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A study of the Southern Ocean found that whales not only recycled iron concentrations vital for phytoplankton, but also formed, along with krill, a major source of sequestered iron in the ocean, up to 24% of the iron held in the surface waters of Southern Ocean. Whales formed part of a positive feedback loop and if whale populations are allowed ...
The killer whales regularly demonstrate their competence by chasing seals up shelving gravel beaches, up to the edge of the water. The pursuing whales are occasionally partially thrust out of the sea by a combination of their own impetus and retreating water, and have to wait for the next wave to re-float them and carry them back to sea. [12]
Humpback whale breach sequence. A breach or a lunge is a leap out of the water, also known as cresting. The distinction between the two is fairly arbitrary: cetacean researcher Hal Whitehead defines a breach as any leap in which at least 40% of the animal's body clears the water, and a lunge as a leap with less than 40% clearance. [2]
According to federal data, more than 30 whales have been found washed up along the eastern shore since Dec. 1, with over a dozen of them off the coast of New York and New Jersey. To get a sense of ...
The whales eat amphipod crustaceans like tiny shrimp and worms, which they consume by sucking up water and sediment from the seafloor, where such creatures live, then using their baleens to filter ...
Killer whales play an important role in our ocean's ecosystem. Female orcas can live up to 90 years, and male orcas live up to 60 years. Whales can communicate through sounds ranging from clicks ...
Whales defecate at the ocean's surface; their excrement is important for fisheries because it is rich in iron and nitrogen. The whale feces are liquid and instead of sinking, they stay at the surface where phytoplankton feed off it. [90] [91] Upon death, whale carcasses fall to the deep ocean and provide a substantial habitat for marine life.
The ocean is one of the planet’s great carbon sinks, absorbing nearly a third of the atmosphere’s greenhouse gas emissions. Swimming in its depths are the great whales, a population whose ...