A Global Compilation of Blue Whale Strandings

ABSTRACT Marine mammal strandings are common occurrences that attract public and scientific interest. Stranding data can provide important information for rarely sighted species, but while regional and national stranding databases do exist in some areas, cross‐database communication and data sharing are limited. Here, we present the first global compilation of blue whale ( Balaenoptera musculus ) strandings based on museum specimens, published research, and unpublished verified sources. The database can be visualized, explored, and downloaded using an interactive Shiny app. Out of 541 reported records, 37 were considered another species, 14 were duplicates, and 11 were non‐stranding events; and only 303 have a high certainty of correct species identification based on key diagnostic features. Among the key findings were an increase in the number of reported strandings over time, especially after 2000; slightly more strandings in autumn than in other seasons; more strandings on the west side of each continent than the east; and the highest strandings in India, the USA, and Sri Lanka, while being almost completely absent from Africa. By length, 18.2% were calves; by sex, females were significantly more common (56.7%) than males. We welcome new additions to the database, which is intended to be a living resource for researchers.

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Publication Details

Journal
Marine Mammal Science
Published
2026-09-24
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1111/mms.70275
Primary Topic
Marine animal studies overview
Type
article
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article

A Global Compilation of Blue Whale Strandings

Rochelle Constantine, Tonya Wimmer, Divya Panicker, Sarah Wilkin et al.
Marine Mammal Science
Marine animal studies overview
article

A Global Compilation of Blue Whale Strandings

Rochelle Constantine, Tonya Wimmer, Divya Panicker, Sarah Wilkin, Koen Van Waerebeek, Bárbara Galletti Vernazzani, Emma L. Carroll, Trevor A. Branch, Robert L. Brownell, Hannah Hendriks, Dipani Sutaria, Kristina Randrup, R. Charles Anderson, Anouk D. Ilangakoon
article en

Abstract

ABSTRACT Marine mammal strandings are common occurrences that attract public and scientific interest. Stranding data can provide important information for rarely sighted species, but while regional and national stranding databases do exist in some areas, cross‐database communication and data sharing are limited. Here, we present the first global compilation of blue whale ( Balaenoptera musculus ) strandings based on museum specimens, published research, and unpublished verified sources. The database can be visualized, explored, and downloaded using an interactive Shiny app. Out of 541 reported records, 37 were considered another species, 14 were duplicates, and 11 were non‐stranding events; and only 303 have a high certainty of correct species identification based on key diagnostic features. Among the key findings were an increase in the number of reported strandings over time, especially after 2000; slightly more strandings in autumn than in other seasons; more strandings on the west side of each continent than the east; and the highest strandings in India, the USA, and Sri Lanka, while being almost completely absent from Africa. By length, 18.2% were calves; by sex, females were significantly more common (56.7%) than males. We welcome new additions to the database, which is intended to be a living resource for researchers.

Marine Mammal ScienceVol. 42(4)
NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service (US), International Union for Conservation of Nature (Bangladesh) (BD), University of Auckland (NZ), University of Washington (US), Ashoka University (IN), Maldives National University (MV), Centro Científico Tecnológico de Valparaíso (CL), NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service Southwest Fisheries Science Center (US), Marine Research Centre (MV), National Cancer Institute of Sri Lanka (LK), Centro Peruano de Estudios Sociales (PE), Dakshin Foundation (IN), James Cook University (AU)
Life below water
Openalex Percentile: Top 11%
Marine animal studies overview
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