Anaïs Remili

Anaïs is the founder of Whale Scientists. She is a PhD student at McGill University working on killer whale ecology and pollution. You can read more about her here.

The beluga whale – February 2021

We are super happy to feature the beluga whale this February for our “Whale of the Month”. We are even more excited because this post is a collaboration with Whales Online (Baleines en Direct) and the GREMM (Group for Research and Education on Marine Mammals) located in Tadoussac, Quebec. Beluga conservation is one of the …

The beluga whale – February 2021 Read More »

New research confirms dolphins have a working clitoris and likely feel sexual pleasure

The hot news is literally rocking the biological world right now. Anatomical evidence suggests that female dolphins have a working clitoris, just like female humans. Let’s find out more about this incredible new research published yesterday in Current Biology. How do you even study a dolphin’s clitoris? We know so little about marine mammals and …

New research confirms dolphins have a working clitoris and likely feel sexual pleasure Read More »

This species has the lowest teeth count of all dolphins

Dolphins typically have between 100 and 200 identical teeth. Their teeth are typically shaped like cones to grab, grip, and secure prey before swallowing it whole. Dolphins may also use them to tear apart large chunks of flesh from their prey. Baby dolphins are born without teeth, and they gradually erupt from 2 to 5 …

This species has the lowest teeth count of all dolphins Read More »

Kogia: dwarf and pygmy sperm whales – November 2021

Whalecome to our new whales of the month: the dwarf and pygmy sperm whales. Like their cousin, the sperm whale, they like to spend most of their time deep underwater to hunt their favorite prey: squid and deep-sea fish, and crustaceans. Did you know they can release “ink” from their butts to confuse predators?! Find …

Kogia: dwarf and pygmy sperm whales – November 2021 Read More »

Humpback whale males escort females giving birth, but it can get chaotic

As if giving birth was not hard enough, when you are trying to push a 1.5-tons baby out of your womb, having to deal with hormone-triggered males adds another level of stress to a humpback whale in labor. A new study published this September detailed six previously un-published humpback whale birth events. In most cases, …

Humpback whale males escort females giving birth, but it can get chaotic Read More »

The Leopard Seal – September 2021

Welcome to our new “whale of the month,” the leopard seal. This muscular seal has a large reptilian-like head and is the third-largest pinniped in the world. This Antarctic seal has also been featured in a TikTok video on a beach in South Australia, a couple of days ago. Whether you came here from TikTok …

The Leopard Seal – September 2021 Read More »

Some fish-eating orcas have worn out teeth: Here’s why

Worn-out teeth, also called tooth wear, are pretty common in cetaceans. Although there are many documented cases of tooth wear in captivity, worn-out teeth exist in wild whales. And especially those who eat a lot of fish, like herring-eating killer whales. In this post, we explain why eating some fish can damage wild killer whale …

Some fish-eating orcas have worn out teeth: Here’s why Read More »

The Yangtze finless porpoise – July 2021

Happy July! This month, we decided to celebrate the Yangtze finless porpoise. You might have heard of the Baiji, also called the Yangtze river dolphin. Sadly, the species was officially declared to be extinct in 2006. Yet, another freshwater species resides in the Yangtze River, and if you thought the Irrawaddy dolphin was the cutest, …

The Yangtze finless porpoise – July 2021 Read More »

Successful release in Korea: captive dolphins now have babies in the wild

This is the story of the successful release of captive dolphins in Korea who later became moms in the wild. Sampal, Chunsam, and Boksoon were captive indo-pacific bottlenose dolphins at an entertainment park in Korea. They were released off of Jeju Island between 2013 and 2015. The three babies were born in April 2016, August …

Successful release in Korea: captive dolphins now have babies in the wild Read More »