Researchers on a vessel in Alaskan waters studying Humpback whales confirmed the presence of Blue Whales in the region for the first time in 30 years. After being hunted nearly to extinction, they have begun to repopulate Alaskan waters.
"We are thrilled," Dr. Jay Barlow, chief scientist on board the McArthur II for a 120-day research cruise, said Friday from Kodiak.
"It's been 30 years since we had a confirmed sighting up here. There have been many marine mammal surveys in Alaska by ship and aircraft, and countless years of small boat research on humpback whales in Alaska, and yet, these are the first fully documented sightings of blue whales here in the past three decades," Barlow said.
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