Photo: Audun Narvestad, Norwegian Polar Institute.
The summer abundance of minke whales in the Barents Sea has recently increased from a stable level of about 40,000 animals to more than 70,000 animals. Also, humpback whales have increased their summer abundance in the Barents Sea from a low level prior to year 2000 to about 4,000 animals thereafter. The other cetacean populations have remained stable in numbers. In 2019, 2686 individuals of ten species of marine mammals were sighted during the Barents Sea Ecosystem Survey (BESS) in August-October 2019, as well as an additional 64 individuals which were not identified to species. The baleen whales had a more aggregated and southerly distribution than in previous years with main occurrence in the Bear Island area and west and north of Hopen, and south of 78°N. This may have been caused by the reduced capelin abundance.