings show that when proper management is applied, populations of wild animals excessively reduced due to human exploitation they can recover, even when they are on the verge of extinction.
If we ban whaling around the world and also protect other endangered and threatened species better, we could see the recovery of populations of animals now considered at risk, with huge benefits for biodiversity and for ecosystems.
Read also:
- After 31 years, Japan resumes whaling (but never stopped)
- Whaling in Norway: no mercy even for pregnant females (PETITION)
- Whaling: Iceland says stop after 17 years
