A female xibarta breaks the migration record

2011/01/01 Elhuyar Zientzia Iturria: Elhuyar aldizkaria

• Zoologia

With 9,800 kilometers of travel from Brazil to Madagascar, a vibarta whale has broken all known mammal migration records to date.

Researchers from the Antarctic Humpback Whale Catalogue saw the whale for the first time in 1999 on a lot of cliffs off the Brazilian coast. They managed to take a picture of their unique and characteristic white and black spot on the caudal fin, which was called AHWC#1363. Two years later, thanks to the photograph of a tourist, the researchers found again the precious one in another ugaltar of eastern Madagascar.

The Xibarta whales perform the longest migrations of mammals, but the longest route previously known was about 400 kilometers less. On the other hand, the trip of the female whale has also surprised for other reasons. On the one hand, usually migrations between latitudes (from north to south and vice versa), and in this case migration between lengths (of 90 degrees). On the other hand, this type of long migrations are carried out by male, not female whales. They do not know what the reason may be: "It is possible that Xibart migrations are more flexible than expected or simply that the female whales are disoriented."