By KAZUAKI KANDA
February 19, 2023 at 18:42 JST
AMAMI, Kagoshima Prefecture—An extremely rare video has emerged of a humpback whale before and after it gave birth to a calf in waters close to Amami-Oshima island.
The video, recorded by a local group of researchers and tourism officials, will likely provide precious clues about the ecology of the mammal, according to experts.
Humpback whales migrate to subtropical areas through waters close to islands in Okinawa Prefecture and the Amami isle chain in the south of Kagoshima Prefecture from winter to early spring.
The Amami whale and dolphin association said its divers on the morning of Feb. 16 filmed a female whale swimming with what they believed was a tail fin of a calf exposed from her genital groove.
In the afternoon that day, the same mother whale, identified from the shape of her tail fin, and a calf were seen swimming together, the association said.
The mother whale was about 12 meters long.
A small amount of blood and part of an umbilical cord were confirmed at her genital groove, indicating that she gave birth after she was first spotted in the morning, the association said.
The slender calf was about 3.5 meters long. Its body was wrinkly, typical for newly born calves, according to the association.
Katsuki Oki, chairman of the association, said this is likely the first such video of humpback giving birth during the daytime in Japan.
“We want to protect the environment where whales can raise their children safely,” he said.
(Kazuaki Kanda is a stringer for The Asahi Shimbun based in Amami-Oshima island.)
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A humpback whale swims with her calf in waters off Amami-Oshima island in Kagoshima Prefecture at 3:05 p.m. on Feb. 16. (Provided by Katsuki Oki)
