Taipei, March 26 (CNA) Four humpback whales were sighted at the coast of Taitung County’s Changbin Township on Tuesday, the highest daily count in recent years, according to the Taitung County government.
In a Wednesday news statement, the southeastern Taiwan county said that after a member of the public on Monday filmed a video of breaching humpback whales, researchers commissioned by the county’s Agriculture Department observed a total of four humpback whales on Tuesday.
The researchers first sighted two humpback whales of similar size breaching several times from the southern beach of Changbin’s Baxian Cave at around 10 a.m.
At around 3:30 p.m. that day, the researchers saw two of the large mammals swimming south from the Jie Bridge service area, about 20 kilometers south of the first site.
In addition to the observations from land, there were three reports of spotting humpback whales that day. After confirming the locations, timings, photos and group formation of the whales, the Agriculture Department determined that there were two small groups of whales in waters off Taiwan’s eastern coast.
The two whales following the two of similar size were a mother with her calf, the department added.
Meanwhile, cetacean expert Yeh Chien-cheng (葉建成) told the press that humpback whales migrate south every year between February and May to mate and nurse their young.
He said that Taiwan’s sighting records have remained at single digits in recent years, and it is still unclear whether the number of humpback whales have increased over the years.
The Taitung Agriculture Department urged members of the public to report sightings of humpback whales, providing incentives such as gift cards and visual guides of marine animals.
The department reminded ships and boats to reduce their speed to under 10 nautical miles per hour and avoid steering toward them when they see humpback whales in front of them.
Whale-watching boats are reminded to observe whale-watching regulations and keep their distance from the animals. When encountering a mother with her young, they are requested to maintain a safe distance of over 100 meters, the department said.
