Unusually Fast Beaked Whale Has Special Deep-Sea Hunting Strategy
Published:16 May2022 Source:Universiteit van Amsterdam
An international team of biologists has successfully used biologgers to reveal insights into the lifestyle and hunting behaviour of the little-known species Sowerby's beaked whale. The team's first results show that these dolphins have a surprisingly different, much faster lifestyle than related species. The research was led by Fleur Visser of the University of Amsterdam (UvA) and the Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research (NIOZ). The results were published on 12 May in the Journal of Experimental Biology.
Beaked whales include a number of species of marine mammals that can perform record-breaking dives. They routinely visit depths of up to several kilometres during hour-long hunting trips searching for deep-sea squid and fish. Due to their elusive nature and limited surface presence, little is known about their behaviour.