Modern whale leads shed light on a mystery that continues to baffle scientists: NPR

An image released by the New Zealand Department of Conservation on April 5, 2018, shows pilot whales ashore in Haast, a city on the west coast of New Zealand’s South Island.

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An image released by the New Zealand Department of Conservation on April 5, 2018, shows pilot whales ashore in Haast, a city on the west coast of New Zealand’s South Island.

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Earlier this week in remote New Zealand’s Chatham Islands, 477 pilot whales died After being stranded along two beaches at one of the largest beaches the country has seen.

less than a month ago, 230 stranded whales On the island of Tasmania in Australia, where rescuers managed to save dozens of marine mammals.

Shocking images from the latest wave of whale strands have captured global attention, and also highlight how difficult it is for scientists and conservationists to prevent such incidents.

strand Happening all over the worldHowever, researchers don’t know for sure why whales swim ashore.

Here’s what to know about why whales are stranded and what you can do about it:

Scientists don’t know why whale threads happen, but they have some ideas

Although experts don’t understand for sure why the whales remain stuck on land, they do have some theories.

Whales, along with dolphins and porpoises, belong to a class of marine mammals known as cetaceans. Dolphins and some whales travel in groups, and are stranded in great numbers.

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Toothed whales, also known as OdontositeUse echolocation to navigate underwater and communicate with each other.

According to Dr Vanessa Perrotta, a wildlife scientist at Macquarie University in Sydney, some whales have been stranded due to a navigational error.

She told NPR that the recent drifting of the Chatham Islands can be attributed to the deep waters around the very remote landmass.

Pilot whales are seen ashore along Stewart Island, New Zealand on November 25, 2018.

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Pilot whales are seen ashore along Stewart Island, New Zealand on November 25, 2018.

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“It is possible that these animals were either hunting or passing through the water and unfortunately they were exposed to a navigational hazard and ended up on the beach,” Perrotta said.

Another explanation – what Pirotta calls “adventurous” – is that because pilot whales are so social, they may simply follow a sick whale that ends up on shore.

else Reasons why whales might roam Because they flee from predators, are afraid of noise, are injured or give birth.

“The key point here is that any animal involved in delinquency does not want to be stranded,” Perrotta said.

“There’s a reason why this happened, and we don’t know why. Trying to solve this is still a huge mystery in the world of science.”

Whale threads can’t be prevented, but sometimes animals can be saved

If the whales are still alive by the time they end up ashore, there are a few strategies scientists can use to try to save them.

As a mammal, whales breathe air and can survive for a certain period on land. The reason you’d see someone splashing a whale on the beach with water is to cool it down, because whales lying in the sun can overheat.

Also, whales stuck on land do not have the buoyancy that they experience while swimming in the water, and if they are on the shore, the great weight of their bodies can crush their organs.

That’s why scientists may try to return the whales to the sea in a process called “reflotation.”

But there are drawbacks to this strategy, too. Whales may suffer internal injuries that may kill them once they are returned to the ocean or they may be traumatized by the refloating process, According to the International Whaling Commission.

Perrotta noted that some of the whales that were successfully refloated have been stranded again.

In the recent event in the Chatham Islands, nearby sharks and a lack of trained paramedics made re-floating impossible, and experts with the local rescue group Project Jonah cull the whales that survived the initial stranding.

Chains dominate the news, but it is unclear if they occur frequently

Delinquency occurs all over the world, but it is often just one or a few animals that are washed ashore rather than hundreds.

According to NOAA Fisheries, there were 7,320 misdemeanors have been confirmed Cetaceans, sea lions, and seals in the United States in 2018.

Globally, there have been some notable leads in recent years, including 380 pioneer whales die off the coast of Tasmania in the year 2020.

It is unclear whether fatal events are becoming more frequent around the world. But some research – including Report from the United Kingdom And the Study in Chile – Showed an increase in the number of cetacean chordates.