09 July 2026: Early results as the 2026 MINTAG field season gets underway
The 2026 MINTAG field season is now one month underway, and while deployment opportunities have been more limited than hoped so far, the project is already beginning to collect valuable data from tagged whales.
MINTAG is an international scientific collaboration between partners in the Faroe Islands, Greenland, Iceland, Japan, and Norway. The project focuses on developing and deploying small satellite tags capable of tracking fast-swimming whale species such as fin whales, minke whales, pilot whales, and sei whales. By following these animals across in the North Atlantic and North Pacific, researchers aim to improve our understanding of their movements, winter distributions, habitat use, and responses to environmental change.
Fieldwork around large whales is always challenging and highly dependent on weather, sea conditions, whale presence, and operational logistics. As a result, successful tag deployments can never be taken for granted. Despite these challenges, one of this season’s deployments is already providing encouraging results.
A sei whale tagged in the North Pacific has been transmitting locations for the past month, providing researchers with a continuous stream of movement data. Every day of successful transmissions adds to our understanding of a species that remains relatively difficult to study across its vast oceanic range.
Meanwhile, three MINTAG teams are currently operating in the North Atlantic, where they continue their efforts to deploy tags on minke whales, fin whales, and pilot whales. Although the season has not yet produced the number of deployments the MINTAG Steering Group had hoped for, opportunities remain ahead, and field teams are working hard to make the most of the remaining season.
The MINTAG Steering Group, together with partners at Wildlife Computers and O3ST, has spent the past year preparing for what is intended to be the largest deployment effort in the project’s history. As additional teams continue their work over the coming weeks, researchers remain optimistic that more tags will be deployed and that new whale tracks will soon begin appearing on the map.
The field season is far from over. Follow the movements of tagged whales and stay updated on the latest deployments here: https://mintag-project.com/follow-the-whales/
Photo: MINTAG deployed on a pilot whale in 2025 (by M. Biuw)