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Why Don’t Whales Get Out of the Way?
Hakai Magazine ^ | 27 Jul, 2017 | Amorina Kingdon

Posted on 07/30/2017 9:32:58 AM PDT by MtnClimber

Ships are huge and loud, yet they seem to take whales by surprise.

When eight endangered North Atlantic right whales turned up dead in the ocean off Nova Scotia this past June, scientists scrambled to find out why. Early data shows several of the whales had blunt force trauma consistent with a ship strike, with data still pending on others.

Ship strikes are a major cause of injury or death for whales. But why do they happen at all? The ocean is vast, and huge ships don’t exactly travel at freeway speeds—there should be enough noise, movement, and warning for a whale to get out of the way, right? Why whales may remain in dangerous proximity to ships is tough to study, but over the years, some clues have begun to emerge.

One reason is that whales may not know ships are dangerous. After all, as the biggest animals in the ocean, whales may not understand that there are things in the ocean larger and more powerful than they are.

“It’s not something they’re evolved to deal with,” says John Calambokidis, a research biologist at Cascadia Research Collective in Washington State. “It’s also something there’s very little opportunity to learn from. It’s not like you can get struck two or three times and then you know you should avoid them.”

(Excerpt) Read more at hakaimagazine.com ...


TOPICS: Science
KEYWORDS: whales
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To: MtnClimber

Perhaps a sound frequency they hate. Like those little sound horns people in whitetail country(everywhere?? ) strap to their bumpers


21 posted on 07/30/2017 9:55:16 AM PDT by Vaquero (Don't pick a fight with an old guy. If he is too old to fight, he'll just kill you.)
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To: MtnClimber

Joke: “where does a 300,000 pound whale swim?”


22 posted on 07/30/2017 9:57:06 AM PDT by mrsmith (Dumb sluts: Lifeblood of the Media, Backbone of the Democrat/RINO Party!)
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To: MtnClimber

For some, that may be true. But I dislike you because you’re a walking lie. A male with swingin’ dick, pretending to be female, pretending to be a wife and pretending to be a mother. You are none of the above. Those girls’ DNA matches neither your nor Barry Soetoro’s. IMHO.


23 posted on 07/30/2017 9:59:32 AM PDT by Tucker39 (Read: Psalm 145. The whole psalm.....aloud; as praise to our God.)
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To: MtnClimber

Whales carry the armadillo gene that causes them jump in front of ships when they hear the sound of the engine.


24 posted on 07/30/2017 10:00:30 AM PDT by aMorePerfectUnion
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To: MtnClimber

I recall Jacques Cousteau being asked why dolphins don’t just jump over the corkline of a tuna seiner to escape? He replied that while they are intelligent, they do not possess human intelligence. Big difference.


25 posted on 07/30/2017 10:01:16 AM PDT by dainbramaged (Get out of my country now)
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To: RegulatorCountry

Around here the bike lanes are marked. And with the direction of travel. With traffic. Most bike riders here, ride against facing traffic. Confusing, dangerous and a problem. And it can be infuriating to yours truly.


26 posted on 07/30/2017 10:02:19 AM PDT by Vaquero (Don't pick a fight with an old guy. If he is too old to fight, he'll just kill you.)
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To: Tucker39

You may be on the wrong thread.


27 posted on 07/30/2017 10:03:10 AM PDT by dainbramaged (Get out of my country now)
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To: MtnClimber

Also, I lay this at the feet of the whales. They have giant brains. And next, not all animals are unable to cope with human machinery. So I think they need to step up their effort.

Geese will fly formation with an ultralight, dolphins play in the bow wave of ships and boats, and dogs stick their head out the window of the car loving every minute.
For a dog...that experience must make them feel like Major Stapp on a rocket sled at white sands.


28 posted on 07/30/2017 10:03:35 AM PDT by DesertRhino (Dog is man's best friend, and moslems hate dogs. Add that up.)
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To: Tucker39

Wrong whale thread.


29 posted on 07/30/2017 10:04:02 AM PDT by RegulatorCountry
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To: Tucker39

what the heck are you talking about??


30 posted on 07/30/2017 10:05:31 AM PDT by wyowolf (Be ware when the preachers take over the Republican party...)
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To: Tucker39
"But I dislike you because you’re a walking lie. A male with swingin’ dick, pretending to be female, pretending to be a wife and pretending to be a mother. You are none of the above."

LOL!


31 posted on 07/30/2017 10:07:18 AM PDT by Hatteras
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To: Tucker39

LOL. Does this post come with an interpreter?


32 posted on 07/30/2017 10:07:34 AM PDT by Lurkina.n.Learnin (I'm tired of the Cult of Clinton. Wish she would just pass out the Koolaide)
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To: MtnClimber

In Uncle Sam’s Army, I went TO Japan AND back on Kaiser Victory Ship troop carriers leftover from WWII. On the way over TO a stopover in Hawaii, we hit a whale in the wee small hours, as reported in the ship’s News Sheet the next day.


33 posted on 07/30/2017 10:07:34 AM PDT by Tucker39 (Read: Psalm 145. The whole psalm.....aloud; as praise to our God.)
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To: aMorePerfectUnion
Whales carry the armadillo gene

Do whales spread leprosy

34 posted on 07/30/2017 10:07:38 AM PDT by Vaquero (Don't pick a fight with an old guy. If he is too old to fight, he'll just kill you.)
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To: Tucker39
"A male with swingin’ dick"

Moby's Dick?

35 posted on 07/30/2017 10:09:29 AM PDT by Hatteras
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To: Tucker39
the Mooch thread is <<< way... 8^)
36 posted on 07/30/2017 10:11:27 AM PDT by Chode (You have all of the resources you are going to have. Abandon your illusions and plan accordingly.)
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To: MtnClimber

Duh. It’s all due to Global Warming. Earth’s increased temperature has made ships bigger (warm something, and it expands). Bigger ships are harder to avoid.

Why do I have to think of everything around here?


37 posted on 07/30/2017 10:13:23 AM PDT by Leaning Right (I have already previewed or do not wish to preview this composition.)
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To: headstamp 2

Here in Pennsyltucky, deer running onto the highway is always a concern. It intensifies during the fall rut, when they REALLY go nuts. I have “deer whistles” on all my vehicles. Would a speaker below the waterline on a ship, broadcasting a known whale alarm or danger sound help alert and warn the whales? Worth a trial, I would think.


38 posted on 07/30/2017 10:14:29 AM PDT by Tucker39 (Read: Psalm 145. The whole psalm.....aloud; as praise to our God.)
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To: Vaquero

“Do whales spread leprosy”

No, they spread lamp oil...


39 posted on 07/30/2017 10:15:03 AM PDT by aMorePerfectUnion
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To: MtnClimber
Whales can't read.


40 posted on 07/30/2017 10:18:06 AM PDT by RightGeek (FUBO and the donkey you rode in on)
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