Noise from ships boosts stress in whales, 9/11 reveals
The steady drone of ship motors not only alters whale behavior but can also affect the giant sea mammals physically by causing chronic stress. The findings were made possible by an event that seems far removed from the plight of cetaceans: the attacks on New York’s Twin Towers on September 11, 2001. Only a catastrophe of that magnitude could have caused maritime traffic to suddenly drop off, making it possible to measure the impact of varying levels of sound pollution in the sea.
An aerial view of a bubble net created by feeding humpback whales off Cape Fanshaw, Alaska.
Humpback Whale Skeleton on Display in The Museum of Osteology, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
Humpback Whale (Megaptera novaeangliae), two blowholes clearly visible, St. Mary’s Ecological Reserve, Newfoundland and Labrador
balaenoptera physalus
//facts about whales// ·
one day as I was sitting on the couch thinking deep important thoughts about life and death and love I suddenly remembered how freaking awesome whales are. so here is a blog dedicated to everything whale-ish.
