Overview
- The RorquGAL B&B 2025 survey ran in late August and early September from the catamaran Chocolate, completing eight offshore sorties to the edge of the continental shelf.
- Researchers recorded 63 rorquals and used aerial images to photo‑identify 35 individuals for comparison with regional catalogs.
- Drones collected blow microbiome samples from 14 whales and biometric data, while tissue and water were taken for genetic, isotopic, and environmental DNA analyses.
- Early autumn storms complicated fieldwork, yet the total number of whales detected remained high compared with prior years.
- The work forms part of Spain’s ESMARES 3 marine monitoring program, financed by the environment ministry and co‑funded by the EU’s FEMPA, and included sightings of minkes, pilot whales, common dolphins, bottlenose dolphins, and porpoises.