Thermal cameras may help NZ’s rarest whale

A trial of infrared cameras has shown they may be useful in helping Auckland’s rare Bryde’s Whales avoid collisions with ships in the Hauraki Gulf.

An estimated 49 of the animals, which are related to blue and humpbacked whale, live year-round in the Gulf – with around 160 others visiting at different times – and all are vulnerable to being struck by shipping traffic using Auckland’s busy port. Every year around two whales are killed when struck by commercial vessels, and because the bus-sized creatures are slow breeding and slow to mature the current death rate may be too much for the population to bear.

However, the thermal camera trial – which was supported by Ports of Auckland – has demonstrated that the whales can be spotted both at night and during the day, raising the possibility of a detection system that could alert ships to their location and allow them to manoeuvre around them.

Another approach to saving the whales – forcing ships to move through the Gulf more slowly – would likely reduce ship-strike mortality by around 80 per cent, say scientists – but is unattractive to the port authority as it imposes a greater cost on shipping companies, making the port less competitive with rival ports such as Tauranga.

Read more about Bryde’s whales here.

Watch the thermal camera footage here.