Main Ref. | Jefferson, T.A., S. Leatherwood and M.A. Webber, 1993 |
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Remarks | Feeds and breeds in coastal waters, often near human population centres, and this helps make them one of the most familiar of the large whales. They migrate from tropics (breeding areas) to polar or sub-polar regions, reaching the ice edges in both hemispheres (feeding areas); their migrations take them through oceanic zones (Ref. 1394). They pefer warm shallow waters to breed, usually near offshore reefs, islands, or continental shores. Feeding grounds are characterized by cold, productive, shallow waters (Ref. 122680). Feeds on krill and small schooling fish (Ref. 1394). According to a study in the Philippines, Babuyan Islands (121°36’00", 19°18’00) was verified as a breeding ground for this species, and humpback whale songs were recorded during this season. Social groups observed were lone adult, mother-calf pairs, two adults, mother-calf-escort, and a surface active mating group of 3 to 4 individuals (Ref. 77119). |
Marine - Neritic | Marine - Oceanic | Brackishwater | Freshwater | |
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Marine zones / Brackish and freshwater bodies |
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Substrate | Pelagic; |
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Substrate Ref. | |
Special habitats | |
Special habitats Ref. |
Ref. | Jefferson, T.A., S. Leatherwood and M.A. Webber, 1993 |
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Associations | schooling; |
Associated with | |
Association remarks | |
Parasitism |
Feeding type | mainly animals (troph. 2.8 and up) |
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Feeding type Ref. | Jefferson, T.A., S. Leatherwood and M.A. Webber, 1993 |
Feeding habit | hunting macrofauna (predator) |
Feeding habit Ref. | Jefferson, T.A., S. Leatherwood and M.A. Webber, 1993 |
Estimation method | original sample | unfished population | Remark | ||
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Troph | s.e. | Troph | s.e. | ||
From diet composition | 3.60 | ||||
From individual food items | 4.19 | 0.75 | Trophic level estimated from a number of food items using a randomized resampling routine. | ||
Ref. | Pauly, D., A.W. Trites, E. Capuli and V. Christensen, 1998 |