Megaptera Novaeangliae

Arias-Gaviria, D.,  Muñoz-Vargas, C.A. & I.C. Avila. 2011. Tourist Guide of Whalewatching in Colombia. Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Tourism, Vice Ministry of Tourism, Directorate of Quality and Sustainable Development of Tourism of Colombia. Bogotá, Colombia. 61p. (Español & English).
Available online http://www.guiadeballenas.com/english/
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Flórez-González, L., I.C. Avila, J. Capella, P. Falk, F. Félix, J. Gibbons, H. Guzmán, B. Haase, J. Herrera, V. Peña, L. Santillán, I.C. Tobón & K. Van Waerebeek. 2007. The Conservation Strategy of the Southeastern Pacific humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae). Fundación Yubarta (Ed.). Cali. Colombia. 106p. ISBN 978-958-96199-3-2.

Estrategia para la conservación de la ballena jorobada del Pacífico Sudeste. Lineamientos para un plan de acción regional e iniciativas nacionales.

A large complete wall of the whale barnacle Coronula diadema (Linnaeus, 1767) occurring in early Pleistocene (Calabrian) mudstones near Riparbella (Tuscany, Italy) is described. Sedimentary facies analysis indicates that these deposits represent an open shelf setting, similar to many of those reported for whale fossils to date. The extant and fossil record of C. diadema and other species belonging to the genus and family are revised herein. The study confirms a global distribution for C. diadema and dates its presence in the Mediterranean from the early Pleistocene (Calabrian). A global distribution is attributed to the only other well-known fossil coronulid, Coronula bifida Bronn, 1831, which is common within the Pliocene record of the Mediterranean, and is documented in the Pliocene of the Pacific domain and in the earliest Pleistocene of the Atlantic [as C. barbara (Darwin, 1854)]. No overlap of stratigraphic ranges has been noted: C. bifida occurs in the Piacenzian-Gelasian and C. diadema is recorded from the Calabrian to the present. It is therefore suggested herein that C. diadema is a direct descendant of C. bifida and that the evolution of the former included a pronounced increase in size of the adult shell. The fossil record of large whales supports this hypothesis, which is further reinforced by the global character of its hosts such as the ocean-going humpback, blue, fin, and sperm whales. The general high host specificity of whale barnacles, which today include Cetopirus complanatus (Mörch, 1853) of the same family, can be extended back to the Pliocene. Considering these aspects, a coevolutionary trend towards an increase in size linking oceanic whales with coronulids is proposed.

The information about cetacean occurrence around the Island of South Georgia is scarce. With the main goal of gathering information on a feeding ground of humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) that winter in Brazilian waters, we conducted an expedition to South Georgia. We present here the information regarding cetacean sightings during the expedition. From 28 January to 2 March, 2006 we carried out 13 research cruises, covering 700 nautical miles and 110 h of observation. We registered 10 sightings, in 7 h of ad libitum observations, of the following species: Megaptera novaeangliae, Eubalaena australis, Balaenoptera physalus, Mesoplodon layardii, Orcinus orca and Lagenorhynchus cruciger. We present data on location, depth, group size, structure, and behavior for this geographical area of essential importance for cetacean conservation.

The amount of published data about cetaceans recorded on coastal waters of northern Chile is limited. Here we compiled 35 sightings of seven cetacean species obtained from 150 km2 waters around Isla Chañaral (29°01'S - 71°37' O), Humboldt Penguin National Reserve (HPNR), between 1988 and 1995. We sighted Ba/aenoptera physalus, B. acutorostrata, Megaptera novaeangliae, Orcinus orca, Tursiops truncatus, Globicephala meas

Nineteen species of cetaceans (families Balaenopteridae, Kogiidae, Physeteridae, Ziphiidae and Delphinidae) occur in the Costa Rican Pacific Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). Based on data recorded from the EEZ by the Southwest Fisheries Service Center, Cascadia Research Collective, and CIMAR between 1979-2001, we mapped the distribution of 18 cetacean species. Our results suggest that the majority of the cetacean species use primarily oceanic waters, particularly those species within the families Balaenopteridae, Kogiidae. Physeteridae and Ziphiidae. Members of the family Delphinidae showed a wide variety of distribution patterns: seven species are widespread throughout the EEZ, four appear to be exclusively pelagic, and two are primarily coastal. Overall, three cetacean species appear to have populations concentrated in coastal waters: Stenella attenuata graffmani. Tursiops truncatus, and Megaptera novaeangliae. These three may be more susceptible to human activities due to the overl...

The coastal waters of the southwest Indian Ocean (including Mozambique, Tanzania, Kenya, the Seychelles, Comoros, Mayotte, Madagascar and the Mascarenes and their EEZ) countries are characterized by a high marine biodiversity. This paper review information on the diversity, distribution and conservation issues to cetaceans in this region. To date, up to 33 species of cetaceans have been recorded in the southwest Indian Ocean: 16 delphinids (Stenella longirostris, Stenella attenuata, Stenella coeruleoalba, Delphinus spp., Steno bredanensis, Grampus griseus, Sousa chinensis, Tursiops truncatus, Tursiops aduncus, Globicephala melas, Globicephala macrorhynchus, Pseudorca crassidens, Orcinus orca, Lagenodelphis hosei, Feresa attenuata, Peponocephala electra), 8 large toothed whales (Physeter macrocephalus, Kogia sima, Kogia breviceps, Mesoplodon pacificus, Mesoplodon densirostris, Mesoplodon mirus, Ziphius cavirostris, Mesoplodon gingkodens) and 7 baleen whales (Megaptera novaeangliae, B...

The coastal waters of the southwest Indian Ocean (including Mozambique, Tanzania, Kenya, the Seychelles, Comoros, Mayotte, Madagascar and the Mascarenes and their EEZ) countries are characterized by a high marine biodiversity. This paper review information on the diversity, distribution and conservation issues to cetaceans in this region. To date, up to 33 species of cetaceans have been recorded in the southwest Indian Ocean: 16 delphinids (Stenella longirostris, Stenella attenuata, Stenella coeruleoalba, Delphinus spp., Steno bredanensis, Grampus griseus, Sousa chinensis, Tursiops truncatus, Tursiops aduncus, Globicephala melas, Globicephala macrorhynchus, Pseudorca crassidens, Orcinus orca, Lagenodelphis hosei, Feresa attenuata, Peponocephala electra), 8 large toothed whales (Physeter macrocephalus, Kogia sima, Kogia breviceps, Mesoplodon pacificus, Mesoplodon densirostris, Mesoplodon mirus, Ziphius cavirostris, Mesoplodon gingkodens) and 7 baleen whales (Megaptera novaeangliae, B...