Southern right whale movements, dive behaviour and threat exposure in southern Australia (NESP MaC 3.15)

Updated: 2026-08-18

Southern right whales (Eubalaena australis) in Australia are endangered following severe depletion by commercial whaling. Australian southern right whales comprise two partially differentiated populations, a smaller eastern population and a larger western population. Encounter Bay (SA) lies near the geographic boundary between these populations and is a re-emerging calving and aggregation area. However, the population identity of whales using Encounter Bay, their subsequent coastal and offshore movements, and their exposure to anthropogenic threats is poorly understood. Four southern right whales were satellite tagged in Encounter Bay in June 2024 to investigate migratory movements, connectivity, behaviour and exposure to anthropogenic and environmental threats. The data are provided as (1) raw tracking data containing Argos satellite-tag locations; and (2) locations predicted at six-hour intervals using a state-space model, together with dive metrics summarised for the three hours before and after each modelled location. Spatial risk-exposure data are provided as rasters representing exposure of the tagged whales to climate change, entanglement, chronic underwater noise, pollution and ship strike, together with cumulative exposure across these threats. Exposure was derived by combining spatial patterns of whale occurrence with normalised threat intensity and is expressed from 0 (no exposure) to 1 (maximum exposure). Together, these data describe the coastal and offshore movements of southern right whales, and their spatial exposure to anthropogenic and environmental threats across southern Australian waters. ***EMBARGO NOTE*** This data is embargoed until June 2027. Please contact the MaC Hub Data Manager (Emma.Flukes@utas.edu.au) for access enquiries prior to this date.