pollutants

Preying on marine mammals might be threatening the survival of Icelandic orcas

By / / Whale Science / , , ,

Scientists have for a long time thought that orcas in Iceland specialized in eating fish (like herring). Recently, however, experts have noticed that some Icelandic orcas seem to enjoy another type of snack: marine mammals. This could be a problem, and eating marine mammals could threaten the long-term survival of these orcas. In this post, …

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What can whales tell us about pollution in Antarctica?

By / / Whale Science / , , , ,

We found long-banned pesticides and industrial pollutants in the blubber of humpback whales from Antarctica, suggesting these contaminants accumulate in Antarctic food webs. The pollution levels however were the some of the lowest measured in the world for these whales. Good news for the whales! Our study on humpback whales from Antarctica just got published …

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Whale Scientists Story: Marianna Pinzone

By / / Whale Scientist Stories / , ,

Marianna Pinzone is a 31 years-old Italian marine mammalogist. She is currently doing her PhD at the University of Liège in Belgium. Here is her story… Marianna’s Education I completed my Bsc. in Biological Sciences in 3 yrs at the University of Rome in Italy. After this, I went into my master program and got …

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Orca Awareness Month: Southern Residents (Part Two)

By / / Whale Science / , , ,

Make sure to read Part 1 before you read this post. Regrettably, Part 2 is a bit of a downer but is necessary to address. The SRKWs population has been drastically decreasing. The most recent population estimate indicates a total of 73 individuals remaining. Scientists have identified three main threats to the SRKW population: starvation, …

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