US EditionBlue Whales Go Silent Off California Coast, Sparks Alarm Among Scientists
CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES, AUG 06 – The decline in blue whale songs is linked to toxic algae blooms caused by marine heatwaves that have killed krill populations, reducing whale vocalizations by nearly 40%, researchers say.
- In recent years, researchers from the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute found blue whale vocalizations have dropped by nearly 40% over six years.
- Amid rising ocean temperatures, the 2013 Blob marine heatwave triggered toxic algae blooms that decimated krill and anchovies, researchers said.
- Researchers noted `When you really break it down, it’s like trying to sing while you're starving`, as whales focus on feeding rather than vocalizing.
- With urgency, Dawn Barlow, ecologist at Oregon State University's Marine Mammal Institute, said fewer feeding opportunities mean blue whales put less effort into reproduction, emphasizing the need to listen now.
- Researchers warned such silence could alter ocean ecosystems and impair carbon absorption, serving as a warning of climate-driven changes to the environment.
12 Articles
12 Articles
ThePatriotLight - Blue whales going silent off coast of California alarming scientists with greater ecosystem danger
ThePatriotLight - Sounding the alarm. The sound of the blue whale’s singing has decreased off the coast of California, frightening scientists who believe it is an indication of greater ecosystem danger. Scientists tracked the auditory songs of three whale species – blue, fin and humpback – in the North Pacific Ocean in the California Current Ecosystem (CCE) over six years. A blue whale surfaces in the Pacific Ocean near Dana Point, California. A…
Science mystery as blue whales 'go quiet' in the ocean - 'The silence is a warning!'
Scientists have been left seriously concerned after thousands of blue whales "went quiet" in the ocean.Researchers from the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI) in California have found that blue whale songs have dropped by nearly 40 per cent over the past six years.The scientists captured acoustic recordings off the coast of the bay to try to understand the impact human activity was having on marine life. **ARE YOU READING THIS ON O…
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