Are Whales Returning to Namibia? What 60 Years Show

Somewhere off the Namibian coast, a crew member on a survey ship sees a tall blow and writes it down. Multiply that moment by six decades and you get a story. Are blue and fin whales returning? The records say sightings are rising. A 2026 study looked at more than 60 years of confirmed sightings and strandings, and the researchers describe a recent increase in blue and fin whale records.

That is encouraging. But it is a record of sightings. It is not a full census of every whale in the South East Atlantic.

What the long record says

The study was published in the African Journal of Marine Science. It brings together observations from Namibia and the west coast of South Africa. Most records were made in recent years, especially after 2012.

The researchers add an important caveat. Part of the increase could come from more observers and better reporting, including records from people working on offshore survey vessels. More sightings can mean more whales, more eyes, or both.

Why it still matters

Blue and fin whales were hit very hard by commercial whaling. A growing record, decades after protection, means something. It suggests these species may be using parts of their old range again.

But “returning” is not the same as “fully recovered”. Whales live long and have young slowly. A regional rise in sightings cannot tell us how close populations are to their numbers before whaling.

A busy, productive coast

The Benguela coast is a rich ocean system and important habitat. It also overlaps with shipping, fishing and offshore industry. Monitoring needs to keep pace with those pressures.

What would make the evidence stronger?

Repeated surveys with the same effort each time help scientists compare one year with another. Photo-identification, acoustic monitoring, strandings records and sighting reports each give a different view.

For visitors, the headline is hopeful but not a guarantee. A whale can be in regional waters and still go unseen from the shore or from a boat. Wildlife encounters are unpredictable. Whale watching should always follow local regulations and experienced professional guidance.

A returning giant is a reason to keep looking carefully, not to declare the recovery finished.

Questions people ask

Wildlife encounters are never guaranteed and never forced. Ocean Calling works only with vetted, ethical local operators, and every animal is free to approach, or not, entirely on its own terms.