Rare humpback whales have a secret life in the Arabian Sea

Rare humpback whales are showing a “secret life” in the Arabian Sea that challenges long-held assumptions about whale migration. Off Oman, a resident population of Arabian Sea humpbacks remains in the region year-round, with only about 82 individuals estimated and the group listed as endangered. Researchers using satellite tags mapped where the whales travel and how deep they dive, attaching 14 tags between 2014 and 2017 for a total of 749 tracking days and more than 1,800 location returns. The whales largely stayed within a restricted coastal home range along the western Arabian Sea, from northern Yemen to southern Oman, a band only a few hundred miles wide. The team says monsoon-driven upwelling creates rich feeding conditions, allowing the whales to feed, mate and raise calves without migrating. The Gulf of Masirah emerged as the core habitat with 57% of tracked locations, followed by Hallaniyat Bay with 18%.