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Dominica announces new protections for sperm whales

Dominica has placed almost 800 square kilometers of sea off the west coast of the...
Commerson's dolphin

New Important Marine Mammal Areas added to global ocean conservation list

Commerson's dolphin Experts from a number of countries have mapped out a new set of...
Vaquita. Photo Thomas Jefferson

Scientific Committee gives first ever official species extinction warning

Photo: Thomas Jefferson We have welcomed the urgent call by experts to protect the vaquita...
blue whale

Whale fossil from Peru may have been heavier than blue whale

Scientists examining the bones of a 39 million-year-old ancient whale have concluded that it may...

Blue whale filmed feeding on krill off New Zealand

Rare footage of a blue whale hoovering up a ball of krill has been taken in the Southern Ocean off the coast of New Zealand. Researchers from the Hatfield Marine Science Center at Oregon State University recorded the whale twisting its body to lunge feed on the tiny prey.

On another occasion a whale passed through a mass of krill without feeding. The researchers believe the blue whale uses a lot of energy in slowing down to feed (from around 6 mph to 1 mph) and then getting going again, so unless the krill group is large enough to replace the lost energy, it’s not worth eating.

Blue whales in the waters around Antarctica was once thought to number around 200,000 but decades of whaling reduced them to a fraction of this figure. Today, around 2,000 are thought to survive.

The footage here was taken by trained drone operators to carefully avoid disturbing the whales. Drones should always be used responsibly and where appropriate under permit, with minimal disturbance to the wildlife (or people!).