Photo:
Hestia´s tracking route
January 2, 2024
Hestia’s short duration transmitter stopped transmitting after 37 days, on December 8th. Hestia’s last recorded position showed she continued feeding over the mid-continental shelf, south of the coast of Buenos Aires province, between Bahía San Blas to the south and Bahía Blanca to the north. In the period recorded, mother and calf did not reach the deep waters further from the continental slope, but they traveled 3,400 kilometers (2,113 miles), and explored the three north Patagonian gulfs.
December 5, 2023
Hestia remained in Golfo Nuevo for only a few hours after being tagged on November 1. The next day she and her calf began an unusual route to the feeding grounds, following the external coast of Peninsula Valdés northwards. They then crossed the Golfo San Matías to the bay of San Antonio, on the coast of Rio Negro. From there they traveled south, entering the Golfo San José where they remained for 5 days. Later, once again over the continental shelf, mother and calf traveled northeast over mid-shelf to the latitude of the city of Bahía Blanca on the coast of Buenos Aires province, where they have remained.