Migration is one of the most fascinating phenomena that occurs on Earth. Each year, thousands of species across the animal kingdom journey from one place to another and back again. It can be in search of food, mating partners, or different climates. But it’s all guided by an innate sense of direction and seasonality.
This map from John Nelson at Esri examines the migrations of one such animal: the northern Pacific blue whale. It relies on thousands of time-based observations from Movebank to track their seasonal migrations.
Whale locations show up as light blue circles over a striking cerulean basemap with bathymetric data. The map tilts along a diagonal to focus attention on the oceans where the whales range. An inset map helps to emphasize this perspective while providing context for where we’re at on Earth.
Larger white circles show the average position of blue whales in a given month. While these average points condense the overall range, you can detect a clear seasonality to their migration.
Blue whales range south in the winter and spring (the numbered points refer to months in the year) and north in the fall. And most of the locations are relatively near to coasts. There are even hundreds of observations in the Gulf of California, between Baja California and mainland Mexico. Their range extends from Nicaragua in the south to Canada in the north, and deep into the Pacific Ocean to the west.
Even without animation, this map excels at communicating the range and seasonality of blue whale migration. It shows how thoughtful design, and some clever spatial thinking, can tell stories and reveal insights.
More to Explore
- Learn more about how this map was made.
- Dive into an animated version of this map.
- Watch how to make your own animated maps from data like this.
- Discover why and how animals migrate.
