2 humpback whales swam record-breaking distance, photos reveal
Two humpback whales have set records for the longest distances traveled by their species, swimming over 14,000 kilometers between Brazil and Australia. Researchers used thousands of photographs to track their journeys, revealing the significance of these rare movements for genetic diversity. The study highlights the impact of climate change on whale migration patterns and the importance of citizen science in marine research.
- ▪The two humpback whales swam between eastern Australia and Brazil, covering distances of 8,823 miles and 9,383 miles respectively.
- ▪The research utilized nearly 20,000 photographs collected over several decades to identify the whales.
- ▪These long journeys are rare and may help maintain genetic diversity among whale populations.
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World 2 humpback whales swam record-breaking distance between breeding grounds, photos reveal May 20, 2026 / 10:14 AM EDT / CBS/AFP Add CBS News on Google A pair of humpback whales swam between the eastern shores of Australia and breeding grounds in Brazil, research published on Wednesday found. The distances of the journeys are the greatest ever recorded.The work by a team of international scientists used tens of thousands of images taken of whale tales to identify the two vast sea-dwelling mammals and reveal they had popped up on both sides of the world.One was spotted in Queensland in 2007 and then appeared near Sao Paulo, Brazil, in 2019 — a distance across oceans of about 8,823 miles.Another was seen off the coast of Bahia in Brazil before being sighted 22 years later in Hervey Bay,…
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