Project Objective
Improve our understanding of how humpback whales utilise Watamu Marine Protected Area and support whale watching
Land Base Surveys
The migration routes of marine mammals are part of their greatest survival strategy, to breed, to feed or to find a new home. Since 2014 to understand the numbers and behaviour of humpback whales travelling through the Watamu Marine Protected Area teams record the humpback whale migration from a fixed position on an elevated promontory.
Land based surveys corroborate information collected by citizen science reports, and Researcher on Board tourist boats.
From these surveys we can know when and where humpback whales are most frequently seen, group composition, and behaviour. They provide information on arrival and departure of whales during the migration, including the numbers of mothers and calves and of whales during during the austral July and September breeding season. The surveys provide an incentive for whale watchers, as it gives a natural platform non intrusive way to engage and observe the migration and contribute to the citizen science data base. Land based surveys for recording whale migrations are relatively easy to conduct and at little cost are also a good way to engage the public for awareness and citizen science participation. This is the longest consistent whale migration research using this method in East Africa.
