Antarctic Whales Rebounding

A team lead by the British Antarctic Survey traveled to South Georgia, a biodiverse Antarctic island, to assess the recovery of the whale population there thirty years after commercial whaling ended. Over a period of almost 20 years, there had been only one sighting of a blue whale in the region. Based on visual and auditory research in the 2019-2020 season, the team confirmed a population of 55 blue whales. Humpback whales and southern right whales are also recovering in the region. This encouraging news provides some modest hope for the plight of the highly endangered North Atlantic right whale.