Gray Whale Makes Longest Recorded Migration Ever!
Photo credit: BBC News
Scientists are stunned by this gray whale’s migration across the Pacific Ocean because it may be the longest recorded migration of a mammal … ever!
This female gray whale – nicknamed Varvara – has traveled 14,000 miles roundtrip from the east coast of Russia to breeding grounds off the coast of Mexico.
Her journey raises a lot of interesting questions. American and Russian biologists who long thought there were two separate populations of gray whales – one on the western coast of the US and an endangered, perhaps extinct pod, off the east coast of Russia – are now wondering if the groups are linked.
A recent study found that three different whales that were tagged near Russia crossed the North Pacific to breed.
“These whales were almost certainly born in Mexico (the eastern North Pacific),” said lead researcher Prof Bruce Mate of Oregon State University Marine Mammal Institute.
“If this small sample size is typical, it would suggest that [the two populations are one]. However, a logical alternative might also suggest that there are still ‘true’ Western gray whales, but they are not as numerous as previously thought.”
Gray whales in the western Pacific have been driven to near extinction by commercial whaling practices, and some think oil exploration may also play a role.
Read more from BBC News.
