Humpback Whale Count in Atlantic Surprises Scientists
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BOSTON — A six-year, six-nation study found more humpback whales in the Atlantic Ocean than scientists had believed were there.
But the biologists warn that the higher estimate may be largely the result of better ways of counting rather than an indication that the endangered species is recovering from whaling and other man-caused injuries.
The international team of researchers estimated there are 10,600 humpback whales between Norway in the north and the West Indies in the south. During the 1980s, the estimate was 5,505.
The researchers involved in the project used sophisticated photography and genetic analysis in making the new estimate. Spending 666 days at sea in 1992 and 1993, the scientists took photographs of 4,027 whale flukes and got 2,327 skin samples.
Researchers went to the whales’ breeding grounds in the West Indies and five major feeding areas, including the Gulf of Maine.
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