Humpback whales have returned from the brink of extinction

Mathias Sundin
Mathias Sundin

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🐳 Humpback whales in the Southwest Atlantic almost became extinct, but the numbers are now almost back to where they started a hundred years ago.

🐋 It was estimated that some 27,000 humpbacks frequented the southwest Atlantic at the start of the 20th century, but due to intensive commercial whaling, those numbers dwindled to just a few hundred within 30 years’ time.

🛑 Thanks to a full-scale moratorium in the 1960s and other conservation efforts the decline stopped.

📈 In 2019 there are now about 25 000 humpback whales in the Southwest Atlantic.

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