They were hunted to the brink of extinction, but the humpback whales have been removed from the federal government’s threatened species list because they are no longer at risk of extinction.

The species is making a miraculous comeback with populations of west coast and east coast humpback whales likely rebounding to near pre-whaling levels.

“At the height of the global whaling industry, there were as few as 1500 Humpback whales in Australian waters. Today, that population is believed to be as many as 40,000 individuals and growing,” said federal Environment Minister Sussan Ley.

Ms Ley stressed that protections against hunting would remain in place.

“This is not about removing safeguards for humpbacks, which are still a protected migratory species, but it is a recognition of the success of the outstanding conservation efforts that are in place,” she said.

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Humpback whales are 12 to 16 metres long and weigh up to 30 tonnes. In a normal year, May marks the start of the whale watching season with ships and boats jostling for best viewing positions in search of east Australian humpbacks as they migrate from Antarctica to give birth in the Great Barrier Reef.

Under Australian environment protection laws, there are six categories for threatened species ranging from conservation-dependent to extinct. The decision to remove the humpback whale from the threatened species list follows a public consultation process and detailed assessment by the independent Threatened Species Scientific Committee.

Humpbacks are a rare success story for global conservation. Commercial whaling ceased in 1963 after global populations had been decimated. But the species was afforded global protections from 1965 and is now growing across its ranges.