Whales

Apparently New Zealand Has A Resident Population Of Blue Whales

Featured Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons
By: Sarah Sharkey/span>

A recent genetic survey has revealed a unique population among blue whales. The species is normally considered to be migratory in a manner that follows their food around the world seasonally. However, a population of several hundred whales off the coast of New Zealand appears to be permanent residents.

Unlike their counterparts that follow krill to the poles of the Earth on a yearly basis, these whales just stay put in New Zealand’s waters.

The discovery did not happen overnight, it started in 2011. Someone told a researcher at Oregon State University’s Marine Mammal Institute that there was a sighting of nine blue whales together off the coast of New Zealand. The sighting happened during seismic testing. The high number of huge animals lead Leigh Torres, the researcher at OSU, to investigate further.

After digging through old whaling records, she published a paper with the hypothesis that New Zealand could support a permanent population of blue whales. The idea was based on the huge amounts of upwelling that could, in theory, feed the whales.

She continued to accumulate more evidence through field studies, genetic testing and aerial counts. All of that effort culminated in the discovery that these whales are in fact genetically distinct. This kind of information is extremely important when it comes to conservation of these animals in the future.

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Whales

Blue Whale Spotted In The Gulf Of Eilat For First Time Ever

Featured Image Credit: Marcos Schönholz
By: Sarah Sharkey

A 65-foot blue whale was spotted in the Gulf of Eilat for the first time ever according to marine scientists in Israel. The blue whale was identified as a pygmy blue whale and teams have been monitoring its movement since it was sighted early last week.

It is not uncommon for these huge whales to be traveling alone. It is assumed that the whale is just foraging for food. However, it is rather unusual that the whale was spotted in the Gulf of Eilat and later in the Red Sea. The typical pattern for a blue whale is to spend their summers feeding in the nutrient-rich waters of the polar regions, not the relatively warm Indian Ocean.

Blue whales are known to expand their range occasionally for a variety of reasons include climate change, availability of food and others.

Over the past few years, more species of whales have been spotted in the Red Sea area. This is the first blue whale spotting though. It will be interesting to see how many other types of whales will continue to show up in odd places. The pattern of odd movements might be attributed to warming waters, ocean acidification, trash debris or human-induced movement.

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Whales

Huge Gash On Humpback Whale Likely Caused By Boat

Featured Image Credit: CBC News
By: Sarah Sharkey

A humpback whale in Howe Sound appears to be severely injured by a boating accident. There is a huge gash on its back, it is almost directly behind the dorsal fin. As of now, we cannot be sure if the large gash will cause the animal to die. Hopefully, the whale can recover. Only time will tell though.

The whale was first sighted in the area in early April and the collision happened in early May.

Image Credit: RUANA SINGH

In the Howe Sound area, there has been an increase in humpback whales in the area over recent years. Boaters in the area are encouraged to look out for whales when they are out on the water. Not just to protect the whales, but also to protect yourself. Humpback whales are huge animals and if you hit one going to fast, you will likely also be injured. Just last year, a man was paralyzed after a boating incident with a humpback whale.

It is really in everyone’s (marine animals and humans) best interest to use caution while boating. You never know what will happen, so please use your best judgment while you are out on the water. It could just save a whale’s life!

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Whales

Young Killer Whale Calf Spotted In The Salish Sea

Featured Image Credit: Ocean EcoVentures
By Sarah Sharkey

A young orca was recently spotted in the Salish Sea, the waters between Washington and Canada. The calf was spotted and photographed by Ocean EcoVentures in mid-April. The calf is probably less than one month old according to the Pacific Whale Watch Association. The calf is referred to as T065A6 and the newest member of the population. And he is absolutely adorable!

The young orca was videoed swimming alongside his mother and four-year-old brother.

Although this is extremely exciting news, it does not mean that good things are happening for the critically endangered southern resident killer whales that we generally associate with this area. The new calf is a Brigg’s killer whale and a part of the T population, which means his pod is a transient group that does not live in the area permanently.

Image Credit: Chris Wilton, Youtube Screenshot

The southern resident killer whales are still struggling. Their population dropped from 83 in 2016 to 76 in 2017. Slowly, these animals are slipping away. The pressures on their general environment are proving to be very detrimental. The two biggest threats include increasing noise from shipping traffic and a decreasing supply of their staple food. Hopefully, things will turn around soon but for now, it is not looking good for our favorite southern residents.

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Whales

Inbreeding Found In The Southern Resident Whale Population

Featured Image Credit: NOAA
By Sarah Sharkey

A recent study has found that the phenomena of inbreeding is present in the southern resident killer whale population that we all know and love.

Apparently, two males have fathered almost all of the calves. Why did this happen? Just like with some other species, the dominant males have the privilege of mating with females to produce calves. Normally, the genetic pool of a population can handle this kind of mate selection because the baby will be a part of a larger population. In a larger pool of animals with many mothers, fathers and calves the genetic similarities between calves of the same father are usually not a problem.

Image Credit: Simon Pidcock

The southern resident killer whales have a frighteningly small population size, so having too many calves by the same father can result in inbreeding.

The scientists studying this phenomenon are attempting to discover how it will affect the long-term health of the dwindling population. It could mean negative health consequences for future offspring, including reduced reproductive health, lowered immune function and the expression of potentially lethal genes.

Only time will tell how this inbreeding will affect the whales, but hopefully, it will not put too much more stress on this already struggling population of awesome whales.

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Whales

You HAVE To See These Unbelievable Photos Of Whales Off Norway Coast

Featured Image Credit: Fifty Degrees North
By Laura O’Brien

An award-winning photographer named Espen Bergersen captured absolutely stunning photographs of orcas and humpbacks as they migrated. The photographer grew up in Andøya, Norway, where he discovered a collection of orcas and humpbacks not far offshore. He took up photographing the whales after he noticed them, about eight years ago.

Image Credit: Espen Bergersen

Bergersen’s documentation of both species is helping scientists learn more about the animals. Each year, a bounty of herring entice both humpbacks and orcas into the same areas in Northern Norway, from October through January. As the whales feasted together on the unfortunate herrings, Bergersen was able to capture some one-of-a-kind photos of the event.

Image Credit: Espen Bergersen

To see Espen Bergersen’s outstanding collection of photographs, visit https://www.naturgalleriet.no/

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Whales

Scientists Find Out How Minke Whales Hear

Featured Image Credit: Ted Cranford
By Sarah Sharkey

Scientists recently used an unconventional approach to learn more about the internal anatomy of a whale.

When an 11-foot Minke whale calf beached itself and unfortunately died, the scientists decided that they couldn’t let this young whale’s death be in vain. They transported the body to an industrial CT scan machine that is usually reserved for rocket science use only.

Image Credit: Ted Cranford

The scan resulted in a model that allowed scientists to understand how the whale hears the world around them. The technique they used was called as finite element modelling (FEM).

Based on the super computer’s output, Minke whales hear best from overhead sounds, which suggests that the whales possess directional hearing. Additionally, the whales appear to be very sensitive to high frequency sounds which was unexpected. In fact, that sensitivity is the exact opposite of the understanding of how sensitive fin whales are to high frequencies.

The scientists think that this difference may stem from the need to hear killer whales better. Killer whales are the primary predator of Minke whales. It is hoped that this research can help scientists better understand how shipping noises will affect whales. As shipping traffic increases worldwide, information on how it affects whales will help conservationists plan for the future.

Learn more from our source here.

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