The Code Coda expedition was concluded after two weeks at sea.

This expedition, a first on the territory, started on November 18th aboard the Caledonian catamaran Nirvana. On board, free-divers, videographers, scientists and sailors scanned the horizon, looking for unusual ripples or squirts of spray from sperm whales, they swept the outer slope of the Caledonian west coast, between Ténia and Koumac.

According to IRD researcher Claire Guarrigue, they are observed more frequently along the west coast from the months of October to December, outside the lagoon, after the departure of humpback whales.

Are they around New Caledonia all year round? Do they breed in this region off Voh? How many are they? All these questions remain unanswered to this day.

An encounter with a sperm whale can last only a few minutes. The moment the mammals are spotted, the team, led by videographer Chloé Glad has to get into the water and throw the hydrophones to record the songs, the "codas" at the origin of the complex language of sperm whales. In apnea, not to produce bubbles that would scare away marine mammals. At the same time, they have to take pictures and if possible recover fragments of skin, lost in the water following a jump to study the genetics of the mammal.

The behind the scenes of the expedition will be recounted in a documentary produced by Canal +.

Source: https://outremers360.com/bassin-pacifique