First, how often do whales feed? Second, how big is each of their gulps of prey? And third, how much food is in each of those gulps? To gather these data, the team suction-cupped sensors to the backs of 321 whales. He notes that this was “a chance to answer a really basic biological question about some of the most charismatic animals on Earth.” New technology allowed Savoca and his colleagues to get a more precise estimate of what whales eat. Part of Stanford University, it’s in Pacific Grove, Calif. But, he adds, “none were conducted on live whales in the wild.” Savoca is a marine biologist at Hopkins Marine Station. “These studies were educated guesses,” says Matthew Savoca. Or researchers estimated how much energy whales should need based on their size. In the past, scientists have relied on assessing what these behemoths eat by dissecting the stomachs of dead whales. They gulp down hordes of centimeter-long invertebrates that live far below the surface of the ocean. Some of these animals are around the size of Boeing 737 jets. This study will “allow us to better understand how the widespread depletion of whales has impacted ocean ecosystems.” How much whales eat had not been well known, he says. He works at the University of Vermont in Burlington. This marine ecologist wasn’t involved in the new study. “It’s hard to know what role whales play in ecosystems without knowing how much they’re eating,” says Joe Roman.
Restoring whale populations, the researchers say, could help these ecosystems recover. The team shared its findings in the November 4 Nature. That hurts other species, including krill. So with fewer whales, ecosystems get less iron and other crucial nutrients that they need to thrive. Apparently, baleen whales eat about three times as much food as we thought. With fewer of these crustaceans, many other krill predators have gone hungry, such as seabirds and fish.Ī new study looked at the eating habits of baleen whales (those that use long keratin plates of baleen to help snag prey). Krill numbers in Antarctic waters with lots of whale hunting have dropped by more than 80 percent. New research suggests whale poop, or a lack of it, may explain this. Some scientists thought this would cause krill - the tiny crustaceans that many whales gulp down - to explode in number. With the help of modern technology, people have killed up to 99 percent of certain species. Got a hot tip about a well-researched story that belongs on this list? Email us here.Whale hunting has plundered the seas of giant whales for much of the last century. Some may even help us get through the day without a mid-afternoon nap. How much energy do you have? And what does that even mean? From mitochondria to mesmerism, people have a lot of ideas about what it means to be energetic. How not to be a low-energy person ( The New Yorker) Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland describes how her work is influenced by the nation’s-and her own family’s-past. And it’s spewing from oil and gas fields around the world.ĭeb Haaland’s history lessons ( ) But methane is in some ways an equal threat to life as we know it. We all know that cutting carbon dioxide pollution is key to slowing climate change. But they might become something more interesting-or many interesting things. If humans suddenly disappeared from the face of the Earth, what would happen to our dogs? They wouldn’t go back to being wolves. Some scientists say they have one weird trick for both species thrive again. In fact, as whale populations have dropped, krill as a species have suffered greatly. But they also nurture the tiny creatures with the power of their enormous droppings. Baleen whales can eat unbelievable quantities of krill.
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