Cetacean observations in the Indian Ocean Sanctuary and the South China Sea, Mauritius to the Philippines, April 1999

Original provider: Marijke de Boer Dataset credits: Marijke de Boer Abstract: Information on cetaceans in the Indian Ocean Sanctuary and the South China Sea is summarized from a cruise carried out from 29 March to 17 April 1999. Ten species were positively identified: finless porpoise, pantropical spotted dolphin, spinner dolphin, sperm whale, melon-headed whale, pygmy killer whale, false killer whale, Cuvier’s beaked whale, Bryde’s whale and fin whale. Spotted dolphins, melon-headed and pygmy killer whales were sighted around the Island of Borneo and sightings of fin whales and a sperm whale west of the Balabac Strait suggest a possible migration route of these species between the South China Sea and the Sulu Sea. This is the first record of fin whales in the South China Sea.

Citation: de Boer, M. 2011. Cetacean observations in the Indian Ocean Sanctuary and the South China Sea, Mauritius to the Philippines, April 1999. Version 1.0.0. Dataset published in OBIS-SEAMAP. https://doi.org/10.82144/d3d64634.

Published: October 07, 2025 at 23:04

URL: http://ipt.env.duke.edu/resource?r=zd_713