Whales in the North and Baltic Sea: Explosion of sightings- what is behind it?

Whales in the North and Baltic Sea: Explosion of sightings- what is behind it?

In the past 20 years, the number of Wal sightings and beaches in the North and Baltic Sea has increased significantly. Among other things, this development is favored by the growing worldwide population number of the humpback whales, as Joseph Schnitzler, research assistant at the Institute for Terrestrical and Aquatic Wildlife Research (ITAW), confirms. The suspension of the whale hunt has also contributed to this positive development. Mopo.de reported that several Wal-Kadaver were already recovered on the North Sea. Peter-Ording and a 14.3 meter long sperm whale that was found dead in mid-February.

The sightings in the Baltic Sea are also remarkable, with reports from Ahrenshoop, near Hiddensee and near Travemünde. These whales often seem to get lost, especially on their way from the Irish coast to northern waters near Norway. One of the hypotheses set up for this burn are disturbed magnetic fields and the increasing shipping traffic in the affected areas. Whales apparently have difficulty orientating themselves in the flatter edge areas of the North Sea, since their location system does not work optimally there.

challenges of the stocks

Despite the positive development of individual whale populations, there are also serious challenges, presumably caused by the history of whale hunt. Studies show that the stocks of southern capers, blue whales and Finnwalen in the southern hemisphere could return to half of the original stocks before the industrial whaling by 2100. The main cause of this lies in the dramatic effects of whale hunt in the 20th century. Buckel and dwarf wall populations could reach their starting variable in 2050 at the earliest, explains an analysis of data from the International Walfang Commission (IWC) from the past 122 years, which was led by VIV Tulloch, doctoral student at the University of Queensland. whales.org indicates that the dangers for whale in the north hemisphere are larger than in the south.

The threats include grapping, walks ship collisions and noise pollution. Scientists warn that the recovery of the stocks on the northern hemisphere will take significantly longer, since the whales there are influenced more intensively by human activities. The analyzed database, which comprises over 100,000 illegally hunted whales until the 1970s, illustrates how harmful the whaling for the populations was.

The importance of whale populations for the health of the oceans and climate change is undisputed. Whales play an essential role in the marine ecosystem by fertilizing vegetable plankton, which produces over half of the oxygen in the atmosphere and absorbs CO2. Whales.org authors emphasize the need to stop the commercial whaling and to make the recovery of the whale stocks and the protection of these majestic animals priority.