Drone video is revealing exciting information about the acrobatic movements of gray whales as they hunt for food off the Oregon coast.
Drone video taken by researchers from Oregon State University’s Marine Mammal Institute is shedding light on the amazing maneuvers gray whales perform while foraging in Oregon’s coastal waters.
According to Clara Bird, a researcher in the Marine Mammal Institute’s Geospatial Ecology of Marine Megafauna Laboratory, the whales exhibit various actions, such as swimming forward and sideways, going into headstands, and using “bubble blasts,” all of which evolve as the whales mature.
Bird analyzed drone footage collected over seven years to measure the whales’ behaviors along with their size and health. Her research revealed that the likelihood of these behaviors changes with age.
For instance, younger and smaller whales tend to swim forward more frequently when foraging. In contrast, older and larger whales are inclined to perform headstands, which is a position where the whale’s mouth is directed toward the ocean floor. The chances of these behaviors being displayed indeed vary with the whales’ age.
“Our research indicates that headstanding requires significant strength and coordination. We often observe whales moving their tails rhythmically, similar to synchronized swimmers, while in a headstand. This behavior likely develops as the whales grow,” Bird explained, leading the study for her doctoral dissertation. “We’ve even captured footage of young whale calves attempting to mimic this behavior unsuccessfully.”
The results of this research have been published in two new papers co-authored by Bird and Associate Professor Leigh Torres, who directs the GEMM Lab at the Hatfield Marine Science Center in Newport.
Since 2015, Torres and her team have focused on studying the health and behaviors of the Pacific Coast Feeding Group, a subgroup of approximately 200 gray whales that choose to feast off the coasts of Oregon, Washington, Northern California, and Southern Canada during the summer, instead of migrating northward to the Arctic like most of the 19,000 gray whales in the Eastern North Pacific population. This subgroup of whales encounters more human-related activities in certain areas, like increased boat traffic, noise, and pollution, while foraging in the shallow waters along the Pacific Northwest Coast.
“Over the past ten years, it’s been an incredible journey discovering just how fascinating gray whales are. They are exceptional underwater acrobats, making sharp turns, swimming upside down and performing headstands,” Torres noted. “We’ve now linked these behaviors with the whales’ habitat, size, and age, which allows us to gain deeper insights into their patterns of movement and feeding. This knowledge will be vital in our efforts to protect them in the future.”
The new research indicates that whales adapt their foraging strategies based on their surroundings and the water depth. For instance, they are more inclined to perform headstands while on a reef because their primary food source, mysid shrimp, often clusters around kelp-filled reefs, as Bird shared.
The researchers also explored the purpose behind the gray whales’ “bubble blasts”—a large exhalation that creates a circular formation on the water’s surface when they’re submerged.
“While it was previously believed that bubble blasts helped gray whales gather or catch prey, our research indicates that this behavior actually serves as an adaptation to manage buoyancy while feeding in shallow waters,” Torres elaborated.
It was observed that larger and heavier whales were more likely to perform bubble blasts, especially during headstands. Additionally, bubble blasts were associated with longer underwater durations, supporting the idea that this behavior allows whales to maintain feeding for extended periods.
“Similar to humans, when we go diving and release air from our lungs, it makes it easier to stay underwater against the upward force of buoyancy,” Bird added.
Brought together, the two papers provide fresh perspectives on how the size of the whales influences their behaviors and how social learning might contribute to the adoption of these actions, she indicated.
“Studying these whales in our nearby coastal waters, where they feed in shallow areas and we can capture their behavior on camera, gives us unique insights into their activities,” Bird perceived. “Having the opportunity to research whales right in our backyard and help answer questions about their behavior feels truly significant.”
