Biologists in recent months have discovered that the Southern right whale, which previously had been sighted only in Argentine waters, is venturing into the Magellan Strait off Punta Arenas in Chile's Region XII.

Researchers in the area recorded the 20 whales in the eastern mouth of the Magellan Strait - a significant amount considering only two or three are spotted off the coast of Central Chile each year. Until now, the Magellan Strait had been solely populated by the humpback whale, especially in the area surrounding Carlos III Island in the Francisco Coloane Aquatic Reserve, located 200 kilometres south-east of Punta Arenas. Southern right whales are one of the easier cetaceans to study as they rarely dive more than 12 metres under the ocean surface and come close into shore.

However, although the reappearance of these whales in the Magellan Strait could be a sign that their population is recuperating, they are still considered an endangered species. In 2008, only 19,000 whales were reported in the Southern Hemisphere with an estimated 100 still existing between Chile's southern waters and Peru.