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ESR 22:33-38 (2013)  -  DOI: https://doi.org/10.3354/esr00536

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Evidence of spatial structuring of eastern South Pacific humpback whale feeding grounds

J. Acevedo1,*, D. Haro2, L. Dalla Rosa3, A. Aguayo-Lobo4, R. Hucke-Gaete2,5, E. Secchi3, J. Plana6, L. A. Pastene7

1Centro de Estudios del Cuaternario de Fuego-Patagonia y Antártica (Fundación CEQUA), 21 de Mayo 1690, Casilla 727, Punta Arenas, Chile
2Centro Ballena Azul (CBA), c/o ICML, UACh, Casilla 567, Valdivia, Chile
3Instituto de Oceanografia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande - FURG, Río Grande, RS 96201-900, Brasil
4Instituto Antártico Chileno (INACH), Departamento Científico, Plaza Muñoz Gamero 1055, Punta Arenas, Chile
5Instituto de Ciencias Marinas y Limnológicas, Universidad Austral de Chile, Casilla 567, Valdivia, Chile
6Ramón Menéndez Pidal 0294, Punta Arenas, Chile
7Institute of Cetacean Research, Toyomi 4-5, Chuo-ku, Tokyo 104-0055, Japan

ABSTRACT: The eastern South Pacific humpback whale population winters primarily off Colombia and Ecuador, extending northward to the coasts of Panama and Costa Rica. It migrates south to the Fueguian Archipelago and Antarctic Peninsula waters for feeding during the austral summer. In recent years, however, humpback whales have also been observed feeding in the Corcovado Gulf, in the northern Chilean Patagonian channels, during the austral summer and fall. We examine photographically identified humpback whales in order to determine interchange or isolation of these aggregations. The apparent absence of movements of identified humpback whales among the 3 summering areas, and the differences in the proportion of white/black coloration on the fluke, suggest that each locality corresponds to a discrete feeding area for eastern South Pacific humpback whales.


KEY WORDS: Humpback whale · Eastern South Pacific · Corcovado Gulf · Fueguian Archipelago · Southern Ocean · Feeding ground


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Cite this article as: Acevedo J, Haro D, Dalla Rosa L, Aguayo-Lobo A and others (2013) Evidence of spatial structuring of eastern South Pacific humpback whale feeding grounds. Endang Species Res 22:33-38. https://doi.org/10.3354/esr00536

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